News

For our latest newsletter, please see our newsletters page. If you have local news you’d like us to share, contact us via our contact page.

Recent News

Provide Your Feedback on Draft Waiatarua Reserve Enhancement Plan

Posted: 30 July 2019

Summary of MBSJRA’s Opinion on the Draft Waiatarua Reserve Enhancement Plan

Waiatarua Reserve currently provides great off-leash dog recreation, but the presence of off-leash dogs has meant that other recreation activities that could take place in the reserve have not been developed, especially recreation opportunities for our children. We believe that at 41 hectares with 16 hectares of grassland and paths, that the reserve is big enough for many recreation uses without impacting on off-leash dog activities. With an estimated 84% of households in Auckland not being dog owners, and an estimated 89% of households in Meadowbank and St Johns not owning dogs we believe that this justifies alternate recreation areas in the Reserve.

According the Auckland Council’s Policy on Dogs 2012 Waiatarua Reserve is an off-leash dog area: “a place where dogs may be off-leash but still must be under control. A place shared with other users.” While we agree that the vast majority of dogs owners do a good job at controlling their dogs in the reserve, the natural exuberance of dogs enjoying off-leash play it is not always compatible with recreation such as kicking a ball with kids. Feedback from residents and examples of poorly controlled dogs interacting with families means we believe that a on-leash dog area is needed in the reserve.

The draft Waiatarua Reserve Enhancement Plan goes a long way to addressing the environmental improvements that we have sought, but we believe that recreation areas suitable for picnics, ball games and outdoor play are vital to ensure that our children grow up with a connection to the environment and grow up to value it,  and that they gain an understanding of the importance of maintaining our environment into the future. We propose a small area of the Reserve be designated on-leash and that this area be used for outdoor recreation and play. Simple fencing similar to that at the playground at the western end of the reserve would be perfect. Click here to download the draft enhancement plan and submit your feedback.

How Do I Provide Feedback?

The Waiatarua Reserve Enhancement Plan is now available and your feedback is requested, closing 12 August 2019. Auckland Council is seeking your input on:

– what you use the reserve for
– when you visit the reserve
– what recreation facilities you’d like to have available
– your environmental priorities.
There will also be a drop-in event at the Menz Shed (in the Abbotts Way car park) 10am – 12noon on Saturday 3 August 2019.

What Is the Background to This Plan?

Waiatarua Reserve covers 41 hectares with 16 hectares of open meadows and paths suitable for recreation. The reserve is a unique area of open space in our suburbs and has many opportunities for environmental and recreation improvements. The purpose of the Waiatarua Reserve Enhancement Plan is to ensure that developments are consistent with the themes of the reserve, protect the natural values and prevent it from being cluttered with ad-hoc developments. It is one of over 2500 beaches, parks and reserves listed as off-leash dog walking areas in Auckland.

What Does MBSJRA Think of the Plan?

We have reviewed the draft Waiatarua Reserve Enhancement Plan and believe that it covers the much needed environmental improvements that we sought to ensure that the wetland health is improved. The plan also outlines the need for increased pest management for animals, fish and plants deemed pests. We like the improved links with the neighbouring golf course too and improved amenities such as seating and rubbish bins.

However, we believe that with 16 hectares of open space, and with suburban backyards increasingly shrinking, that there is also scope to further improve the recreation amenity in the Reserve. While well utilised as an off-leash dog walking area, the presence of off-leash dogs precludes other recreation activities such as causal backyard style cricket or soccer games with friends. Discussions with residents with children show that the reserve is not especially well used by that group due to the presence of dogs, and examples of dogs intimidating children and interfering with their play are many. There is a small playground area at the far western end of the park, but this playground area is not large enough for anything other than playing on the provided play equipment. The popularity of this playground demonstrates that people want to get outside with their children and that people think that Waiatarua Reserve is a great place to do this.

