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It's a New Zealand tradition - long weekends and summer holidays spent in camping grounds by the beach.
But as coastal property prices soar, camping grounds around the country have been disappearing, bought by land-hungry developers.
Now, a group of Northland campers has drawn a line in the sand, rallying to stump up $3 million to buy a beloved camping ground threatened by development.
The Riverside Holiday Park at Mangawhai has been a summer home for families since the 1970s. Nestled on the shore of an estuary near Mangawhai Heads, the collection of caravan sites and relocatable homes is a haven of tranquillity which usually fills up with more than 500 people over Christmas/New Year.
In January, regular users were stunned to hear the camping ground was for sale.
"It was a hell of a shock," said Pete Smith, who has had a relocatable home on the site for seven years.
"In Mangawhai, with all the development going on, this is an extremely sought-after place. We knew sooner or later there would be an offer."
He was right. Within weeks, a developer had moved to buy the 2.8ha camping ground. The rumour was that the site would be divided into 14 sections for development.
"We would have been history," said Smith. "We were devastated. We thought, 'we have to do something to save the camp'."
The caravan owners formed a committee and a back-up offer of $3 million was put on the table. Auckland production director Mark Paisey, a regular user of the ground for 11 years, admits it was a gamble.
"We just wanted to get something on paper. Rumours were running rife, that it was going to be bulldozed and we were going to be chucked off the land. The camp ground was going to be lost to developers."
The campers' committee worked on their plan to buy the camp, while negotiating with the developers, Parker Brothers.
Hopes were high that a compromise could be reached on the site's future. Then, Parker Brothers withdrew their offer and the campers now own Riverside Holiday Park.
Ninety-five share-holders have bought into the place, for between $35,000 and $60,000.
"It's been completely funded by the shareholders," says Paisey. "We haven't had to borrow any money. I think it's cool that a group of like-minded people can get together and do this. We just have to run it now."
Paisey said many other Northland camping grounds had been "gobbled up" by developers and he was "damn pleased" he helped to save Riverside.
Long-time camp user, 83-year-old Betty Martin, said she was relieved the camp was now secure. "It was a worrying time for us all. We didn't want to see the camp go."
She said there was a different atmosphere around the place now it was owned by the users. "I am very pleased I didn't have to move. It's the camp life I love."
Pete Smith agreed: "Now the people are shareholders, they have security for as long as they want it."
Developer John Parker said he had planned to do a 27-house subdivision on the site, but had quickly realised the strength of opposition among the campers and local community. He also admitted he had "fallen in love" with the camp. "It's a magical place."
Parker looked at doing a subdivided camping ground, but there were too many obstacles. He decided to withdraw his offer and back the campers' bid instead.
He now has some caravan sites at Riverside for his own family and plans to be there this Christmas.
He has no regrets about losing out on the development. "It would have been very profitable, but there would have been so much bad will we wouldn't have been able to do anything else in Mangawhai."
CLOSURES
Camping grounds lost include:
* Blue Bay Motor Camp at Opoutama, Mahia Peninsula - subject of the documentary The Last Resort, sold for subdivision in 2004.
* Kawarau Falls Camping Ground, Queenstown - sold for hotel development last year.
* Taupo Motor Camp - council-run, closed last year for civic redevelopment.
* Cooks Beach Camping Ground, Coromandel Peninsula - in its final summer, likely to be turned into residential development.
