Media Releases

December 2003

23 December

Too far "Away in a Manger(e)"…….

New billboards going up around the city just before Christmas are part of a campaign to save Auckland's second airport at Whenuapai and convert it to commercial use.

"A favourable decision from the Government would be one of the best Christmas presents Aucklanders could get," says Waitakere City Council mayoral task force head and chair of the city's Economic Development Agency, Bryan Mogridge.

"The season of goodwill seemed a good time to get some positive messages out there about not destroying this airport".

"We think it should be used, in conjunction with a new industrial and commercial park, to generate wealth and jobs in the north west, to compensate for the $250 million a year loss when the Air Force leaves in five years".

"Considering Auckland's traffic congestion, and the fact that half the people in the Auckland region live nearer to Whenuapai than Mangere, it just makes sense."

Mr Mogridge said that for many people Auckland Airport is too far "away in a Manger(e). It can take longer to get to Auckland Airport than it does to fly to Wellington and that's just ridiculous." 

'If you'd taken off from Whenuapai you'd be there now' reads one of the billboards on the route to Mangere. 'Auckland's second airport is already built' reads another.

The Christmas billboards are likely to be added to in the New Year.

"We certainly hope saving Whenuapai will be one of the Government's New Year Resolutions," said Mr Mogridge.

18 December

Council gifts vouchers to help needy local families

Local families will receive a little extra cheer from the Salvation Army this Christmas, courtesy of Waitakere City Council.

The Council gifted $350 worth of shopping vouchers to the Waitakere City branch of the Salvation Army to help with the cost of putting together Christmas hampers for needy local families.

Pastor Herring accepts the vouchers from Deputy Mayor Carolynne Stone.

Presented to Pastor Malcolm Herring by Deputy Mayor Carolynne Stone, the vouchers had originally been given to the Council by APN Holdings Ltd (publisher of the NZ Herald and The Aucklander) as a thank you for advertising with them. "We felt that rather than spending the vouchers ourselves, we could use them to help make Christmas a better time for some local families who are struggling to make ends meet," Cr Stone says.

The Waitakere City branch of the Salvation Army, located at 7 View Rd, Henderson, is preparing 259 Christmas hampers for needy local families, in addition to running their normal Foodbank services. The organisation is also receiving new Christmas gifts through Kmart's Wishing Tree appeal.

18 December

Mayor welcomes new film project to Waitakere City

The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe will mean millions of dollars of new business in Waitakere City, and many hundreds of jobs, Waitakere Mayor Harvey said today.

Production of the film in New Zealand was confirmed this afternoon.

Mayor Harvey, also a member of the New Zealand Film Commission, said the announcement was a huge boost for Waitakere City's rapid-growing film industry. 

"The deal cements Waitakere City as the Hollywood of the South Pacific, a film and television location of international stature," he said.

Mayor Harvey thanked Industry Development Minister Jim Anderton for helping to bring the production of a 'huge new international film project to his city'.

Mr Harvey said that Mr Anderton's 'Large Budget Screen Production Grant' scheme had significantly increased the chances that 'The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe' series of films would be filmed in New Zealand.

The film is to be shot throughout Waitakere City, and at the Henderson Valley Studios, which the Waitakere City Council purchased earlier this year.

Mr Harvey said the deal was further fulfilment of a ten-year-old council vision to make Waitakere City a film and television centre of international importance.

The new film deal follows in the tradition of The Piano, Redhead, Hercules, Xena, Shortland Street, Whale Rider, Mercy Peak, and Power Rangers all of which were shot and/or produced in Waitakere City.

"With this project comes hundreds of direct and indirect jobs over the next 12 months. On the back of Lord of the Rings having another major international movie takes the New Zealand film industry onto a new level of strength and growth."

18 December

Ian Wood joins group

Ian Wood has joined the Te Atatu Marae Development Group.
His appointment was confirmed at last night's Waitakere City Council meeting.

Mr Wood lives in Te Atatu and is a former chairperson of the Te Atatu Residents' and Ratepayers' Association. He was a strong advocate for the "People's Park" at Te Atatu (now known as Harbourview-Orangihina Park). 