Waiatarua Reserve is a huge green area with more than enough space for everyone that wants to use it, and increasingly in this day and age we need to find ways to increase the amount of time our children spend outside, eating outside, active outside and feeling a connection to our environment and ownership of the importance of maintaining it into the future. Studies also show time and again that for improved physical and mental health we need to get our kids (as well us adults too) outside and active, so why not make use of the biggest green space in the suburb? Notwithstanding that Waiatarua is a regional facility as well and hugely popular with dog owners generally we believe it is too valuable a green space to be solely dedicated to our four-legged friends.

Where Could These Recreation Areas Be?

To be clear, this proposal would have little if any impact on dog walking in the Reserve. The area to the left of the entrance way at 139/141 Grand Drive is the prime location for a recreation area with dogs on-leash. As shown by this flood zone map on page 11 of the plan, the area is not flood prone and observations show that the area is impressively dry even after heavy rain. It’s also accessible via a separate bridge close to the boundary with 147 Grand Drive. It is adjacent to the golf course and a planned path connecting the two areas, and is already planted with mature exotic trees, and of course is the closest point to the Meadowbank town centre. This area is identified in the plan as an area suitable to “provide opportunities to connect with nature and lean about natural and cultural aspects of the reserve” (page 29) and suitable for high infrastructure intensity.

The main feature that a recreation area with dogs on-leash needs is a very basic fence to delineate the area on all sides. This could be similar to the basic fence surrounding the play area in the south-western corner of the park. We would like to see closer cropped grass if possible, picnic tables under the trees, and assuming it’s far enough away from the houses (which are elevated and screened by hedges and trees) some play equipment for kids would be ideal. These could even be more nature based e.g. tree trunk stepping stone type play equipment and other natural material based Māori traditional play (māra hūpara) as have been installed in playgrounds elsewhere in Auckland. We would prefer to see this clustered in one area where children can play without dogs around.

Trees provide the perfect obstacle course.

If the Grand Drive entrance area of the reserve is not deemed suitable, then pushing out the fenced area at the current playground into the large, flat, open space there (noted as 13a on page 27 of the plan and pictured above) to enable some balls/frisbees/picnic sitting on the ground, meeting other families etc without having to worry about kids and picnics vs. off-leash dogs, or indeed a space for older children to be able to go down with their friend, be somewhat independent and having a good time out of the house. The path currently used by dog walkers could be re-routed to the east of this proposed area.

Photo credit: Theo Leach

This area only needs to be about the size of Meadowbank School’s field, which is an extremely small percentage of the reserve – compare these two maps to get an idea of the size of the area we are suggesting:

How Many Auckland Households Own Dogs? How Many Households Own Dogs in Meadowbank and St Johns?

According to Auckland Council an estimated 15% of Auckland households are registered dog owners, with slightly lower ownership rates in Meadowbank and St Johns. This means that 85% or more of households don’t own dogs. We believe this supports a more varied use of Waiatarua Reserve, and its size, geography and the route that dog owners generally walk their dogs would easily adapt to more varied recreational uses.

Auckland Council Policy on Dogs 2012

The Auckland Council Policy on Dogs 2012 notes that Waiatarua Reserve is designated as “an off-leash area – a place where dogs may be off a leash but must still be under control. A place shared with other users.” This Policy on Dogs also notes that being a responsible dog owner means (among other things) being particularly vigilant near children and closely supervise interaction, respect other people’s personal space and to remember that public spaces are for everyone’s enjoyment and not everyone is fond of dogs. While we agree that the vast majority of dogs owners do a good job at controlling their dogs in the reserve, due to feedback from residents and examples of poorly controlled dogs we believe that a recreation area where dogs need to be on-leash is needed in the reserve. Our preference is for all dogs in Waiatarua Reserve to be well controlled as per the Dog Policy so that a separate recreation area is not needed, but unfortunately this is not the current situation.

Our Presentation to Orakei Local Board in September 2019

In September 2019 we presented to the Orakei Local Board at their monthly meeting on what we would like to see as part of the Waiatarua Reserve Enhancement Plan. You can read the content of the presentation here and the powerpoint presentation here. The Orakei Local board passed a resolution to explore an additional designated on-leash dog area. We thank the Orakei Local Board for the opportunity to present to them and for considering our request.

