My Account
Wetlands in Whangaparaoa will be both lost and regained if a proposal put forward by Auckland Council staff gains traction.
The basis of the proposal is to restore D’Oyly Reserve to wetland in mitigation for the loss of the “streams and wetland area” in Link Crescent, which will be piped underground to enable residential development there.
Council stormwater specialists are working in tandem with CCO Panuku Development Auckland on the plan.
They have told the Hibiscus & Bays Local Board that the loss of the wetland at Link Crescent is “unavoidable”. To offset this, Council and Panuku are proposing that the piped stream in D’Oyly Reserve, Stanmore Bay, be returned to a more natural state, “resulting in a net gain in ecological function and stormwater treatment”. The restoration of the D’Oyly wetland will also “improve public recreational opportunities with the provision of boardwalks, cycleways and native plantings,” the board was told.
Panuku Development Auckland’s development manager, Adam Sadgrove says that the need to cater for the loss of wetland at 20 Link Crescent could have posed a real risk to how the Link Crescent housing development proceeded.
“But thanks to a collaborative effort between Council departments and the developer, we have an outcome that will ensure the delivery of additional housing in a very tight market and an enhanced green space and waterway at D’Oyly Reserve in the process,” he says.
Hibiscus & Bays Local Board chair Julia Parfitt says that the plan will also provide educational opportunities for local schools – particularly Stanmore Bay School.
D’Oyly Reserve currently consists of mown grass on top of what was historically a stream. Recreational activities in the reserve are affected by the fact that it’s boggy in winter, as the stormwater pipe beneath has insufficient capacity, resulting in overflows.
Council’s senior stormwater specialist, Wolfgang Kanz, says that the proposal is to bring the water within the pipe, which is fed by a relatively large upstream catchment, into a reinstated natural streambed. The stream edges would be planted in an ecologically sound and attractive way. Both passive and active recreation, potentially including walk and cycleways and grassed play areas may be included in the final design.
The local board has given the project its support in principle and requested a detailed design and public input before giving its final approval.