Mr Wood joins Tau Henare, Mihi Te Huia, Melba Wellington, Te Warena Taua, Poata Northcroft, Maurice Young, Kelvin Martin , and Judge Jim Rota (subject to confirmation of his availability) on the development group. The group is responsible for moving forward work on the marae project until a trust is established under the Te Ture Whenua Maori Act (1993). That trust will then be responsible for building and managing the marae. The development group will appoint its own chairperson and initial work will include looking at funding opportunities for the marae.  It will report its progress back to the Council by August of next year.

16 December

Waitakere City to seek court permission to "freeze" Swanson Structure Plan

Waitakere City Council today decided to ask the Environment Court if it could suspend its Swanson Structure Plan for up to two years. This would also result in appeals against the plan, also being "frozen". 

If the Court does not agree to this suspension, the matter will be referred back to the Council for further consideration.

The action is being taken after an independent review of structure planning, found that the Swanson Structure Plan needed to be related to an over-arching strategy for the Waitakere Ranges and their foothills.

Councillor Penny Hulse, Chair of the Council's Environmental Management Committee says that when completed, work currently being carried out on the future management and protection of the Ranges will provide the overall strategy that is currently lacking.

"We feel that the only realistic option is to put the Swanson Structure Plan on hold for two years and then see how it fits with that greater strategy," Says Councillor Hulse.

"Cancelling the plan or proceeding with the Environment Court appeals about it, are both premature options because we simply don't know at this stage, what the Ranges strategy will say. It may offer us some excellent solutions, in which case we have everything to gain by waiting a bit longer," she says.

"Furthermore, people in favour of the Structure Plan aren't necessarily losing any time. With the appeals process and the workload at the Environment Court, it's very doubtful if the Structure Plan could proceed within two years, anyway," she says.

12 December

Council supports new walking and cycling strategy

The development of a draft national strategy aimed at encouraging more people to walk and cycle has the support of Waitakere City Council.

Titled "Getting There On Foot, By Cycle"  the walking and cycling strategy is part of the bigger New Zealand Transport Strategy released last year.

The Council developed its Walking and Cycling Strategy earlier this year in response to the direction signalled in the Transport Strategy.

The draft national strategy sets out the vision, goals and priorities for encouraging more walking and cycling in New Zealand. It builds on the government's goal of providing a holistic transport package for the country and supports the Council's direction of providing for alternative travel modes (including its own Walking and Cycling Strategy).

The strategy also applies to national agencies such as Transit NZ and Transfund NZ " helping to build and strengthen how walking and cycling are viewed in major road and rail improvement projects.

The strategy's vision is: "A New Zealand where people from all sectors of the community choose to walk and cycle for transport and enjoyment " helping ensure a healthier population, more lively and connected communities and a more affordable, integrated, safe, responsive and sustainable transport system".

The strategy has four key focuses:

• Making communities and transport networks more friendly to pedestrians and cyclists
• Encouraging the choice of walking and cycling
• Improving safety and security for those who walk and cycle
• Strengthening the foundations for effective action

"The Council fully supports the development of the strategy, as it takes a holistic approach to various aspects of walking and cycling development, including the areas of promotion, safety, health and infrastructure improvements," says Denise Yates, deputy chair of the Council's Environmental Management Committee.

"However, there are a number of significant areas missing at this stage, which will determine the effectiveness of the strategy. Weaknesses include no set targets, monitoring programme or implementation plan, but we understand they have been identified as key areas to be developed over the next two years."

Waitemata District Health Board director, Penny Hulse, says the implementation of a walking and cycling strategy that encourages a healthier population can only be good for local residents.

"One of the key strategic health goals of the Waitemata DHB is in the area of cardiac health. With heart disease being our number one killer, any extra exercise that our community gets is going to make a difference. Safe places to walk and cycle will be providing people with more opportunities to exercise and will potentially save millions of health dollars a year," she says.

12 December

Kaurilands pupils impress Council with stream studies

Councillors were delighted this week when children from Glen Eden's Kaurilands School made a presentation on their studies of local streams.

The studies were carried out under an environmental study programme developed for schools by Waitakere City Council. The pupils made their presentation to the Council's Environmental Management Committee's December meeting.