Make Proposed 81-Unit Development on Donnelly St Notified Consent

Posted: 25 July 2019

Due to the level and variety of concerns that have been expressed by residents in the area around the proposed 81 unit development on the formerly Council owned land bordered by Norman Lesser Drive. Ngahue Drive, Donnelly St and College Rd, we have set up a petition in an endeavor to have the development publicly notified so that all concerns can be expressed. We have also made attempts to have the developer address the issues at a meeting but have so far had no response. To sign the petition click here  and contact us at mbsjra@gmail to arrange to have the original document collected. Time is of the essence so do not delay!

At the Residents Association we are not anti-development and understand the commercial realities of making a development like this work and the importance of provide housing units during a housing shortage. However we believe that a development of this scale needs to be well considered and robustly debated and critiqued. There is a real danger that in 20 years time we are going to look back on the bulk, cheap and sometimes poor quality housing we rushed to build and shake our heads in disbelief that we let it happen. Read more about the Donnelly St development here.

 

Community Centre Fun and Info Afternoon 1 September

Posted: 25 July 2019

The Meadowbank Community Centre are holding a Fun and Info Afternoon on Sunday 1st September 2019 from 1 to 4pm. See the flyer for all the details, or click here for the PDF. We will be handing out rat traps on the day so join the good fight for our birds and come collect your trap on the day.

 

Community Education – Retirement Village Seminar in Meadowbank 18 September

Posted: 25 July 2019

Are You Thinking Of Living In A Retirement Village?

As part of our broader community wellbeing efforts, we are pleased to host a free community education seminar provided by the Commission for Financial Capability that will discuss, in very frank terms, the personal, legal and financial implications of retirement village living and what people need to consider before becoming a retirement village resident. The seminar will be held at St Chads 38 St Johns Rd Meadowbank on Wednesday 18th September, with tea and coffee on arrival at 7.00pm and the seminar will start at 7.30pm and finish at 9pm. Because seats tend to fill fast once word gets around, pre-registration is essential.

This is not a marketing event.

To register :

  1. Go to the Retirement Commission link here and register for free on-line; or
  2. Phone Paul  Niccolini at the Commission on 021 565 321; or
  3. Phone CFFC on 0800 268 269.

The Retirement Commission is also holding a daytime seminar in St Heliers on Tuesday 17th September and another in Remuera on Thursday 19th September – for further details and registration go to the Commission here.


Many people do not fully understand the financial implications of retirement village contracts when they pay for a ‘license to occupy’ a unit, says the National Manager of Retirement Villages at the Commission for Financial Capability (CFFC), Mr Troy Churton.

For example, the occupation right agreements offered by some village companies have little financial sympathy when an occupancy ends, due to the resident passing away or having to move to more intensive rest home care. The company may not pay out the unit’s capital to the family until the unit is relicensed, which can take months in some areas, and they may demand that weekly fees continue to be paid during that time.

“Another fish-hook may be if a married couple buy into an independent-living unit, then the husband or wife needs to move into a care facility, additional costs may apply,” says Churton.

There are 18 retirement villages in the Orakei Ward, each containing 60-100 units, with another three villages in development. Those numbers are expected to increase further to cater for the growing 75+ population, projected to rise 195% in Auckland from about 81,000 today to more than 240,000 in 2043.

Churton is running the free seminar on behalf of the CFFC, an independent government agency that monitors the retirement village industry.

“The CFFC aims to ensure New Zealanders are fully informed objectively of the implications of moving into a retirement village before they do so, and have time to obtain legal advice and discuss their decision with family,” says Churton.

Seminars will also be held in St Heliers on September 17 and in Remuera on September 19 – click here for more information on these other seminars.

