New housing development will see loss of Kerikeri’s eucalyptus trees

Kerikeri's distinctive gums, including these next to the Heritage Bypass, are about to be felled. Photo: RNZ / Peter de Graaf

By Peter de Graaf - RNZ

A major new housing development in central Kerikeri will change the face of the Bay of Islands town by removing its distinctive, 90-year-old eucalyptus backdrop.

Leaflets have been distributed to properties bordering an almost 30-hectare block of gum trees, alerting residents that logging is about to start.

The mature eucalypts occupy the last significant area of undeveloped, residential-zoned land in central Kerikeri, between the Heritage Bypass, Kerikeri River and the CBD.

The trees are also a major feature of the town’s skyline.

The land was owned by the Bing family for more than 60 years but was sold in 2021 for an undisclosed sum.

Logging was to have started two years ago but the land transfer was held up by a legal dispute, with the purchaser going to court to enforce the sale.

Land Information New Zealand records show the property was transferred to new owners, Turnstone Holdings Ltd, on September 13.

The Companies Office shows Turnstone is owned by Matakana-based James Mathew Peters, known as Jamie Peters.

Felling of the trees is due to start in mid-October in the area behind Fairy Pools Lane, Clark Rd, King St, Fairway Drive, Augusta Place, St Andrews Place and Tuatahi Place.

Trees on the council reserve at Fairy Pools, next to Kerikeri River, will not be felled.

The trees, along with many other gums and redwoods around Kerikeri, were planted in the 1930s when Kerikeri was being developed as a horticultural area.

Some were planted for timber but many were intended as wind breaks to protect newly planted orchards.

The Far North District Council has previously granted consent for the so-called Bing Property to be subdivided into five “super lots”.

Felling of the trees is a permitted activity so does not require consent.

Since a law change in 2012, there has been no blanket protection of trees in urban New Zealand, except in areas subject to conservation plans.

Individual trees can still be protected by being listed on the notable trees register.

Logging of the property has sparked mixed views in Kerikeri, with some saying the gums are a fire hazard and nearing the end of their lives, while others lament the loss of the town’s distinctive arboreal backdrop and an area of untouched eucalyptus forest next to the town centre.

No resource consent application has been lodged for the housing development as yet.

However, in 2022, a local liaison for the project said it would be a “fairly intensive” 300-home residential development with green space and preserved wetlands.