This summary of the agenda for the Sep 10th Raglan Community Board agenda prepared by John Lawson, Secretary of Whāingaroa Environmental Defence Inc., 51 Cliff St, Raglan 07 825 7866 email johnragla@gmail.com
The next Raglan Community Board meeting is on Wed 10 September at 1.30pm in the Supper Room, Raglan Town Hall. The public forum will be near the start of the formal meeting, giving an opportunity to discuss issues. You might prefer to email/phone the Board.
John has summarised the agenda:
Items in bold dark red at end of RCB agenda are on other council agendas, but not on RCB’s agenda –
Wednesday’s agenda is only 22 pages. Open Spaces Operational Update, Sportsfield Provision Study, Board Members Report and Councillors Report will all be verbal, but the agenda includes –
- Wainui Reserve 30 year plan “Council has engaged CKL limited to draft the development plan..” 2hr 17min into the video at https://waikato.civicclerk.com.au/web/Player.aspx?id=566&key councillors questioned why consultants were being used, why the cost wasn’t known and why hearings aren’t planned.
- Spatial planning/Town plan “meet with James Fuller last week to discuss the way forward, we will update at the meeting”
- Tourism “Meet with IHub to talk about tourism and funding and will attend their public meeting on 9th September. Can give verbal update at meeting.”
- Stormwater “A discussion and question session was held at the end of the [Liaison Group] meeting. There was some great feedback from those attending and those were recorded. A response to those comments and questions was provided to the Group on the 20th August [see below]. There are several outstanding actions that will be addressed over the next few months.”
- Sewage “Final tests and the integration of pond flows are scheduled to be completed in August.” Not in the agenda, but note Thursday 11 Sep at 6.30pm for the next on-line video meeting about the sewage outfall, etc.
- Water “Detection Services has deployed over 150 FIDO loggers in the Raglan Network. Preliminary findings have identified potential leaks which will be investigated and repaired.”
- Street lighting “Our new contractors were given a list of 60 streetlight service requests to follow up on across our district from the 24/25 FY and are also working on requests received this FY 25/26. They’ve been working hard to clear the backlog there are now just over 20 remaining. . .Have flagged to WDC lack of lighting around changing sheds, on the bridge and on Papahua walkway “
- Civil defence “Planning another meeting mid-September and workshop/practice activation in October Gareth Ballamey CD co Ordinator attended the Raglan Naturally resilience workshop promoting the group and had interest form several in the community to join the group.”
- CCTV “Working with NZ Police to discuss detail of software system compatibility. The tender for installation is still active and will be reviewed once confirmation of software compatibility is finalised.”
- Greenslade Rd Reserve playground “delays in sourcing the flying fox due to long manufacturing lead times and the current volatility in Europe. As a result, the expected completion date has been pushed out to November”.
- Raglan Town recreation study “has been circulated and gives a good over view of what we have and what we need for the future. Have asked if Matt can attend our meeting to explain next steps”. 2hr 38min into the above video a question was raised about removing the Puriri St playground.
- Campground “Storm water and pumping station defects liability period expires in December”.
- Discretionary fund “The Discretionary Fund report will be tabled on the night as an additional attachment”.
Stormwater [mentioned, but not included in RCB agenda] –
The following are summary notes and questions from the Wed 2nd July 2025 meeting:
- Some of the interested parties noted in the resource consent no longer exist, eg Te Kotuku Whenua and Whaingoroa Harbour Care. Can they be replaced by other groups?
- Ed Prince (WRC) responded to this question and said yes that is possible
- The Group would like to know more about the CCTV inspections that have been undertaken eg when and where?
- There have been some localized CCTV work undertaken in Raglan. One example was in the Government Rd area.
- The most recent comprehensive SW CCTV work in Raglan was conducted in 2020.
- Where does the material taken from the stormwater (SW) pipes go to?
- The material is dewatered and taken to Hampton Downs for disposal (it is considered hazardous waste and therefore is required to be disposed of at specialist facilities).
- What process can be put in place to reduce/eliminate the cross connections that occur at the time of house builds?
- Discussions are underway with the Building team
- Who is taking responsibility of the fish passages that should have been installed?
- The Watercare SW Operations team undertake this work
- What can be done about the flooding that occurs around the Stewart Street and Wainui Road intersection area (opposite museum)?
- An onsite meeting is being arranged with Cr Thomson to get a better understanding of the issue
- What can be done about the flooding that occurs around the Rakaunui Street and Wainui Road intersection area?
- An onsite meeting is being arranged with Cr Thomson to get a better understanding of the issue
- Can Roading attend the meetings going forward given that they also have SW involvement?
- That is a good idea. We have requested Roading attend these meetings going forward.
