KEY POINTS:
It's always delightful when the best-laid plans of bureaucrats are confounded by awkward evidence unearthed from their own filing systems.
In recent days, correspondence dating back to 1994 has emerged which discusses the fate of the historic "rolling lift" bridge on the Viaduct Basin.
This is the mothballed, slowly decaying treasure of the port's industrial past that Auckland City officials want us to forget so they can build a $51.2 million-plus "aesthetically world-class" replacement.
Fourteen years ago, the Auckland Civic Trust, which once acted as the city's conscience on matters historical, wrote to the chairman of the Auckland Regional Services Trust, seeking an assurance that the bridge would not fall victim to the America's Cup new broom, then about to sweep the area.
"We have been given to understand that its future is in jeopardy and that it may be demolished in the near future," wrote president, Daren Day.
Pointing out the bridge was listed in the Auckland Regional Council's draft cultural heritage inventory, he said that apart from its heritage significance, "when down, the link it creates around the Viaduct Basin is important for walkers, joggers and motorists, helping to increase Aucklanders' access to and enjoyment of the Basin".
In response, Robert Cooper, chief executive, Ports of Auckland, wrote "you can be assured that there is no intention to demolish the structure."
It's the legal grunt reinforcing his assurance that has present day campaigners for the resurrection of the bridge so delighted.
"The consent order issued on 22 April 1992 by the Planning Tribunal," added Mr Cooper, "providing for the proposed development of the Viaduct Basin and associated works, is conditional upon, amongst other matters, 'the retention of the Viaduct Bridge as an historical feature of public interest capable of being safely demonstrated on special occasions'."
He added that "this requirement was subsequently provided for in both the maritime and the Auckland City planning scheme and the company is meeting its obligations and will continue to do so".
Mr Day thanked the port boss for his assurance, acidly replying "we are quite happy with your reply, subject to it being kept in Ministry of Transport certified working order."
The good news is that these letters show that the present owner of the bridge, the Auckland City Council, has a court-ordered requirement to maintain the bridge in working order. The bad news is that 14 years on, no one seems to be taking the court's preservation order seriously.
Mr Cooper's March 10, 1994 letter said regular operation of the bridge had stopped the previous September "in the main for safety reasons."
It wasn't a that the bridge was unsafe, but that realignment of roads had created a conflict between pedestrians and vehicle traffic.
As far as I can ascertain, the bridge has never been opened again, not even for "special occasions." These days, it's inoperable because sometime after the court ruling, someone hacked through the electric cables that powered its motors.
As a statutory authority, the least the council should do is plug the bridge back into the national grid, squirt a bit of lubricating oil around, and get it lifting again.
As I mentioned a month ago, ACC politicians have been going cold on the "iconic" new replacement Te Wero bridge since they heard the cost had jumped from $35 million to $51 million or more.
They aren't alone. On October 21, the Auckland Regional Council's transport and urban development committee was told it "would be most helpful" if the ARC sent a letter to the government transport funding agency endorsing the new bridge.
The letter came from the ACC's partners in the project, Auckland Regional Holdings - a subsidiary of the ARC.
ARC committee members refused to play ball. Instead they declared any new bridge should be for walking and cycling only, and pointedly added that the bridge would need an ARC resource consent.
The opposition is a setback for the transport planners who see the new bridge as a potential bypass for buses going north from the city centre, and for the monument builders.
But it's encouraging for those who want to see the old bridge brought back to life as the main link from the city centre to a pedestrian-friendly destination.