 

Petition Presented Calling for Gowing Drive Traffic Safety Improvements

Posted: 28 June 2019

The Residents Association has worked with the Orakei Local Board to respond to an initial scheme plan from Auckland Transport (AT) to reduce traffic speed on Gowing Drive. While AT proposed a series of side islands and kerb build-outs to slow traffic at four points along Gowing Drive, we have recommended modifiying these to allow cyclists to ride to one side of the build-outs rather than over and in the way of vehicle traffic. Here’s an example from Auckland Council’s Design Manual . We have also recognised significant community demand for safe access across Gowing Drive, which pinch points such as kerb build-outs don’t provide. We have recommended a raised pedestrian crossing for the section of Gowing Drive between Rutherford Terrace and Archdall Street. This is designed to provide safe pedestrian access for our most vulnerable residents: children and their parents walking to and from local primary schools and family groups walking or using scooters to get to Rutherford Reserve on Archdall Street, as well as residents walking to and from the Dorcester Dairy and food outlets at the busy Dorcester St and St Johns Road intersection and commuters getting to and from bus stops on St Johns Road and Gowing Drive. It’s also the view of the Residents Association that a raised level crossing will play a major role in reducing traffic speed at the busiest end of Gowing Drive. The Residents Association also reviewed AT’s recommendations for on street carparking restrictions and sought to rationalise their plans where possible. These recommendations and others were provided to Auckland Transport by Orakei Local Board in June for their response.

You can read more about the problem pinch points that kerb build-outs can create for cyclists here and this picture sums it up quite well:

And here are some examples to make pinch points safer for cyclists. AT’s Code of Practice also notes the issues with pinch points for cyclists and recommends alternative measures be considered before recommending kerb build-outs.

 

 

Resource Consent Lodged for 81 Unit Development on College Rd/Donnelly St

Posted: 26 June 2019

The large block of land bordered by College Rd/Donnelly St/Ngahue Dr/ Norman Lesser Drive was sold last year by Auckland Council’s development arm Panuku. A resource consent application to develop and subdivide the land and build 81 units has been submitted to Council, with the working name of “St Johns Park Heights”. The application outlines a proposal for 81 detached two and three story units with four driveway points and 17 new vehicle crossings. Orakei Local Board’s (OLB) Portfolio Lead for Planning and Consents Troy Churton kindly alerted us to the consent application and strongly believes that it should be publicly notified, as do we. The developer’s submission states that the effect of this development is “less than minor”, a statement which Troy Churton and the Residents Association disagree. You can view the submission documents here – due to the size and number of documents this link will take you to a Onedrive link.

At the Residents Association we are not anti-development and understand the commercial realities of making a development like this work and the importance of provide housing units during a housing shortage, but we believe that a development of this scale needs to be well considered and robustly debated and critiqued. There is a real danger that in 20 years time we are going to look back on the bulk, cheap and sometimes poor quality housing we rushed to build and shake our heads in disbelief that we let it happen.

Impression of the private accessway supplied by developer.

Our Impressions

We had our local experts have a brief look at the plans and this is what they thought:

  • Overall bulk considerations – with the slope of the site and the intensity and height of the proposed development it will appear quite dominant on the corner of Ngahue Dr and Norman Lesser Dr. It doesn’t feel like much has been done to mitigate this on that corner. It feels like there is a ‘solid’ block of similar height buildings along the full length of both sites without much ‘relief’ in the way of lower buildings or even green space in between. Perhaps four stories should be allowable in some specific locations, allowing more variation across the sites in terms of massing and heights.
  • Design at micro scale – a lot of time has been spent attempting to use a variety of cladding materials on each unit (sometimes up to four per unit). This is the attempt at ‘variety’ in the design but it needs to be done at the macro/site scale first as mentioned above. Furthermore, using all those cladding systems will be a nightmare to detail and construct particularly at all the junctions, Potentially cost cuts will occur and a few of those materials may be removed.
  • Grey roofs all shaped and pitched the same. Visually not very appealing.
  • It is unclear whether the developer has achieved the required percentage of outdoor area for each unit.
  • Impervious area – there is obviously a huge increase in the impervious area due to the development. We assume calculations have been done and provided regarding the capacity of the existing stormwater drainage in the area but it would be worth checking.
  • Sewer drains – same comment as above – assume drain capacity calculations have been done and provided in light of all the extra bathrooms in the development.
  • With Donnelly St the only entry/exit to the development, turning right out of Donnelly Street onto Ngahue Drive would not be easy, especially the proximity to the traffic lights and as it is a four lane busy road.
  • The applicant has identified the stream as a ‘constraint’ and have just filled it in and built straight over it. It looks like they have done quite a bit of work considering how it will be diverted. In terms of building over the stream and diverting it, it is not uncommon and is done on much larger scales on other sites, so you would need to rely on the geotec and civil reports, but it may be a missed opportunity to provide green space and variation on the site.

