Tauranga firm dismantling Aramoana pilot wharf

A landing craft operated by a Tauranga-based company is being used to help dismantle parts of the Aramoana pilot wharf and part of a walkway leading to it.

Dunedin City Council acting group manager parks and recreation Jendi Paterson confirmed yesterday that the company, Bay Underwater Services Ltd, had begun work to "deconstruct" the wharf on Thursday. It was estimated it would take five days,  but this was weather-dependent, Ms Paterson said.

All equipment used in the work belonged to the company and had been "shipped down from the North Island", including the landing craft. Aramoana Pilot Wharf Restoration Charitable Trust member Tracey Densem was yesterday "gutted"  the dismantling work  had  not been synchronised more collaboratively with the planned rebuilding of the wharf, as the trust had initially hoped.

Nevertheless, the trust was raising further money to rebuild the wharf, was optimistic about future collaboration with the council, and was determined to  re-establish the wharf as a long-treasured community asset.

The council has recently said the wharf’s overall poor condition was a risk to public health and safety and that dismantling had to be done urgently.

Before that process could be started last month, an earlier council contractor was replaced after a botched attempt to get a digger to the wharf.

At the time, Maritime New Zealand said concerns had been raised when an uncertified vessel had been used in a mid-month attempt to tow a barge carrying a digger to Aramoana wharf.

Ms Paterson said engineers had identified that 12 of the 18 piles were not structurally sound or had already broken. Six would be left in place.

Bay Underwater was commissioned because "they specialise in this type of work".

All timber removed will be kept and stored for the charitable trust.

Work had gone smoothly and the DCC had been keeping stakeholders  updated on the work undertaken, she said.

Asked if a change in contractor  would  add to the overall costs, DCC communications and marketing manager Graham McKerracher said he understood the overall budget would, in fact,  be about $40,000, as  previously envisaged.

Most of the wharf was being dismantled because of urgent safety concerns, but the DCC was working collaboratively by retaining piles and other wood, and "we’re looking forward to the construction phase".

Mrs Densem said it was disappointing that a North Island firm had been contracted, when Dunedin people could have done the work.

Mr McKerracher said the DCC had initially tried to use a local contractor but had then brought in a specialised firm whose equipment was fully compliant with the requirements of maritime authorities.

john.gibb@odt.co.nz