KEY POINTS:
A Kaipara subtribe trying to gather support for a "resort settlement" of 850 homes near an unspoiled Northland beach flew Conservation Minister Chris Carter over the site yesterday.
While the Department of Conservation made sure it paid for the helicopter - mindful of accusations of bias against Mr Carter in his dealings with local groups over Whangamata Marina - the trip was at Te Uri o Hau's invitation.
"He's just having a look at the area of the proposed development and there's nothing he can really say at the moment," said Auckland Department of Conservation spokesman Warwick Murray.
Mr Carter and his department's view on the plan is crucial because the area is the last major breeding site for the critically endangered fairy tern which nest in the area at Te Arai Beach south of Mangawhai.
The tribe and its developer partner Darby Partners have already promised cats will be banned and dogs strictly controlled but that may not be enough to allay DoC's concerns.
A report commissioned by the department earlier this year said major development could push the fairy tern to extinction.
"Obviously we have concerns about shorebirds and will be making a submission on the plans," Mr Murray said. "We are not confident the potential impact of people in the area will be managed properly."
A consent application for the subdivision, on 616ha of land bought by Te Uri o Hau with Treaty of Waitangi settlement money, had been expected for months and has now been formally lodged with Rodney District Council.
The site has 5.3km fronting Te Arai Beach and would include an 18-hole golf course, a resort hotel with 200 "village homes" and conference facility, a village centre of shops and a restaurant or cafe.
The consent application includes plans for a large coastal park along the beachfront and for homes to be set back from the beach.
But the resource consent battle is likely to be long and expensive because it will require a private plan change, whereby Rodney District Council's major planning documents will have to be altered to create a special "resort settlement" zone.
Te Arai residents have been rallying opposition to the development for months and are almost certain to fight it every step of the way.
Resident Mark Walker said he hadn't yet had a chance to see the application. "Obviously 850 is better than 2000 but it might still be 850 too many," he said.
