Family's loss is Waiheke's gain - ARC

Man O' War Bay. Photo / Supplied

The Spencer family's defeat on Waiheke Island is being called a victory for landscape preservation.

Mike Lee, Auckland Regional Council chairman, praised the Environment Court for overturning Auckland City Council's resource consent approval for the Spencers to build two houses on their island property.

Lee compared the Waiheke victory to last month's Environment Court ruling rejecting a Gold Coast-style canal development on the Wairoa River 5km from Clevedon.

That decision overturned Manukau City Council's district plan change which would have allowed the Clevedon development.

"I believe the Waiheke decision, coming on top of the other landmark decision to decline the Wairoa Canal development at Clevedon, suggests Environment Court judges are now placing much greater weight on preserving the natural character of the coastline which clearly Aucklanders and our tourist visitors really value.

"The ARC has been criticised in some quarters for attempting to hold the line against some of these more destructive developments but it appears our approach is being vindicated by the courts.

"The question is, will the future Super City take the more expedient 'support your local property developer' attitude which seems to be the attitude of the present city councils.

"Or will it adopt the long-term pro-environmental regional view of the ARC?" Lee asked.

The court banned the Spencers from building a new 570sq m house and 100sq m guest pavilion at Owhiti Bay where both buildings and earthworks are banned. The only activity allowed is eco-sourced planting.

The Spencers' 1800ha cattle, sheep wine and olive farms are on the remote northeast tip of the island and their Man O' War wines website gives a history of their holdings and emphasises their interest in coastal preservation.

"Our family has proudly owned Man O' War for nearly 30 years. Intent on protecting the sheer beauty of this magnificent slice of Waiheke Island, we purchased four adjacent farms in 1980 forming a 4500 acre (1821ha) block of stunning and rugged land from which today's Man O' War wines come. The spectacular terrain of coastal hillsides with high cliffs and pristine beaches forms a ruggedly beautiful coastline that we are passionate about protecting," they say.

The eastern end of the island was probably one of the first places discovered by Polynesian explorers 700 years ago. In 1769, Captain James Cook noticed the land when he anchored his vessel in an uncharted bay and noted that the kauri trees he saw would make exceptional masts for the Royal Navy, the website said.

The bay was designated as a wood and water station, their ships calling in for timber to form masts and water supplies so it became known as Man O' War Bay, the family said.

Man O' War is also the site of the Stony Batter coastal defence battery, a network of tunnels and gun emplacements built during World War II to protect Auckland from naval invasion.

"Not completed until after the war, guns were only ever fired from Stony Batter in testing. Now under our family's stewardship for close to 30 years, we are dedicated to ensuring that Man O' War retains its innate beauty and sense of history for generations to come. With a passion to see our land's native glory restored we have planted over 150,000 native trees and fenced off 1000 acres (404ha) to allow the regeneration of native bush, wetlands and coastal corridors."

The Environment Court backed arguments put by the ARC's barrister, David Kirkpatrick of Park Chambers.

"It is our conclusion that Owhiti Bay and the stretch of coastline in which it is located, all the way to the east as far as Thumb Point, amply qualify as an outstanding natural landscape and that (according to the Resource Management Act) is to be protected from inappropriate subdivision, use and development as a matter of natural importance," the court said.

WHY SITE CAN'T BE DEVELOPED

Environment Court ruling on Spencer site found:

* Outstanding natural landscape and coastal area.
* Resource Management Act demands protection.
* Planning rules say building/earthworks "non-complying".
* Only dune system/sand flats activity allowed is "eco-sourced planting".