Bethells/Te Henga/Waitakere Valley Local Area Plan

The Bethells/Te Henga/Waitakere Valley area is a place of extraordinary and varied beauty and significance. To the west, Bethells/Te Henga features a wild rocky coastline, black sand surf beaches and lagoon, sand dunes pushing inland to Lake Wainamu, the gem of Lake Kawaupaku in its bush setting and the Te Henga wetland meandering along the base of the lower Waitakere River valley. Further east, the valley offers a varied landscape of paddocks, orchards and remnant forest and Pae o te Rangi parkland. In the valley’s upper reaches the landscape changes again; the Waitakere Golf Course surrounded by native forest, the waterfalls, creeks and native bush of the Cascade Kauri Park, and the magnificent forest covered catchment of the Waitakere water supply lake. What Has Happened to Date?

The former Waitakere City Council prioritised the Local Area Plan (LAP) for the Bethells/ Te Henga area fourth in line, after Waiatarua, Oratia and Henderson Valley/Opanuku, and a background report for the area was prepared in preparation for the LAP (see below). It is likely that consultation for the LAP will commence in the latter part of 2011.

Boundary of the area

Community to be consulted on LAP boundary

The Waitakere Ranges Heritage Area Act 2008 requires the council to identify the boundary of a LAP area, in consultation with the people of the area. Note that these boundaries do not affect other aspects of the area, such as the postal area or school zone.

The northern boundary of the proposed Bethells/Te Henga/ Waitakere Valley LAP area is fixed by the boundary of the Waitakere Ranges Heritage Area, as is the western boundary along the coast of the Tasman sea. This is because LAPs can only apply within the Heritage Area boundary. It is the boundaries to the south and east which are open to discussion.

On the basis of the limited consultation to date, and for the purposes of the background report only, the draft LAP area includes the combined areas of the ‘lower valley’ of Bethells Beach/ Te Henga Coastal Village and Tasman View Road together with the middle and upper valley areas - essentially the Waitakere River catchment. It is acknowledged that the community needs to have more opportunity to contribute to the discussion of the LAP boundaries, and the exact boundaries to the south and east will not be finalised until consultation with the local community has been undertaken during development of the LAP. This means that the boundaries outlined in the map in the Bethells/ Te Henga/ Waitakere Valley background report may need to be changed once this consultation has occurred.

Features of the draft LAP boundary

As noted above, much of the northern boundary of the area is fixed by the boundary of the Waitakere Ranges Heritage Area under the Act 2008. For much of its length, this boundary follows close to the Bethells Road at the base of the Waitakere Valley, although the Royal Forest and Bird’s Matuku Reserve to the north of the Te Henga wetland is within the Heritage Area, as is the Department of Conservation owned land along the coast north of the Waitakere River mouth.

Generally, the remaining boundaries align with the water catchment of the Waitakere River, with two main exceptions:

Although some of the Unity Road properties lie within the adjoining Anzac Valley catchment, all Unity Road properties are included within the Bethells/ Te Henga/ Waitakere Valley draft LAP boundary. Unity Road connects with Te Henga Road, with no direct road access to Anzac Valley. Thus, it is considered that the ‘community of interest’ of Unity Road properties is more likely to lean towards Bethells/Te Henga and the Waitakere Valley.
Steamhauler Track properties drain mainly to the Waitakere River Valley and are therefore within the draft LAP boundary. However, Steamhauler Track is quite close to Anzac Valley/Waitakere Township, and residents will likewise need to decide where their most significant community of interest lies.

View a map of the proposed LAP area. (Size 170K)

Bethells/Te Henga/Waitakere Valley Background Report

This background report is designed to assist the community and the council in the process of developing a LAP for the area. The report has a wealth of information about the area. It brings together information on the natural and human heritage features of the area, and issues relating to the protection, restoration and enhancement of these features. It also looks at the parks, reserves and beaches, recreational opportunities/visitor-related issues, and social and economic resources. It is noted that while every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in the report, errors may be present, and it is also anticipated that members of the community will be able to add significantly to this ‘story of the area’ during the LAP process.

The report concludes with an outline of the matters identified as important by the community in the past, and the issues that have suggested themselves through the research undertaken for the report. These are set out in the form of questions that may assist with discussions during the development of the LAP for the area.

Read the Bethells/Te Henga/Waitakere Valley Background Report and its appendices (see below).

Bethells/Te Henga/Waitakere Valley Background Report (full version) (Size 23700K)

Cover and Background (Size 131K)

Executive Summary (Size 546K)

Part 1 - Introduction (Size 814K)

Part 2 - Human Heritage (Size 2678K)

Part 3 - Natural Heritage Features and Landscape (Size 2495K)

Part 4 - Protection, Restoration and Enhancement (Size 2057K)

Part 5 - Parkland, Recreation and Visitors (Size 901K)

Part 6 - Social and Economic Wellbeing (Size 3000K)

Part 7 - Previous Community Consultation and Summary of Issues (Size 1625K)

Appendices

Appendix 1 Coastal Villages Landscape Assessment (Size 1519K)

Appendix 2 RAP Maps (Size 1328K)

Appendix 3 Outstanding Vegetation Sites (Size 449K)

Appendix 4 Invasive or Environmental weeds - website version (Size 1484K)

Appendix 5 RPMS Map Waitakere Ranges Weed Control Zone (Size 613K)

Appendix 6 RPMS Pest Species (Size 429K)

Appendix 7 ARC 2009 Ecological condition of Lakes (Size 1062K)

Appendix 8 Cover (Size 407K)

Appendix 8 Exotic fish in Lake Wainamu (Size 434K)

Appendix 9 Provisions for Reserve Areas (Size 433K)

Appendix 10 Te Henga Park Management Plan (Size 29938K)

Appendix 11 Rainfall Data (Size 435K)

If you would like a printed copy of the Bethells/Te Henga/Waitakere Valley Background Report, please e-mail us at ranges@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz or call (09) 301 0101.

If you would like to send us your comments on the background report, please use this online form or email us directly at ranges@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz. Alternatively, write to us at Auckland Council, Waitakere Ranges Protection Area Programme, c/o Jenny Macdonald, Private Bag 93109, Henderson, Auckland 0650.

Next steps

Consultation with the community for the preparation of the LAP is likely to commence in the new financial year (after June 30th, 2011). We will be posting updates on this website, putting notices up on notice boards and sending mail and email updates to inform local residents in advance.

Contact us

If you have any queries or would like to be part of the email list for the LAP, please contact us at ranges@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz or on (09) 301 0101.