Latest news with #ZigZagTrack
RNZ News
3 days ago
- General
- RNZ News
'Historic day': Auckland Council vote to pass Waitākere Ranges deed
The Zig Zag track in the Waitākere Ranges Regional Park connects the Titirangi community to its local beach. Photo: Supplied / Auckland Council The relationship between Mana Whenua and the Waitākere Ranges Heritage Area, and their role in developing a strategic plan for the area, is now formally recognised in a deed between Auckland Council, West Auckland iwi Te Kawerau ā Maki and the Department of Conservation (DoC). The Deed of Acknowledgement applies to public land within the lush forests of the Heritage Area and crown land managed by DoC. Council's Planning and Policy Committee have on Thursday afternoon voted to agree with the deed and to support the setting up of a new joint committee to preserve the area for future generations. The committee will include representatives from five members from Te Kawerau ā Maki, two from council's governing body, three from local boards and one from DoC. It will be giving advice on to the governing body about decisions relating to the Waitākere Ranges. All members of the planning committee voted to agree with the deed and all but five councillors opposed to the setting up of a joint committee. The joint committee will be developing a strategic plan for the Heritage Area, to support the five-yearly monitoring report required by the Waitakere Ranges Heritage Area Act - which was introduced in 2008. Since the legislation was introduced, there have been no single comprehensive plan for the Heritage Area. The public gallery at the planning committee's meeting on Thursday was filled with more than 40 supporters from Te Kawerau ā Maki, and other iwi and hapu, including Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, Ngāti Manuhiri and Ngāti Pāoa. Dozens of members of Te Kawerau ā Maki, and other Iwi and Hapu, including Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, Ngāti Manuhiri and Ngāti Pāoa - sing a waiata in celebration of the Deed of Acknowledgement being passed by Auckland Council. Photo: Screenhot via Auckland Council Rangatira and Kaumatua from Te Kawerau ā Maki told councillors that the deed is the most important event since their settlement with the Crown. Waitākere councillor Shane Henderson said it's a "historic day" for Waitākere. He said while the local board does a fantastic job in making key decisions for the Waitākere ranges, West Aucklanders cannot say that the current governance for the ranges is working well. Henderson said the new advisory committee is needed to give proper attention to the Waitākere ranges and ensure its management it more in line with treaty principles. Among the five councillors who voted to support the deed, but were against the setting up of the advisory committee, councillor Mike Lee and councillor Wayne Walker were most vocal about their concerns. Lee said the arrangements for the committee was "not equitable and not fair", and didn't give enough consideration to the investment in the Waitākere Regional Park. Following Lee's comments, councillor Josephine Bartley said her eye keeps twitching after hearing comments from certain people. "I just want to know what are you scared of? Nothing is being taken away from anyone by recognising Tangata Whenua and their ancestral connection to the land - and even then the recognition here is in a very palatable format for those who are scared by way of being a joint advisory panel," she said. Meanwhile, Walker said while he acknowledged that the deed was the right thing to do, he had concerns about the accountability, authority and oversight of the proposed new advisory committee - considering that the council is the primary funder of it. Feedback from an earlier public consultation in April showed 51 percent of submitters from the deed and its elements - including the advisory committee, 39 percent opposed it and 10 percent were neutral or unclear. Thirty-seven percent of the submissions came from within the Waitākere Ranges Heritage Area itself. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
03-07-2025
- Climate
- RNZ News
Auckland's Zig Zag track reopens after closure due to storm-damage in 2023
The Zig Zag track in the Waitākere Ranges Regional Park connects the Titirangi community to its local beach. Photo: Supplied / Auckland Council A popular track in Auckland's suburb of Titirangi has reopened this week, following closure after storm-damage from the weather events of early 2023. Auckland Council said the Zig Zag track, which links Titirangi Beach Road to the beach, has undergone significant upgrades to stabilise its path and improve drainage since the storms. The work is part of the council's ongoing programme to restore weather damaged tracks across the Waitākere Ranges, with stronger safeguards for kauri and improved experiences for users of the track. The council's manager of regional parks, Scott De Silva, said the restoration was not as easy as clearing a path. "Our contractors and rangers work around steep terrain, mature native trees, and ongoing flood damage - all while protecting the sensitive ecology of the area. It's careful, complex work, and I'm proud of what the team has achieved to reconnect this local accessway," he said. Parks Committee chairperson councillor Ken Turner said the reopening of the Zig Zag track was a milestone for the community. "It's a sign of the steady progress being made across the Waitākere Ranges Regional Park to get things back to normal after the extreme weather events of 2023," he said. Three more tracks are also set to reopen in the ranges in the coming months, including the Smyth Ridge track, the Kuatiaka track and the Zion Hill track in Karekare. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