Impression of entrance to the development from Donnelly St.

Orakei Local Board’s Perspective

Here is a summary of Troy Churton’s comments on behalf of the OLB to the planners at Auckland Council.

“Despite the pre-lodgment meetings and resulting rhetoric that effects are “less than minor”, I strongly disagree that the actual or potential effects will be ‘less than minor’ given this irregular shaped land and it’s particular sandwiched location.

Overall my strong view is this development should be publicly notified using Councils’ general discretion under the RMA, or to use special circumstances provisions to do so.

Ingress and egress for the new 81 detached, two and three storied, residential unit development is proposed to be absorbed through installing four driveway points (see page 16 of the Assessment of Environmental Effects or AEE) for a bulk of the development along with 17 new vehicle crossings (as described page 17 AEE and Appendix 8) along the already narrow ‘Donnelly Street’, a laneway type of street that I observe to be often parked out from the existing level of residential development along it.

I do not agree with the optimism of the planner or the Traffic Assessment report regarding general maneuverability, ease of access for rubbish collections and other larger trucks etc given the intensity and design. The adverse effects will be more than minor. I think it is predicable also that many private residents will not use the double garaging or garaging in their units all the time or at all, a trait seen in many other intensive development sites where movement areas have been designed to facilitate tightly squeezed building intensity. Planners often refer to this effect as something that can be “absorbed buy the surrounding road network”. In my view there is no surrounding absorbing capability for this location and the effects can not be mitigated without significant design changes.

The potential effects for traffic congestion, parking conflict, pedestrian safety risk and safety at Ngahue Drive are all, in my view, far more than minor.

Considerable visual and lighting effects will impact in ways more than minor on existing residents of Donnelly Street to the south and slightly lower down, for example, given the three storied wall of development proposed as follows:

The inconsistent evolution of advice as to the status of a stream through the site (para 3.1.2 AEE) is concerning, and the proposal to fill the gully of the site to enable more development in that context must be considered in conjunction with the bulk earthworks proposed AND the proposal to divert overland flow path. I note also that the owner of 29 Donnelly Street is directly effected by the potential to require its property for doing stormwater extension work. The potential effects on that owner justify limited notification in any event.

There are several infringements of height and height in relation to boundary that concern. For example, more than 50% of  roof area of the development for units 60-62, 75 , 76, 78-80 will exceed height standards by more than 1m. These are, cumulatively, more than minor and therefore a significant infringement that can be mitigated by less intensive design.

Other standards areas also push the envelope as to what is expected from the more generous Unitary Plan. Impervious area infringes by around 5%, landscaped area requirements are breached by around 5%, outlook spaces are breached – all these matters raise concern.  However it is more concerning that the applicant suggests that its inability to meet the standards for a National Environmental Standard (NES), in this case relating to contamination and preventing adverse effects on human health and the environment, are not mentioned as a minor matter or not. The site is known for traces of heavy metal above the background levels anticipated (see para 5.3.11).

The reality, in my view, is this sort of inability to fulfill the expectations of a NES means the proposal likely generates effects that are more than minor – and along with other matters identified above, justifies notification. I disagree with the conclusion offered by the planner and team of applicant reporters that the adverse effects will be no more than minor.”

What Happens Next?

We will continue to track the application’s progress and thank Orakei Local Board’s Portfolio Lead for Planning and and Consents Troy Churton for keeping us informed. The processing power now lies with the planners and we note that it is pretty rare to get residential resource consent applications to be publicly notified, but we will keep trying and at least get some scrutiny to the process.