Year 3 students from the school presented their work as electronic PowerPoint displays and colourful posters, which they brought around to each councillor to view.

The work was undertaken as part of the Action Learning project, supported by the Council and outside experts. 

The project takes an investigative approach to learning. Students are guided through a process of researching a topic, developing an outcome and presenting it to an audience.

Students visited both a good and degraded stream near their school, learnt about native freshwater fish and the effects humans can have on the aquatic environment, listened to expert presentations on catchment issues and asked questions.

The class also made extensive use of Council website information on macroinvertebrates and native freshwater fish and its 'Focus on Bugs' video provided to schools in March this year.

Environmental Management Committee chair, Penny Hulse, says councillors were bowled over by the standard of the work that was presented to them by the pupils.

"They had obviously put a lot of time and effort into the work. It was of an amazingly high standard with good quality information. We were also impressed with the school's willingness to participate and contribute to the City's environmental goals."

12 December

Waitakere optimistic about transport delivery

"A funding package for Auckland transport has been a long time coming and we are awaiting a positive delivery for Waitakere City." 

That's the view of Waitakere Mayor Bob Harvey, commenting on the outcome of today's announcement. 

"This government has clearly had Auckland and its transport problems in its sights for some time, and this announcement has been worked on intensively with representatives from many government agencies and from local authorities throughout the Auckland region," he says.

"What has emerged for transport implementation, as with water services for the Auckland region, is a delivery-focussed Board making high-level distribution decisions from a united position.

"The question is, what will it do for Waitakere City? If the new governance arrangements, new money, and the provisions of the new Land Transport Management Act mean that we get State Highway 16 and a fully double-tracked, electrified railway by 2006, then we will look back on this day and realise that it was the turning point we all wanted. What I don't want to see is the rules being changed and new money coming into the system but the players staying the same and the bad behaviour continuing, with no delivery.

"It is clear that this will be the first of several announcements by the Crown leading up to the Budget 2004 on how to make the Auckland economy pull its weight - and these announcements today are certainly welcome news leading into the New Year," says Mayor Harvey.

11 December

Council asks residents to target invasive weeds over summer

Waitakere City Council is urging residents to join the fight to rid the City of environmental weeds this summer.

It is offering assistance to people wanting to remove weeds from their property, providing information on targeting specific species, community assistance funding for clearing major weed infestations and replanting advice and assistance. Free bags are available for the removal of ginger.

Thirteen bush reserves are also receiving comprehensive weed control this year and the Council has a programme to respond to public requests for weed removal on local parks.

For more information contact us.

10 December

Surf champs come to Piha

The New Zealand National Surfing Championships are coming to Waitakere City's Piha Beach from January 3 to 11 next year.

It has been 10 years since the championships were last held in the Auckland region.

Hosted by the local Keyhole Boardriders' Club and supported by Waitakere City Council, the national champs are the most prestigious event on the country's surfing calendar and have been running since the 1960s.

Some 400 surfers from around the country, ranging in age from 14 to 50-plus, will compete in 18 divisions. Several thousand spectators are also expected. 

Up and coming local surfers to watch out for include teenagers Ryan Hawker and Misha Davies.

Waitakere City Mayor Bob Harvey will attend the opening ceremony on Friday 2 January and the prizegiving ceremony on Sunday 11 January. Both ceremonies with take place from 4pm-10pm at the Barnett Hall, Marine Parade, North Piha.

The Piha Domain and Les Waygood Reserve will be available for parking.

Marine Parade South Road will be closed to traffic from 5am on Friday 2 January to 6pm on Sunday 11 January, except for people living along that road.

An alcohol ban will also be in place from 5pm to 5am for the duration of the event.

The event is sponsored by Watties Creamed Rice, Waitakere City Council, Raro, Lion Red, S.P.A.R.C, Smokefree and Surfing New Zealand.

5 December 2003

Advisory Notice

Council requirements in respect of monolithic cladding

Further to recent publicity about future use of monolithic cladding systems, Waitakere City Council has released the following advisory notice about its position. The new provisions outlined below are being drawn to the attention of the building professions and trades, building owners and other interested parties.

Effective immediately Waitakere City has initiated a number of changes in respect of Building Consents, Inspections and Code Compliance Certificates where monolithic cladding is used.

