The eastern Auckland suburb of Kohimarama is to get a new white sand beach at a cost of $6 million.
The once sandy strip of beach has largely been washed away over several decades, and long-term erosion has damaged the seawall protecting Tamaki Drive.
At high tide, all that isleft of the beach is a narrow 200m-long strip of sand at the eastern end.
Faced with a $3.6 million bill to fix the wall, the Auckland City Council has decided to top up the beach at a total cost of $6 million.
Fixing the seawall and then topping up the beach later would have cost about $9.6 million, council officers say.
The council recreated nearby Mission Bay with 30,000cu m of sand in 1996 at a cost of $2.2 million.
Recreation and events committee chairman Scott Milne said the Kohimarama project would replenish one of Auckland's most precious jewels and benefit the entire city.
The council put aside $6 million in this year's budget round to fix the beach over the next three financial years.
City Vision leader Dr Bruce Hucker said the work needed to be done and this was the most economic way of doing it.
The project will involve new headland structures at the east and west end of the beach to create a new 750m-long strip of sand 10m to 15m in width at high tide.
Creek and stormwater outfalls will be removed from the beach area and the boat ramp opposite Neligan Ave will be improved.
Up to 60,000cu m of coarse grain sand will be used, possibly from an offshore source at Pakiri.
The sand will probably be barged to Auckland and pumped ashore.
The council is seeking resource consent for the project and plans to begin work on the headlands and boat ramp next winter.
The new beach is expected to be ready by the summer of 2004.
