Subscribe to RSSLong Trek To Get Footbridge
Construction is underway to provide a footbridge over the only stream in the East Coast Bays area without an all tide, all weather crossing.
It’s a big deal for locals as it’s been a long time coming.
The new footbridge over the Campbells Bay stream is a project that has been a regular item on the Campbells Bay Residents and Ratepayer Assn’s annual meeting agenda for the past decade!
But it hasn’t been all plain sailing.
Some locals have thought it a waste of money.
This project to provide a footbridge was included in the adopted 2004 Campbells Bay Management Plan. Applications for a coastal permit and resource consent were lodged in 2006.
The applications were publicly notified and more than 230 submissions were received, with approximately 50 opposing the bridge.
As a result of matters raised in the submissions, additional information was requested by the consenting authorities during 2007. Among issues revisited were the bridge design, tree removal and planting, pedestrian access to the beach foreshore and the visual impact on adjourning properties.
The North Shore Mayor, Andrew Williams, says today that a large amount of consultation has been carried out on this project, both through the council’s management Plan statutory process and with the inclusion of the project for six years through the Long Term Community Council Plan, and finally through the notified Resource Consent hearing that was undertaken .
The bridge designs were publicly tendered and the winning tender was won by HEB Ltd for $243,000. The cost of the bridge structure itself is $123,000 with the remainder for the works required on the surrounding seawall.
Mr Williams said that this was always intended to be completed as part of ongoing seawall renewals to further protect the adjacent reserve areas.
The bridge designs that were tendered were developed to ensure minimal visual impact on the beach landscape, with a steel superstructure and wooden finish on top.
They were presented and finally agreed upon as part of the negotiations with the Campbell’s Bay Protection Group through the Environment Court.
The mayor said the footbridge will assist those who enjoy beach walks, and will provide a safe link over what is often an unpredictably wide or fast flowing stream to connect the beach with the Huntly Reserve children’s playground, public toilets and changing rooms.
3 Comments
Another project that went all the way to Environment Court. Hope the result will be worth spending (probably!) a lot more money on the design & consultation & lawyering than on the actual bridge.
Thats not quite true, the creek at Milford doesn’t have a crossing either and that involves a diversion of 1.2km to get across the northern end.
nick the reason it went all the way to the enviroment court was your mayor andrew williams provided a set of drawing to the resource consent hearing that my 12 year old could draw. the coucil experdited this project and have use valuable ratepayers funds on something that isn’t necessary. make sure you don’t vote for andrew williams he will be determined to see any project that he wants not the community wants go ahead. There was significant opposition to this project. He said that if elected as mayor come hell or hig water he will make sure the bridge happens. Blame him for going to the environment court. Our group used no funds to make sure that the public got a design that was compliant with the buliding code and didn’t created advese visual impact. The north shore city council produce 6 designs which if we hadn’t gone to the enviroment court would have cost you ratepayers nearly a millon dollars.