2020 has started off as 2019 ended; busy, busy, busy! In February I attended the sod-turning ceremony to begin construction to upgrade the walking and cycling facilities on Tamaki Dr, on the seaward side between Quay St and the Ngapipi Rd intersection. This is a shared NZTA/Auckland Council-funded project which will separate cyclists, who will now have a bi- directional off-road cycleway away from pedestrians on the other side of the grass berm and pōhutukawa, all while keeping the existing traffic lanes and widths. To find out more about the project and its delivery timeframe, you can go to the AT website and find it in the ‘projects-roadworks’ section.
I was also very pleased to see the Clonbern Rd carpark in Remuera resealed and available for use before school went back. The project was meant to take eight weeks to complete but only took three. The real winner for me though is that the parking spaces are wider and longer than those previously. Over the next two to three years the site will now be prepared for sale, noting any future development must include 200 carparks for community use. Huge thanks to the Remuera Business Association chair and members for their advocacy and patience before and during works.
There are to be parking changes in Parnell too. After considering feedback from the Parnell community, AT has decided to implement several changes to improve parking availability by increasing turnover and discouraging commuter parking. Thank you to all who took the time to place feedback — the outcome reflected your response and hopefully will improve availability of parking. For more of a detailed overview of the changes, again you can look on the AT website in projects-roadworks.
Now is the time we ask for your feedback on council’s Annual Plan. This is your chance to voice your perspective on regional issues and the priorities for your local board area.
Rubbish and recycling continue to be a challenging area for council. Sadly, compared to other world-leading cities. we have low rates of recycling and reuse of waste (35 per cent). We need to continue to find ways to mitigate this and make good decisions around our waste services.
So, what is being proposed? In the Annual Plan, we are beginning to look for ways to reduce the amount of rubbish in our landfills. Preventing further cost to our environment will inevitably require some financial cost – like the proposed rise in your annual waste service charge. Unlike many other areas of Auckland who operate on a user-pays system, our area will still have a fixed annual charge. The charge is proposed to rise from $130 a year to $144, but still works out to be 25 per cent cheaper than areas who have a pay- per-lift system. I am sure you are all aware of the increasing global pressures around waste management, which obviously impacts the market costs for both collection and disposal. Despite this, council managed to negotiate a waste management contract that was best value for money and at a reduced cost to what we had anticipated.
The budget also has a proposed average increase in rates from 2.5 per cent to 3.5 per cent. While increases are never particularly welcome, this will remain one of the lowest rates increases of the major urban councils (Tauranga is proposing 11 per cent). On top of that, our area will, for the first time in a while, benefit hugely from some large infrastructure projects.
But nothing is confirmed! You can give your feedback for any part of the budget either online or in person, and will find dates and venues for relevant events on the council website, aucklandcouncil.govt.nz, under the ‘Have Your Say’ tab. The consultation period closes on March 22. As you all know, I do listen to and appreciate your views.