Distrust in Waitakere slows progress on ranges plan

A senior Waitakere City councillor says a proposed law to protect the Waitakere Ranges cannot go ahead while there is suspicion and distrust of the council.

Janet Clews, who has represented west Auckland ratepayers for 42 years, prompted a call for more talks with landowners when the draft local bill came before yesterday's special council meeting.

A member of the three-council working party on the draft bill, Mrs Clews said the bill had changed in response to what the public said at a series of meetings.

"But it disturbs me to hear people say they don't trust the council.

"A group of landowners won't take part in it because they don't trust the council and I'm disturbed because we have tried to be as open as we can about this.

"It's important to have support of the locals and we don't have all of it.

"We need to go that extra mile and the draft bill comes back in a form which we are happy with before proceeding to Parliament."

Deputy Mayor Carolynne Stone said the council must avoid fuelling the notion that it had already made up its mind.

Talks with the community had revealed a number of unresolved land use issues on properties which she thought would have been settled by now.

The council gave itself three months to follow up with individual landowners and Government agencies on the contents of the bill.

The council would then decide whether to submit a bill to Parliament.

On Tuesday the Auckland Regional Council decided to support the draft bill after assurances of extensive public consultation and further opportunities for fine-tuning the wording.

At the Waitakere meeting yesterday, Mayor Bob Harvey told 60 people the council had had "a summer of listening" and a draft bill was prepared for the council to consider.

"To me, it looks good for the care and attention given.

"It grapples with the issues that we have been talking about for months - even years."

Mr Harvey moved that further work should be undertaken as expeditiously as possible, with a view to reporting back on progress in April and submitting any draft legislation by June.

The council put the reporting date back a month to May.

Councillors withheld endorsement of the draft bill, instead preferring to note that the draft as a tool was consistent with the council's policy objectives.

Vanessa Neeson suggested a look at leaving out the controversial foothills part of the proposed national heritage area.

The council received 3500 submissions on the bill which showed 71 per cent support for legislation to be pursued.

Opanuku Landowners Group chairman Louis Dean said he expected that council tactics would now change to wearing everyone down to acceptance.

Asked why landowners were suspicious of the council, Mr Dean said: "Anybody who has had anything to do with trying to get approval for resource consents in the foothills is apprehensive and suspicious of the council workers."

He said the group was suspicious about consultation because it did not think anything would change the council's mind.

Waitakere Ranges Protection Society chairman John Edgar said he would have loved to have seen the bill accepted but was heartened by the number of councillors who supported it now that they understood it.

The council had already consulted at length, he said, but it had been less than a week since people knew what the draft contained.

Mr Edgar said further meetings with landowners could show them that the legislation did not pose a threat to their land and would, in fact, enhance it.

But there were some people who felt no government should tell them what they should do on their own land.

The council's ranges project leader, Graeme Campbell, said there was distrust and disbelief in the ability to protect the ranges and foothills.

But the proposed bill answered those concerns, he said, by offering long-term protection and Aucklanders a choice of lifestyle.

An apartment in New Lynn or a house in suburban Ranui were not the only choices for people of west Auckland.

A sweetener was offered to landowners.

The council said any legislation would be part of package of measures to better protect the area.

They could include rates relief or funds for new enterprises or weed and pest management.

Park support

A push is on to establish the Waitakere Ranges national heritage area, including 17,200ha of regional park.

The council received 3500 submissions on the legislation needed to create the area: 71 per cent were supportive.