Long Bay land put in public ownership

Long Bay Restaurant on the beachfront at Long Bay Regional Park on Auckland's North Shore. Photo / Paul Estcourt

In one of the last acts in its existence, the North Shore City Council has signed an agreement which should see more than 30ha of land behind the popular Long Bay beach placed into public ownership.

The council signed an agreement with Todd Property Group on Friday, which will see the picturesque east coast beach maintain its backdrop of rolling hills, and a buffer of reserve land provided around a proposed residential development.

The agreement has been presented to the Auckland Transition Agency for final approval.

North Shore City mayor Andrew Williams is confident it will be confirmed at their board meeting this week.

The agreement means 18.7ha of the Heritage Protection Area at Long Bay, 13 other reserves in the Long Bay Structure Plan totalling 4.6ha and a further 14.8ha of stormwater and esplanade reserve areas will be placed into public ownership.

"I am extremely pleased that we have been able to negotiate this extensive acquisition of land in the Long Bay area," Mr Williams said.
"It means that the whole of the Long Bay area is protected and cannot be touched.

"It is heritage protected area with a covenant from the Environment Court and cannot be lost."

Mr Williams said the reserves will serve as a buffer between the regional park and the proposed 2,500 home subdivision, which will home around 6000 people.

"The 13 strategically placed parks within the Long Bay subdivision have been carefully planned and positioned to ensure protection of the Awaruku Stream, Vaughan Flats, and provide notable vantage points out over the park and to the sea."

A cycle track/walkway will be constructed down the side of the Awaruku Stream, connecting homes in the Awaruku Valley area of Torbay down to the regional park.
"It has taken quite a number of months but it is a great result in our 11th hour of the existence of North Shore City."

Mr Williams felt the agreement was a fitting end for the council, which will cease to exist when the new Auckland Super City comes into effect next month.

"It will be one of our very final things, but possibly one of the most significant."

The convenor of the Okura Long Bay Great Park Society Chris Bettany was delighted with the agreement.

"What the council has negotiated, we very much approve," she said. "It has been a lot of hard work."

The society succeeded in 2008 in pursuading the Environment Court to amend the development plans so as not to have "adverse visual effects" on the regional park. The group raised $250,000 from public donations for the case.

"It has been a lot of hard work," Ms Bettany said.