Building consent applications

All Building Consent applications that include the use of monolithic cladding must have a cavity system incorporated into the design. This will provide a first line of defence against the harmful effects of any water or moisture that may penetrate the cladding. In the interim until the amendments to the Building Code Clause E2 External Moisture become available, either specific design of the cavity will be required or the Building Industry Authority Consultation Document used as a basis for establishing compliance.

Building inspections

Further inspections will be required during the application of these systems. Should these inspections not be adhered to and passed, Council will not issue a Code Compliance Certificate.

Code compliance certificates

Note: The following shall not be construed to be a "blanket" approach and each decision will be made on a case by case basis. Where a building is deemed to be compliant a Code Compliance Certificate will be issued.

• Any building work that has a cavity installed behind the cladding and has been subject to and passed the new inspection regime, will be able to have a Code Compliance Certificate issued in the normal manner. Building work that has been completed or is in the process of being completed (and does not currently have a Code Compliance Certificate) or has a cavity that has not had the new required inspections will not be given a Code Compliance Certificate unless Council can establish on reasonable grounds that the building will comply. If in Council's opinion the building does not comply applicants will be issued with a Notice to Rectify.
• Where a Notice to Rectify is not complied with and/or a Code Compliance Certificate is not issued, the Consent Applicant will be advised to apply to the BIA for a determination.

These changes have been brought about by a number of drivers together with the "Kelleway" Judgement, the first of WHRS adjudications which held that: -

"Council must put in place proper inspection processes at appropriate stages during construction of a building so that the Council is able to ensure compliance with the Building Code."

In light of this decision and the implications we consider we have no option other than to impose these requirements. Council has a duty not only to the Construction Industry as a whole but also home owners and future home owners in terms of the projected life span of these buildings. One of the primary duties is to ensure that the quality of housing stock is compliant and remains compliant and in a safe and sanitary condition. This is not limited to the cladding system but the structure as a whole.

5 December

Business supports Whenuapai commercial airfield concept

The future of Whenuapai Airbase when the Air Force departs in five years was discussed by North Shore business leaders in the second of a series of meetings in the region, chaired by Enterprise North Shore chairman Maurice Boland, and addressed by the Mayor of North Shore, Waitakere and Rodney.

Bryan Mogridge who heads the City's "Mayoral Taskforce" on Whenuapai, and business journalist Rod Oram, also addressed the meeting.

"There appears to be widespread business support on the North Shore for the concept of a commercial airport at Whenuapai, and a desire to see it further evaluated," said Mr Mogridge.

"For most people and businesses on the North Shore it is easier to get to and from Whenuapai than Mangere, and there is an awareness that traffic congestion will get worse in the foreseeable future.

"There is some concern in the Greenhithe area about noise levels from a commercial airport. In fact, noise levels initially will be quite a bit less than with the current military operation, but this is an issue which would be addressed through the resource consent process if the commercial airport option is chosen.

Mr Mogridge said that with supplies of commercial and industrial land beginning to run out on the North Shore, it made sense for future major developments to be centred around a commercial airport at Whenuapai, close to rail, and connected to the North Shore by the new motorway linking the northern and northwestern motorways.

"It is not an either/or choice. We can have a commercial airport as well as a business park and industrial development, and these will develop faster if they can cluster round and airport. Destroying the airport to make way for commercial development is absolutely the wrong way to go."

Mr Mogridge says he has been delighted at the support shown by business people at the recent meetings. "They can see how a commercial airport can add real value. In business, time is money and if you can save yourself or your product time by not having to travel all the way to Mangere in rush hour traffic then you see a real improvement to your bottom line.

"There is also good appreciation of how a commercial airport could help turbo charge development in the Northwest."

The meetings are being hosted by Enterprise Waitakere, Waitakere City's business development agency and are aimed at informing people about the advantages of keeping the base open as a commercial airport (the government has announced that the base will be closed within five years).

Waitakere City Council has formed a joint venture with infrastructure investment company Infratil to ensure that commercialisation of the airport is considered at by the government when it assesses options for future use of the land. Tim Brown of Infratil also addressed the North Shore meeting.

The next business meeting is being held in Rodney.

