A Howick real estate agent fighting to stop housing development ruining a "treasured" harbour view hopes to raise $300,000 to take Auckland Council to court.
Residents fighting to stop housing development ruining one of Auckland's most "treasured" harbour views could get support from New Zealand's Parliament, National MP Simeon Brown says.
The Pakuranga MP said he was investigating whether he could take a Private Bill to Parliament to protect the panoramic views from Stockade Hill in the city's east because they are iconic and should be enjoyed by generations to come.
The 360 degree vistas sweep from Auckland city over "eight habitable islands" and at least six volcanoes, including Rangitoto and Waiheke Islands, as well as the Coromandel Peninsula and Little Barrier Island in the distance.
Stockade Hill and its war memorial make for a spectacular and moving Anzac Day dawn service, residents say. Photo / Jason Oxenham.
Yet they have been under threat ever since Auckland Council rezoned land around the hill in 2015 to allow taller homes to be built nearby.
It's triggered a two-year battle with local residents, who are trying to fundraise up to $300,000 to take Auckland Council to court.
Brown said he was keen to also see if a Private Bill could gain the backing of national politicians and be used to potentially overrule Auckland Council.
"Everyone in east Auckland has a connection to Stockade Hill - it's a sacred location," he said.
"For me, it's a place where we as a community gather on Anzac Day to remember those who fought and gave their all in the World Wars."
National's Pakuranga MP Simeon Brown says he is investigating whether he can take a Private Bill to Parliament to save the views from Stockade Hill. Photo / Supplied
It's a stand backed by many Howick residents, who say they are furious Auckland Council won't listen to them.
Hundreds have protested at council meetings, about 6700 have signed an earlier petition against the changes and the Howick Ratepayers Association unsuccessfully took the matter to the High Court.
They say Stockade Hill is important for all Aucklanders as the site of a war memorial and ramparted stockade built in 1863 by settlers fearing an attack from Maori warriors during the New Zealand Land Wars.
A new appeal to the Environment Court has also recently been launched by local real estate agent Janet Dickson, who is fundraising to meet the costs of the case.
Her legal team, led by barrister Alan Webb, a specialist in environmental law, held their first meeting with Auckland Council earlier this week in a bid to potentially negotiate an outcome.
Howick resident Janet Dickson has launched the court case to stop Auckland Council ruining views Stockade Hill. Photo / NZ Herald
Brown said his efforts to enlist national politicians into the battled aimed to add another prong to the campaign and ensure "no stone was left unturned".
But he cautioned the public interest threshold needed to take a Private Bill to Parliament was very high and so he was still unsure whether it was possible in the case of Stockade Hill.
Dickson and her supporters believe the problem started accidentally in 2015 when planners made a mistake while drafting Auckland's main planning document - the Auckland Unitary Plan.
Stockade Hill's public value had earlier been recognised in the 1990s by the-then Manukau City Council which bought land in the area to create a reserve and zoned it heritage so new homes would be built in a manner that protected the views.
But during the drafting of the Auckland Unitary Plan, land close to Auckland bus routes was often changed to "mixed-urban" zoning to allow higher density housing close to public transport.
Some of the views from Stockade Hill in Howick. Photograph / Jason Oxenham.
Dickson said planners appeared to have not realised Stockade Hill held important public value and rezoned it to higher density simply because it lay on a bus route.
She said residents aren't against higher density housing but believe there were many more appropriate places to allow it.
They are also mostly concerned with restricting the height of a handful of houses closest to Stockade Hill, possibly fewer than 50 properties.
For it's part, Auckland Council said it had already listened to residents by creating a protected view towards the sea from the summit of Stockade Hill.
Council general manager plans and places John Duguid said houses on the seaward side would be restricted to a height that would allow people standing on the summit of Stockade Hill to be able to see the harbour.
National MP Simeon Brown says he is joining Howick residents in their two-year battle with Auckland Council to save the views from Stockade Hill. Photo / Supplied
Elsewhere, around the hill's edge, homes would be permitted to rise to about three storeys' high.
But Brown and residents call the changes too little too late.
They said residents should be able to enjoy views from all around the hill, not just when standing on its summit.
"Whether it is Anzac day, Armistice Day, Midnight Madness or a host of other community events, Stockade Hill is a place where the community comes together," Brown said.
"It is a precious part of the Howick community which must be preserved."
