Hihi residents were shown a number of ideas regarding the future of their council reserves last week, with many less than impressed with the suggestions.
Hihi residents were shown a number of ideas regarding the future of their council reserves last week, with many less than impressed with the suggestions.
Hihi residents have sent a clear message to the Far North District Council - fix infrastructure and services before beautifying the area.
The Hihi Fire Station on Marchant Rd was packed with locals last week, keen to hear the Te Hiku Community Board’s concept improvement plans for the future of the township’s council reserves.
Changes included extra parking, artwork, a children’s playground and additional walkways for the reserves (Hihi Beach Rd and Esplanade Reserve, Marchant Road Reserve, Rangitoto Pā Site and Reserve) - however the majority of residents were not keen on the ideas.
“We pay around a thousand dollars more here a year than we do for our Riverhead property in Auckland and what for?” Dennis Errey said of he and wife Angela’s holiday bach in Hihi.
“I’m really pissed off actually because while I can see what they’re trying to do, instead of wasting time making the place look pretty, just fix the problems here first before you start doing all this stuff,” he said.
“The seawall for one is really bad and needs a complete upgrade.”
Errey said the state of the roads, footpaths, grass reserves and seawall were appalling and he wanted to see their rates go towards fixing and maintaining the current infrastructure before making improvements.
Dennis and Angela Errey have owned their Hihi holiday bach for 22 years and say improvements to infrastructure must come before more carparks and park upgrades.
Several residents supported Errey’s comments and raised the issue of council lawns rarely being mowed, which they claimed was a potential fire hazard, with some locals taking it upon themselves to maintain them.
Other residents expressed their concerns about the idea of particular reserves opening up, fearing it could encourage anti-social behaviour and freedom camping in the area.
Local tangata whenua were also present, providing their views on what they believed needed to happen in the area.
Taemāro Marae representative Sandra Heihei acknowledged the board for fronting the community with what she described as a huge task, and for looking at ideas to progress the area.
Heihei provided a historical and cultural overview of Hihi and asked that the ecological aspects of the environment be taken into consideration for future planning.
“We really need an ecological report for coastal flora and fauna, as well as an archaeological update report as there have been changes on the land,” Heihei said.
Taemāro Marae representative Sandra Heihei addresses the crowd at Hihi.
“Getting the update of those site records is important, prior to new concepts starting.
“I think we also need a cultural and heritage impact report which would include contacts and a description of local hapū and iwi.
“These items I have mentioned will set the template of future development and planning for the area, including for Rangitoto Pā Kainga which needs to be registered and listed as having sites of significance through Heritage NZ.”
Te Hiku Community Board chairwoman Adele Gardner said the reason for the meeting was to engage with residents to understand their vision for Hihi’s future.
While the board could pass on their concerns to the council, Gardner said their goal was to plan specifically for things associated with the council’s recreational and community spaces.
“We’re just listening at the moment and coming to see what the community wants to do with these reserves,” Gardner said.
“It sounds like they’d like to do something for the local kids, maybe upgrading the playground, which is a positive.
“The thing to remember is that these are just concept plans and anything we ask for could still take up to 10 years to implement depending on what other projects are on the go.”
Te Hiku Board member (Kaitaia/Ahipara) John Stewart added while he could understand the residents’ frustrations, the issues regarding services were outside the board’s scope.
“About 95 per cent of the people at that meeting were complaining about infrastructure and services,” Stewart said.
“We’re not the council, we are advocates for the community, so I think there has been a lack of communication about what we do.
“We also don’t just source funding from the council, we look at funding from central government as well, so this is just us preparing for if/when some kind of funding might become available.”
Upcoming drop-in sessions for other areas regarding the Te Hiku Concept Improvement Plans will be held in Cooper’s Beach, Taipā, Karikari and Rangiputa in the coming weeks.
To find out more about the plans in your area, click here or search “Te Hiku Concept Improvement Plans” on the FNDC website.
Upcoming drop-in sessions:
Wednesday, February 22, 10am - 3pm, Coopers Beach Bowling Club, 234 State Highway 10, Coopers Beach
Thursday, March 2, 11am - 2pm, Taipa Rugby Club, East St, Taipa
