Whanganui’s Rapanui Rd Trail: Council pauses project to partner with community group

Work began on the trail in August but has now come to a halt. Photo / Mike Tweed

Construction of a community-led trail in Whanganui has been paused, with the district council stepping in to help with the project.

The Chronicle reported in August that the Rapanui Rd Trail Group had started a 500-metre shell rock path between Westmere School and Westmere Lake.

The work, by Downer, was expected to take four weeks.

It is phase one of the 8.3km trail, which will eventually stretch from State Highway 3 to Kai Iwi Beach.

Whanganui District Council roading manager Mark Allingham said the council had met the group to work through issues such as future maintenance of the trail, iwi and Horizons Regional Council engagement, and parts of the design.

The trail is on council road reserve land.

“There’s one small section that crosses a property boundary, for example. The farmer is moving his fence back, which is really good of him,” Allingham said.

“But, when you look at these things for perpetuity, for the next 100-odd years, the farm could change hands.

“There needs to be an agreement in place.”

He said there was no set date for work to restart, but a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the group and the council was expected to be signed soon.

Rapanui Rd Trail trustee Quentin Handley said the trust remained focused on raising $1.3 million for the project.

The trail will eventually run the length of Rapanui Rd, 8.3km from SH3 to Kai Iwi Beach. Photo / NZME

“The council has assigned key staff members to project-manage the build to ensure it meets design and safety requirements.

“This leaves the trust free to focus on getting the trail constructed and on its publicity, marketing and events management efforts.

“We see it as a win-win for both parties, iwi and Whanganui residents wanting to see the trail built.”

The group first presented the trail idea to the council in August 2023.

A budget of $2.4m for the project was included in the council’s draft long-term plan for 2024-34, but that was cut to $500,000 (in 2032), enabling “community stakeholders to commence fundraising”.

The trust had raised $150,000, with more funding applications in the pipeline, Handley said.

Allingham said he was not aware of previous council-community partnerships for trail projects in the district, but he had been involved in similar ones with Greytown Trails Trust.

He was formerly group manager of infrastructure and services for South Wairarapa District Council.

“We got quite a lot of little hurdles going through that – regional council consents, driveway entrances, water races for farmers.

“Things slowed down while we worked through things, but when we had a template – who does what – it made it really easy for them to just continue on.

“Now, there are paths that go from [Upper] Hutt, through Masterton, all the way to the kiwi sanctuary [Pūkaha Mt Bruce].”

Allingham said signing an MoU for Rapanui Rd meant the same framework could be used for other groups.

“But our focus, from council, has to be how we make sure whatever we build and do is covered for the next 100 years.”

Mike Tweed is a multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle. Since starting in March 2020, he has dabbled in everything from sport to music. At present, his focus is local government, primarily the Whanganui District Council.