KEY POINTS:
Plans by television personality and former All Black Marc Ellis and four surfing friends to build a cafe at Piha on Auckland's west coast have taken another step.
But they can expect a battle to get planning consent against a strong anti-commercial development lobby.
Four members of the company, Preserve Piha Ltd, lived at Piha as well as surfed there, said Mr Ellis.
"These guys found there was nowhere for the community to get together and it was a grand opportunity when the site came up for sale, as it was zoned outside the norm because it was a telephone exchange.
"We thought about using the existing building and turning it into a cafe where people could read the paper, work on laptops, meet and talk.
"It's a site where the sunrise will be on your coffee and newspaper and you get a lovely view to the front of the section looking out at the ocean."
An application for resource consent was publicly notified yesterday and people have until August 31 to make their views known to the Waitakere City Council and the Auckland Regional Council.
A partner in the venture, Andy Higgs, said the 108sq m cafe would seat 35 patrons.
"It's of a size and scale that we believe from our research the community can support," he said.
"In summer Piha is busy, but in the winter it's quiet."
Mr Higgs said Piha lacked an area where "mothers can meet, surfers can have breakfast and walkers can have lunch".
He said the cafe would be open from 7am to 7pm throughout the year and would not serve alcohol.
Piha Residents and Ratepayers Association president Tony Dunn said most people had strong feelings on the proposal.
"The building is relatively low impact but a lot have concerns about visitor management and traffic flows.
"Another argument is that while an organic, warm and fluffy cafe is fine, what if the developers sell the site and it brings a Starbucks or a McDonalds?"
Builder Geoff Calvert said a lot of residents were traditionally against any commercial development in Piha and visitors were surprised to find it did not have a cash machine or a liquor store.
"We wish Piha to retain its character but I don't think a cafe will detract from that as long as it's beachy.
"We have the RSA, the Surf Club and the Bowling Club, but there is a need for a casual, light-hearted environment where people can come without an atmosphere of drinking."
Waitakere Ranges Protection Society secretary Kath Dewar said Piha was "a place where people can escape commercial pressure to buy and spend money".
