Thanks for handrail
During the public forum, Blueskin Youth Community Association chairman Paul Clements thanked the board for a $1200 grant toward installing a handrail on the estuary walking track.
"It has been installed and already we are getting good comments.
"It is just a steep bit of hill on the track that just requires balance for some people going up and down, so we very much appreciate it."
Mr Clements signalled a possible future funding request to help organise a "thank-you" gathering, an opportunity for local groups in Waitati and Warrington to show their wares and be appreciated by the community.
Safety concerns raised
During the public forum, local resident Ray Foot raised safety concerns about a ford on Miller Rd that regularly becomes impassable during floods.
Miller Rd sits just past the first junction on Waitati Valley Rd, continuing straight across the ford.
It provides access to two rifle ranges — one public and one Army — as well as private properties.
"There's quite a number of us that have got properties up there. And, yeah, basically, our only way in and out of there, because it is a little valley, is through the ford.
"So when that ford is flooded, we can't actually get safely in or out."
Mr Foot noted there was a footbridge across the Waitati River, but access to it from the ford along the riverbank was difficult because of overgrown vegetation and native plantings.
He suggested if there was an option to move the footbridge to Miller Rd.
"Because it has just got a few bolts holding it to the uprights."
"Where it is right now, the people that are on that other side of that bridge, they can actually get out by going north on the old Waitati Valley Rd, so they don't actually need the bridge to get in or out if the road is flooded.
"They can actually drive out, they don't have to walk out."
People on Miller Rd would be trying to ford the river to drive out.
"I think I can be pretty safe to say that I'm not the only one that has taken a few unacceptable risks through there because you just feel like you don't really have any other option sometimes, you know?"
He said that although the footbridge was not far away, it was in the wrong place and either required better access via a properly maintained track or needed to be moved closer to Miller Rd.
"Sooner or later someone is going to get ... well, they will get killed is what it is, because if you get it wrong it is not like you go partly into that river and go, ‘oh yeah, I don't like this’ and back out, once you start going in, you are committed."
Fund update
The board retrospectively approved $152.98 for catering at the August 9 planting of a ginkgo tree at Truby King Reserve in memory of the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. ($111.28 to Mark Brown, $41.70 to Geraldine Tait).
Board updates
Chairman Alasdair Morrison reported the new community board liaison for civil defence emergency management at the Dunedin City Council would be Mike Costelloe.
Mr Morrison spent time bringing him up to date on the area, drove him up the north coast and met deputy chairman Andy Barratt at Karitāne.
"Just to give him a good idea of what the whole place looks like because it is all new, it was 2008 when he was last with the council so many things have changed since then."
Newsletter welcomed
A community board newsletter on local activities was tabled, and members discussed how often it should be produced. They recommended the incoming board publish it annually at year’s end so it can serve as a de facto annual report.
Roadside maintenance highlighted
Members raised concerns about recent rough grading and encroaching vegetation on narrow roadside paths between Waitati and Evansdale and sought better co-ordination with contractors, the Dunedin City Council and NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi .
Cycleways planting
Mark Brown outlined a community-led planting model for the Waitati to Mopanui section of the coastal cycleway.
The trails trust called for planting tenders along the route and Mr Brown proposed a community project. The proposal has been accepted, and the aim is to gather about 20 volunteers to plant up to 10,000 native species over the next three years.
Bus transport discussed
Members agreed to write to the Otago Regional Council about off-peak return-trip timings and wider coastal bus issues, seeking schedule tweaks to maintain free off-peak travel for seniors.
Achievements noted
In his final report for the triennium, chairman Alasdair Morrison summarised activity in the past three years, noting about $30,000 distributed locally, ongoing advocacy on buses, roading, severe-weather resilience, Hawksbury Lagoon, Karitāne wharf structures and three waters planning.
There was continued engagement with the Dunedin City Council and the Otago Regional Council on long-term planning, civil defence liaison and local maintenance responsiveness.
Service acknowledged
The board recorded sincere thanks to Mark Brown for service from 2010-2025 and to Chris McBride for service from 2022-2025, presented certificates and wished both men well.
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