Will will provide updates where available in our monthly newsletter and on our Facebook and Instagram pages. If you have any comments on this development or are able to provide any expertise please contact us. In the past we have had developers of almost all proposed developments speak at a monthly meeting, and we hope that we can arrange that in this instance too.

 

 

Are You Prepared for Auckland’s Hazards?

Posted: 18 June 2019

At our June monthly meeting we were very fortunate to have Auckland Emergency Management’s Melanie Hutton speaking to us about building strong, connected and caring communities to get through any of the natural disasters that can come our way. Click here to see her fantastic presentation on the types of hazards that Auckland is most likely to face, what you can do to prepare your household and how you can stay safe and informed in a natural disaster. Meeting attendees were given some great resources that you can also download from Auckland Emergency Management’s website such as this great brochure called What Would You Do? that has encourages households to make a plan in advance should you face having no water, no power, can’t get home and many other scenarios. Have a read and check out the hazard viewer for an idea of the risks your home might face.

Melanie also spoke about the importance of building community resilience and knowing your neighbour to help each other out should we ever face a natural disaster. So keep up the good work in getting to know the people in your neighbourhood.

 

Draft Waiatarua Reserve Enhancement Plan Meeting

Posted: 5 June 2019

Notes From Meeting to Discuss Draft Waiatarua Reserve Enhancement Plan

Wednesday 29 May at 7pm, St Chads Church, 38 St Johns Rd

Presentation by Auckland Council’s Parks and Places Specialist, Hayley Dauben. There was still more work required before the draft plan is publicly available. In lieu of having the plan to discuss, this meeting was to have a preliminary discussion about the plan, to understand the thought process forming the plan and the plans’ aims.

Notes from meeting:

Timeframe:

  • Draft consultation plan is due for release in approximately 6 weeks time.
  • Then 1 month period for submissions
  • Suggestion, to have an open day at the Men’s Shed during the consultation period, and also discuss at future Residents Association monthly meeting with the aim to form a submission on behalf of the group.

Key Themes in the draft plan:

  1. Wetland – Water quality:
    • How the water quality is changing overtime since it was constructed in 2005, reviewed in 2007 and 2010.
    • How the water quality differs between different areas of the reserve eg outer vs across the wetland
    • Water quality at the outlet into the Orakei Basin
    • Quality target levels have to be realistic and achievable (rural vs urban levels)
  1. Biodiversity
    • Pest control – Animals and weeds
    • Golf course has a strong pest control program. Aim is to increase levels of control in the reserve to match the golf course levels.
  1. Recreational
    • It’s a large green space which brings pressure from many competing user requests. The plan will have design principals that future requests will be matched against.
    • Dog agility course requested – possibly near the dog pond
    • Frisbee Golf course
    • Infrastructure at key areas ie clustered rather across whole reserve (so that most of the reserve remains untouched)
  1. Education
    • Schools, clubs, groups etc to make use of the reserve
    • Potential environmental educational centre.

Other points / questions:

