History of the Tank Farm

An historic agreement was today reached which will see Auckland's Tank Farm developed into an iconic centre by the sea. We look at how we got here Photos of the Tank Farm plans

The history of the area goes back to the early days of Auckland when land near what is now known as the Tank Farm began to be reclaimed.

It was first used by the timber trade and then in the 1930s for bulk petro-chemical storage, hence the name Tank Farm.

Since then the area has been used by the marine and fishing industry.

It became the centre of negotiations between the Auckland Regional Council, Auckland Regional Holdings and the Auckland City Council last year.

A design concept was put forward in 2005 by Ports of Auckland but did not receive widespread support due to the number of apartments and a comparatively small 1.6 hectare public park.

A plan change by the Auckland City Council in 2006 attracted over 1400 public submissions calling for less apartments and more public space.

The process was not without controversy. The city council came under pressure from business lobby group Heart of the City after it refused to release reports on the Tank Farm.

The council's secrecy over the Tank Farm was compared to the handling of the early plans for Britomart under then mayor Les Mills.

In March this year a new company was established to manage the Tank Farm development.

The ARC took 20 hectares owned by the Ports of Auckland and put it into the newly formed company, Wynyard Management.

- NZHERALD STAFF