Resident Clarissa Mora looking at the erosion caused by shingle being washed out to sea along the stretch of coast where a seawall is proposed. Photo / Warren Buckland
Resident Clarissa Mora looking at the erosion caused by shingle being washed out to sea along the stretch of coast where a seawall is proposed. Photo / Warren Buckland
A new seawall proposed for Haumoana will cost impacted property owners about $220,000 each - but one resident says it's needed to protect the seaside homes.
Last year, a new rock wall was completed in Haumoana to help prevent coastal erosion.
A much larger seawall project is now in the pipeline to protect vulnerable homes to the south of that initial rock wall.
It will likely get under way - beginning with a design and consent process - unless there is significant push back to the project in the draft annual plan.
Resident Clarissa Mora has lived in one of the impacted homes for five years and said she believed a seawall was needed.
"I'm all for a seawall because they do help."
The seawall would be built in front of this stretch of homes and cost over $3 million. Photo / Warren Buckland
She said when big storms hit Haumoana the shingle between her home and the ocean can get dragged out to sea.
"There are times when the big swells will take all the shingle away and the foundations [of the property] will be exposed."
However, she said sometimes a storm will push all that shingle back up against the property - in a bit of a cycle.
Mora said she was not afraid of living so close to the ocean, but did not want to see her landlord's home damaged in the future if there was further erosion.
She said where she came from in Brazil, a town called Olinda, she had seen the benefits of seawalls and groynes being built along the coast.
She said her former town was partly below sea level and at high risk of flooding, until that infrastructure was installed.
Big swells along the coast where the seawall is proposed. Photo / Warren Buckland
"It has worked," she said. "The sea was going to take it."
Despite the benefits of the proposed Haumoana project, it is understood not all property owners want the seawall built because of the cost.
Some homes are also set back further from the water's edge than others and at less risk.
Residents Deon and Keron Betty have rented one of the homes for almost 20 years and said they had not noticed the ocean getting closer to their home during that time.
However, Deon said during the latest big storm last month a wooden seawall had been destroyed and washed out to sea in front of their house.
Keron said it would be good in the long term to have a proper seawall to protect homes.
"It would be more protection in the long run."
The public including the impacted property owners can have their say on the draft annual plan (which includes the seawall project) until May 16.
The council will mull over any feedback, then make a final decision before July over whether to go ahead with the proposal.
If it goes ahead, the project would be split into two parts beginning with the design and consent stage (stage one) followed by the construction stage (stage two).
"Should a consent not be obtained during stage one then stage two will not proceed," council papers read.
It is understood there has been ongoing meetings and discussion between the council and impacted property owners about the project.