  • Need for more toilet(s), especially for large events.
  • Lighting around the reserve
    • Pros – light for walking/running around reserve when dark
    • Cons – harmful impacts on the birds
  • App called “Snap Send Solve”
  • Maintenance:
    • Pathways and boardwalks into the middle of the wetland area/ bird viewing areas have got badly overgrown and as silt levels have raised some of the boardwalks are underwater. Apparently, these paths are not on the asset register so are not in the maintenance schedule. There is a higher service level needed.
    • Repairing pathways
    • Paths : gravel vs sealed
      • Gravel – natural look
      • Sealed – access for wheelchairs but increases speed of cyclists
  •  Pests:
    • Pests include: rabbits, rats, possums, stoats, weasels, car
    • Carp is an issue in the waterway and degrade the waterway.
    • Weeds – perimeter waterways require the removal of weeds. Learnings from Christchurch City on how they manage their waterways and water reserves.
  • Men’s Shed
  • Main path – possibly to widen to allow bikes and pedestrians to use easily at the same time.
    • No dog areas:
      • suggestion for a no dog area for picnicking / ball playing area etc
        • Fencing
        • Communication / signs
        • Suggestion to open out the area around the playground as the designated no dogs area for improved leisure and recreation.
        • Concern that the reserve is too wet to practically use, although this was challenged.
        • Difficult to fence off areas and council bylaws, regulations and service levels make it difficult to change designations. Changing a bylaw is difficult – and this would be challenged as reserve is so popular with dog owners
    • Many areas of the reserve require the dogs to be on a leash – better communication / signs to show where dogs must be on a leash.
  • Golf club lights:
    • Suggestion to request the get painted black (currently white)
    • Height / light coverage is within the parameters of the consent.
  • Café – suggestion, location near golf course area, or better utilise the golf club’s public café.
  • Timing to implement plan with local board change over – aiming to adopt the plan during the current board’s term.
  • Water quality data
    • Monitored regularly by Healthy Waters.
    • Need to be aware it is an urban storm water system and not a pristine wetland.
    • Public and monitored elected members want access to the water quality monitoring data.
    • Dissatisfaction with the perceived lack of maintenance in the wetland, and how the weed chocked waterways are reducing water quality.

 

 

 

Call for Time Restricted Parking at Meadowbank Rd Shops

Posted: 26 May 2019

Last week we talked with Hamad from the new cafe Meadowbank Eatery that recently opened at the Meadowbank shops midway down Meadowbank Rd. He expressed his disappointment that the car parks in the area in front of the shops being used all day by people using the train and how that was negatively impacting on his customer’s ability to park near the cafe, likely making it less likely that people would stop in. This was certainly our experience during our visit, and the double parked car trying to get their laundry into the laundromat while we were there further backs this up. Time restricted parking in this area has been on our Transport Sub-committee’s list for a few years, and with cars parking as far away as Harapaki Rd for the train station now, we don’t expect this situation to improve any time soon.

We approached Orakei Local Board’s Transport Spokesperson Carmel Claridge who reports that in her next board report she will direct Auckland Transport to introduce time restricted parking in this area.

On another note, did you know it is essentially free with a HOP card to get the bus to the train station? All travel within the same zone is only charged once. Click here to see the route and timetable information.

Improving Safety for Students in Lucia Glade

Posted: 25 May 2019

We are a big supporters of active modes of transport and continue to push for safety improvements on our roads. In March 2019 Carmel Claridge from the Orakei Local Board got a first hand look at what a walking school bus is like for our kids.

As a result, one of the issues she raised with the Board’s Auckland Transport relationship manager was to examine the intersection and extreme traffic congestion at the entrance to Mt Carmel at Lucia Glade – in particular to provide a safer crossing facility across Temple St.

MBSJRA sought letters of support from both Mt Carmel School and Meadowbank School for improved pedestrian safety in the area. Following this, we were pleased to get the following response from Orakei Local Board’s Transport Spokesperson Carmel Claridge:

“I have experienced first-hand the significant difficulties school children and their parents have in crossing the roads at the Mt Carmel school entrance after joining the walking school bus one morning. Much needed safety improvements at the Temple St/Lucia Glade intersection may be able to be implemented through the Community Safety Fund recently launched by Auckland Transport. We are also aware of the long standing problems Lucia Glade residents have experienced with traffic congestion, particularly at school drop off and pick up times.

The Board is presently looking at the projects we have in the Local Board area that fit the criteria for this funding and prioritising them. I have instructed Auckland Transport to investigate the options for Temple/Lucia Glade and report back to the Board. That work is underway which will come back with some costings, establish whether criteria is met, and assist us with that prioritisation process. Auckland Transport has received copies of the correspondence from the schools in support. I have also discussed the potential project with my fellow Board members with good reception. A formal resolution will be required from the full Board for allocation of funding once it opens for applications in June. Things are progressing well and I would like to assure the local community that the Board and myself are committed to safer streets for all users, particularly around our schools.”

We look forward to these improvements and making it safer for our youngest residents to walk to school.

 

 

Sign up to our mailing list