Waitakere City Council is encouraging business people to make a formal submission on the base. Consultation, being undertaken by New Zealand Defence Force closes on January 16, 2004.

4 December

Council grants consent for new telecommunications facility

Waitakere City Council has granted resource consent to Vodafone NZ Ltd, to construct a telecommunications facility at 11 Scott Rd, Hobsonville.

However, after considering 60 submissions on the proposal - including those expressing concern over the facility's possible impact on any future development in the area - the Council decided to limit the length of consent to 10 years. This means Vodafone will have to reapply for resource consent to retain the facility after that time.

The facility will provide cellphone coverage to the surrounding area and across the harbour to Beach Haven.

The facility will cover an area of around 70 square metres (including the fenced area around the base of the mast and three equipment cabinets). It will also include a 30m high pole structure, six panel antennas and a 30cm dish attached to the structure.

Vodafone's proposal is considered a discretionary activity under the City's District Plan, as it would exceed the maximum height of buildings and infrastructure set for the area's Countryside Living Environment zoning. 

Resource management issues include the adverse effects on visual amenity and landscape character created by the height of the structure.

Submitters raised concerns about potential health and safety effects from electromagnetic radiation, the height of the proposed structure and whether it would compromise future development potential. 

Vodafone says the height is required due to the tall trees throughout the area, but that they would also act as a screen.

The Council's Hearings Committee chair, Gwen Nash, says the committee decided to grant resource consent because it was satisfied that any environmental effects would be mitigated and that the relevant objectives and policies of the District Plan would be satisfied.

"We are happy that any adverse effects on visual amenity and neighbourhood character would be minor, given the location of the site, its distance from site boundaries (and neighbouring dwellings) and the fact that the significant height of the trees on the site would both screen and off-set the vertical impression of the structure on the skyline."

"Even if the facility is able to be seen from neighbouring properties, only the very top portion of the mast and antennas will be visible."

In response to perceived health effects from electromagnetic radiation, Cr Nash says the Council was guided by a Ministry for the Environment and Ministry of Health document titled, "National Guidelines for Managing the Effects of Radio Frequency Transmitters", which indicates that there are no established health effects from facilities which produce radio frequency energy, provided exposures are within legal limits.

"The submitters were listened to and the committee did make adjustments to the conditions of the consent, limiting the time period and allowing for reviews of impacts on the surrounding environment," Cr Nash says.

4 December

Free water surveys for New Lynn

A new survey is being trialled in New Lynn to study how much water can be saved by fixing leaks and by installing simple water saving devices. 

The survey, being conducted by EcoMatters Environment Trust on behalf of Waitakere City Council, will focus on about 2000 households in New Lynn. The houses will be visited and, if the residents agree, checked for leaks and water-wasteful toilet cisterns and showerheads.

Under the free service, old style cisterns will be fitted with a "gizmo" to halve the amount of water used and showerheads will be replaced with water-efficient showerheads.

Householders will also be advised on other water-savings measures they can take, including buying water-friendly appliances, how to check for leaks and they can even get a $500 subsidy from Council if they install a rainwater tank.

"Even small and simple changes like those our representatives can make on the spot, can make an enormous difference. Small savings add up " even on a household water-bill and if enough households make small savings, the effect city-wide is potentially very significant," says Denis Finn, chair of the EcoMatters Environment Trust.

The survey is expected to start on 8 December and households selected for the survey will be contacted in advance. To find out if you're in the pilot area please contact us.

2 December

No decision yet on re-identifying Harbourview-Orangihina park

No decision has been made on re-identifying Harbourview-Orangihina Park at Te Atatu Peninsula, as an Open Space Environment with a small portion separately re-identified as a Marae Special Area.

After two days of listening to submissions to the Waitakere City Council Environmental Management Committee Hearings, Councillors asked officers to bring back a report on 16 December 2003.

The submissions were sought after the Council proposed to re-identify the majority of the Harbourview-Orangihina Park land as an Open Space Environment and 2.5 hectares as a Marae Special area.

The Council's proposals were designed to provide the different areas with a District Plan designation most appropriate to their respective future uses

Harbourview-Orangihina Park was, until recently, informally known as the People's Park.