The second phase of a $2.4 million redevelopment of the Snells Beach community refuse and recycling centre that was due to be finished last winter will not start until next month at the earliest.
Mahurangi Wastebusters had hoped that a new shop, education centre and access onto Lawrie Road would be open by now, but a combination of all-too-familiar factors had prevented Auckland Council from getting on with the Government-funded project.
Wastebusters board member Trish Allen said it was frustrating for them as operators.
“It’s the old story at the moment – supply chain issues, sickness, Covid. We’d been told it would start in July, but I think it’s going to be August,” she said.
“We’re very disappointed and a bit frustrated that it’s taking so long. Stage one got done and since then there have been so many delays, we’re champing at the bit and dead keen to get it all done.”
Allen said the delays had been compounded by Council unearthing ancient rubbish at the former landfill site when stage one excavations were carried out.
“They had to dig up a fair bit of stuff for roads, and some of that was old rubbish, but they have got a plan for how to deal with that now, and it is going to be reburied on the site,” she said.
The first stage of improvements was carried out between October last year and February, when the drop-off area was completely upgraded, with new bin areas, barriers and a fully sealed surface. The shop, education centre and new access will be developed next month.
Allen said while it was frustrating not having a shop at Lawrie Road, all saleable goods were being taken up to Wellsford to sell at Wastebusters’ Station Road shop, Rusty Station, which opens every Wednesday.
She added that Wastebusters now had access to more used items to sell, thanks to its joint venture partner Localised now running Auckland’s inorganic waste collection.
“So now we take our tech waste to Abilities, a social enterprise in Auckland that employs disabled people and recycles e-waste, and then we can backload with re-saleable goods from the Auckland inorganic collection warehouse,” she said.
“It means we can have a constant supply of good stuff to sell. At the moment, it’s all going to Rusty Station, in Station Road Wellsford, but in future it will also go to Lawrie Road.”
Allen did not have a completion date for stage two works, but said it was expected to take a few months.
She added that Mahurangi Wastebusters was currently looking for staff – “customer service superstars, people who can deal with the public and people to help unload”.
Info: www.mahurangiwastebusters.nz or www.facebook.com/mahuwastebusters
