Marine Park - the site of a proposed marine research facility at Sulphur Point. Photo / File
Marine Park - the site of a proposed marine research facility at Sulphur Point. Photo / File
A Tauranga man is calling for people to join him at Marine Park to oppose the “loss of green space” he believes will happen if a marine research facility is built there.
Neil Pollett organised the gathering at 4pm on Sunday because he wants Marine Park in Sulphur Point to remain a green space.
He has also started a petition to “Save Marine Park” on change.org.
“It’s a green space reserve, which we’ll never get back,” Pollett said. “I’m just concerned for the future of the city that [the council is] promoting high growth in the Te Papa peninsula and are simultaneously removing any green space and any public space that people can enjoy.”
Tauranga City Council reclassified 7000sq m of land at Marine Park from recreation reserve to local purpose reserve in July last year. The reclassification was finalised and gazetted in November. The change would enable a marine research and education facility to be built there.
The council said the reclassified land made up around 6 per cent of Marine Park but Pollett said he believed the proportion of lost green space would be higher than this due to car parking and boat ramps.
The park was 10.7 hectares in total but the council did not reveal how much of that was green space when asked.
The council’s chief financial officer Paul Davidson said it would be creating additional green spaces with the development of the city centre and Tauranga Moana waterfront.
“We know enhancing our natural environment is important to our communities.
“[The] plan is to transform the Tauranga Moana waterfront into a safe, parklike setting that will form a natural extension to the city centre, improve access to the water’s edge, and be a place for people to spend time and enjoy.”
Pollett said he was not against education or the marine research facility - just where it was going and the council’s consultation process.
The Ōtūmoetai resident said there was no signage at Marine Park or public meetings held about the reclassification. The council ran public consultation on the reclassification from May 16 until June 20 last year. Public hearings were held on June 27.
Davidson said the reclassification proposal was promoted widely through local print media, radio, digital media, social media, and via direct emails to special interest groups. There were 323 submissions with 65.9 per cent in support of the reclassification, 33.4 per cent opposed and 0.6 per cent were neutral.
“Of those supporting the reclassification more than 90 per cent were strongly in support, and a substantial majority of younger people supported the proposal, which would bring numerous public benefits,” Davidson said.
“Of the submitters who opposed the proposal most were concerned about the loss of open recreational space.”
Pollet said he wanted to speak at the hearing but was given less than one working day’s notice so was unable to.
In response, Davidson said the hearing date was advertised more than a month in advance including on the council’s website, in public notices, the overview document and on the submission form.
This is the second attempt to enable the marine precinct build.
The council sought to revoke the reserve status in 2018 but it was blocked by then Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage in July 2020.
Under the Reserves Act, the power to change a reserve’s classification rests with the Conservation Minister, but the Minister has delegated that decision-making power to territorial authorities. So, the decision to reclassify a reserve can be made by a council as the Minister’s delegate.
University of Waikato senior deputy vice-chancellor Alister Jones. Photo / Stephen Barker
Pollett believed there were other places around the city the marine research facility could go but Davidson said investigations into alternate sites were carried out and Marine Park was the only available site of adequate size and proximity to a deep-sea channel.
The University of Waikato had expressed interest in building and running the facility. The university senior deputy vice-chancellor Alister Jones said other locations around the region were explored but Sulphur Point was “by far the best option”.
“The proposed facility would increase tertiary education and research capabilities while creating local employment opportunities and flow-on benefits to other industries in Tauranga.
“The University has worked hard over many years with Tauranga City Council, iwi, community and local stakeholders to find a solution that is fit for the future and that will grow marine and coastal research, attract more students into science, educate the public and ultimately have a positive impact on our environment, including climate change.”
The next step was for the council to hold a tender process for the lease of the land, which would begin at the end of January. Jones would not confirm if the university would put in a tender because it hadn’t been made public yet.
Pollett’s meeting is at 4pm on Sunday and Marine Park.
- Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air
