Residents raise voices over expressway roar

By ANGELA GREGORY

Urszula Spanhake looks out at the stunning view of Hobson Bay from her Remuera home, shakes her head, and says something unusual.

"It's absolutely disgusting."

But it is not what she sees, rather what she imagines, that prompts the derisory comment.

Mrs Spanhake is envisaging a six-lane expressway full of roaring traffic ripping across the quiet and still waters of the pretty bay below.

"The houses around here will drop in value ... and this was judged one of Remuera's top two streets."

The remark is not one of self-interest.

Mrs Spanhake rents the Burwood Cres house where she has lived with her daughter Michael Anna for the past seven years.

She says the homeowners in the street are furious that their slice of serenity is jeopardised.

"They are up in arms."

Along the street a homeowner, who did not want to be named, said she was frustrated at not being given more information about the expressway.

"It's been on the cards for years, but all of a sudden it looks like it is happening ... It seems to be Banks' mission for his term in office."

Auckland Mayor John Banks is already on record as saying the expressway is no longer a case of "if" but "when".

The Central Auckland director of Harcourts, Stuart Jenner, said the expressway would affect the value of the multimillion-dollar cliff-top homes.

But he said it was impossible to quantify the loss.

The houses rarely came on the market, and other things were likely to have a greater bearing on price.

Mr Jenner thought that in the long run the prime real estate would regain its value, as had happened in parts of Epsom after the motorway was put through there.

Terry Gould, a spokesman for a group of eastern suburb residents opposed to an eastern motorway, said the proposal had wreaked havoc on people's lives.

"It's all a big PR spin that has just devastated families."

Mr Gould, who lives in Parnell, said locals would fight hard to preserve Hobson Bay. "They are very passionate about the bay ... don't want to see it covered in tarmac."

He said the group - organised and well-resourced both financially and professionally - would do everything it could to stop the expressway.

The 25km tollway as proposed would extend through the eastern suburbs to Manukau.

In Ti Rakau Drive up to 200 houses would have to be bowled to make way for the $460 million traffic corridor.

One couple are furious after their purchase of a unit on the affected stretch of Ti Rakau Drive went through the day that Mr Banks announced the proposal.

The husband said either their new home would be knocked down, or they would find themselves living next to a motorway.

He was so worried about the sudden loss of value he did not want to be identified in case it caused problems with the bank.

The 30-year-old, who came to New Zealand from India more than a year ago, said it had taken the family months to scrape together the 5 per cent deposit for the $170,000 property.

"We did not eat in the mornings to save money."

Real estate agent Vincent Fong said the unit would have dropped in value by about $5000 overnight.

Mr Fong said other clients trying to sell a similar unit on Ti Rakau Drive had already dropped their asking price after the news broke.

Towards the Pakuranga end of Ti Rakau Drive, a retired couple have decided to bring forward plans to shift, probably out of Auckland.

June and Jim Mateer moved into their house 36 years ago when pheasants wandered around the section and a creek ran past their property.

Now the four-lane road roars almost incessantly with vehicles, and houses line each side of it.

The road serves commuters and trucks laden with containers heading for the industrial estate to the south.

Recently, Mrs Mateer and her husband, Jim, began to notice their section of the road was not being upgraded but merely patched up as potholes developed.

So when the news broke that houses would have to be demolished to make way for the proposed expressway they were not as surprised as some.

Mrs Mateer said she realised something needed to be done about Auckland traffic.

But she was not impressed that the Manukau and Auckland city councils could not tell her now whether her home would be one to go.



Mrs Mateer believed Mr Banks and Manukau Mayor Barry Curtis knew exactly what was planned.

"I am sure they have it all worked out."

For the Mateers, a shift from the area would not be as devastating as for others, although they do not relish a drop in the value of their house, which has a Government valuation of $220,000.

Mrs Mateer said she was upset for those with children who might have to move from their local schools, and for people who worked in the area.

She also felt for some residents who had lived on the road for about 40 years, and in some cases had had a husband or wife die.

"They want to be able to live out their days in their own homes, which are full of memories."

Mrs Mateer said she had just planted her backyard with shrubs.

"They were pretty expensive. I think I'll dig them out and put them in pots so I can take them with me."

Mr Mateer is meanwhile somewhat relieved he no longer has to paint the house. "There's no point now."

The chairman of the Auckland City Council transport committee, Greg McKeown, said the public had six weeks to give some initial feedback on the proposal.

If the committee recommended progressing to the second stage, which would produce a detailed design of an expressway, it could be a year before affected properties could be identified.

Auckland City Council: Eastern Corridor

Manukau City Council

Feature: Getting Auckland moving

Rideline Auckland public transport information