The successful experience with Maungawhau/Mt Eden is important. There, the authority decided in 2015 to restrict vehicles to the tihi. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. Visitors tell us the walk to the summit adds to the experience and they feel much safer.
At Takarunga, as with Maungawhau, people who have limited mobility can access the tihi with an easily available code for the barrier arm at the summit road entrance. This has worked very well at Maungawhau.
Lessees will also have code access to the barrier arm. The school is not within the maunga boundary and is not affected. Public car parking spaces will be available on the lower slopes. So, what of Mr Chapple's complaints?
He laments the effect of the local board's opposition and that it does not have decision-making powers over the Tūpuna Maunga. It is true that on a split vote with a chair casting vote, the local board did oppose the decision. That is its right, as it is the statutory right of the authority to take measures to care for the maunga.
Authority representatives will work with the local board on projects for improved tracks, public amenity areas, native replanting and improved biodiversity for Takarunga.
Mr Chapple mentioned the place of polls for gauging public opinion. The authority does not make decisions by opinion poll, we make decisions to achieve our statutory purpose. The authority is required by statute to give consideration to the spiritual, ancestral, cultural, customary and historical significance of the maunga to Ngā Mana Whenua o Tāmaki Makaurau as well as the wider Auckland public as Mr Chapple notes.
That is why measures have been put in place for limited mobility folk, pedestrians and cyclists.
Mr Chapple also pours scorn on the role of the authority with the Maungawhau experience. It is correct that the 2007 Maungawhau legacy council management plan signalled the removal of cars from the tihi. That was not actioned until 2011 when the Auckland Council restricted heavy vehicles. It did that after seeking the support of the Tāmaki Collective. In 2015 the authority completed the task by deciding to restrict cars.
Again, it's all about the maunga.
The Devonport maunga were historically great Pā — home to many tribes and sites of birth, marriage, battle and burial. The Auckland maunga were once the most extensive network of monumental and defendable settlements throughout the Pacific.
The historic significance and the continued cultural connection over time sets our volcanic landscape apart from others around the world, and for this reason the Auckland maunga were placed at the top of New Zealand's list for world heritage status several years ago.
The Devonport maunga are also among some of the most modified. Takararo (Cambria Reserve) was the ''third maunga'' but was destroyed for aggregate removal from the 1880s. Takarunga/Mt Victoria and Maungauika/North Head were heavily modified for military purposes and have significant structures on their slopes. Protection is well overdue.
It is noteworthy that Auckland has a rāhui right now in the Waitakere Ranges, which the council announced this week will be extended to a full closure to protect natural values. In Devonport, there is a local push towards a Pest Free Devonport Peninsula by 2050 aimed at protecting the integrity of Devonport's natural habitats, including the maunga.
Last year, the Anangu people in Australia declared that Uluru (Ayers Rock) will be permanently closed to climbers and walkers from 2019 to respect and preserve cultural and spiritual values. International coverage of that has been unquestioningly positive.
Takarunga has always been a place for people to come together and connect with each other and with the land. That does not change. The pedestrianisation of the tihi is about rethinking how we interact with the whenua and better protect it.
* Paul Majurey is chair of the Tūpuna Maunga Authority.
