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An early European cemetery with at least six graves dated 1882-1905, and three sites associated with Maori occupation have been deemed historically significant, but not outstandingly so, and therefore they will not be evaluated further for protection by Auckland Council.
Members of the Waiwera Residents & Ratepayers Association applied to have the sites on privately owned land at 42 Werenui Road, protected (HM October 31) and member Pat Allen says they are very disappointed at Council’s response.
In the letter to the association, Council’s heritage unit manager, Noel Reardon, says that workloads are an issue.
“Being of potential outstanding historic heritage significance (or having the potential to be identified as a Category A historic heritage place in the Auckland Unitary Plan) is the current threshold for a historic heritage evaluation to proceed. This is due to the unit’s current workloads. Other important work would need to be postponed or not completed to resource this evaluation.”
Council also suggests that the association considers undertaking further research to make a case for significance, or engage a qualified heritage specialist to evaluate the places.
Allen says the comprehensive Heritage NZ report of 2014 included in the application gave Council very clear directives that both the Maori sites and the early European cemetery should be protected.
He says the organisation is not going to give up.
Meetings with Heritage NZ, including the report’s author Bev Parslow, and Ngati Manuhiri are being arranged.
They also hope to seek a face-to-face meeting with the owners of the site, Everlast Enterprises.
“We’re left with a feeling that the decision could be about funding because we can’t comprehend how Council can ignore the report that it commissioned,” Allen says.
“We sympathise with those resourcing and funding issues – but there is a growing disquiet that Waiwera has been put on the back burner pending what happens around the pools. We are not going to take this lying down.”
Hibiscus Matters was unable to contact Everlast Enterprises, for comment.
