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The extension to Ōrewa Boulevard, earlier budgeted to cost $1.8m, will once again be the subject of scrutiny by the Hibiscus & Bays Local Board.
Auckland Transport (AT) recently completed the tender process for the project, and while the latest potential costs are under wraps for now, due to commercial sensitivity, local board chair Gary Brown says in the current climate it would be a miracle if they had not gone up.
Last August, the local board agreed to fund the work, based on AT’s detailed design estimate of $1.8m. Work was originally expected to begin towards the end of last year but this was delayed by changes in Covid-19 alert levels.
The project, which extends the pedestrian friendly boulevard 220m further along, from Riverside Road to Empire Road, is a top priority for the local board and paying for it dug deep into its $2.5m transport capital fund.
Brown says if the projected costs substantially rise, how to find the extra money will be an issue for the cash strapped local board.
Provided they can find the money, he says they hope to fix a price and see the project get underway as soon as possible.
The project aims to slow traffic as well as better connect the beach and shops with Ōrewa Reserve and includes a shared path on the beach side of the highway and a brick paved footpath on the other side. Parallel parking on the beach side will change to angled parking, with a gain of seven parks. Two pedestrian crossings will become raised zebra crossings.
Backstories July 14 and August 27, 2021