- Gerry Kessels produced reports about the Aroaro wetland. Any wetland work should consider the information provided by Gerry eg he noted that there was not much salt water in the wetland
- This information has been passed on to Watercare’s stormwater planner and Watercare’s SW operations engineer has now read these reports
- Is Whale Bay included in the Liaison Group interest area?
- Yes it is
- How is SW work prioritized given that there are financial constraints?
- Prioritisation are largely effects based eg the number properties being affected, and the severity of the issue/risk.
- Can the SW monitoring results be shared with the Group? Eg heavy metal concentration in discharge samples
- Yes we can share that information. We will investigate providing the information via a WDC webpage.
- Can historical reports be made available via a WDC webpage?
- Yes that is possible. We will work with our Communications team to develop SW webpages that will cover the urban areas across the district and attach relevant documents.
- The development manual should be reviewed in terms of, identifying activities that may create adverse effects, and establishing mitigations eg discharges to sandy beaches and how they should be managed to reduce erosion risks
- The development manual used by WDC and other councils in the Waikato region use the Regional Infrastructure Technical Specifications (RITS) document.
Section 4.2.11.2 Outlet Design states that “For outlets the design shall ensure non-scouring velocities at the point of discharge. Acceptable outlet velocities will depend on soil conditions, …” It is up to the engineer to ensure that the design meets that requirement.
If there are any other matters of concern please refer to this on-line document and let WDC know if the document does not address your concern adequately.
- Detention ponds are difficult to install in Raglan due to the land that is availabile. Investigate detention pond options for Raglan. Are playgrounds an option?
- Alternatives to detention ponds due to topographical constraints include: Rain water tanks, swales and infiltration basins.
Playgrounds are not typically used as stormwater devices however rain gardens can be incorporated into playground areas.
These items are on other council agendas, but not on RCB’s agenda –
- Item in Public Excluded agenda 5.2 Belchers Quarry, [end of Cornwall Rd, off Hill’s Rd – see photo] Raglan – Property Review – Land to be declared surplus.
- Papahua camp 2024/25 total revenue $2,551,300 expenditure $2,145,683 surplus $407,117, replace some gas heating with hot water heat pumps $130,000. Raglan Map Income $6,000 pa. “economic climate may be contributing to the reduction in visitor”
- Several submissions for a swimming pool, but no action
- Jo’s cafe No rent was paid to Council, as “the operation supported the wider community”. Now seeking interest in a 10 yr commercial lease
- Warihi Park Council to collaborate with WEC to enable community-led projects. Investigate fencing/gating options for the playground Lack of off-street car parking on Cliff Street side of the reserve.
- request to stop and transfer (by sale) 234m² to the owner of 38 Norrie Ave – 3m to be kept for possible parking
- Detection Services has deployed over 150 FIDO loggers – multiple potential water leaks.
- New reservoir near spring – the Geotech survey identified a historic Pa site. Layout changes are being surveyed
- Design consultant has been briefed for works to deliver the design of Marine Parade Waste Water Pump Station replacement.
- Geotechnical investigations on Wainui Reserve land disposal are complete. Online community meetings and Iwi discussions have progressed. Once the final technical reports, including the Cultural Impact Assessment collated, an application for a new Discharge Consent is expected to be lodged with WRC in October
- Stormwater AroAro-Government Rd – A district-wide treatment device proposal is currently in the scoping stage
- Stewart Street Outfall upgrade and stabilisation project is in the design phase
WRC initially proposed starting and terminating all Raglan to Hamilton regional buses at the Transport Centre “to improve efficiency of the services. Currently some peak services start and terminate in Hamilton East (near some key schools). Considering feedback from the community and the capacity of local bus services to carry the extra number of students now needing to transfer, it is now being proposed that this change is delayed until the medium term when capacity on the local city services is guaranteed.”
workshop held with surf user groups in Raglan to discuss booking surf events at Manu Bay in line with the rules of the Reserve Management Plan. Another workshop was held with RCB to discuss Soundsplash fees and charges. These funds are shown –
| Balances at: | 1 July 2024 | 30 June 2025 |
| Raglan Harbour Reserve | (2,517,468) | (1,175,225) |
| Raglan Holiday Park Papahua Reserve | 2,128,446 | 4,186,284 |
| Wainui Farm Reserve | 720,874 | 712,903 |
| UD Raglan Capital Contributions | 102,070 | 112,697 |
| WW Raglan Development Contributions | (8,058,464) | (12,417,180) |
| Water Raglan | (664,292) | (655,643) |
| Lorenzen Bay Structure Plan Reserve | 56,261 | 75,356 |
| Raglan Structure Plan Reserve | 766,275 | 859,688 |
| Whaanga Coast WW Cap TR | (1,349) | (1,349) |
| Raglan Hall | 264,741 | 299,891 |
| Raglan Harbour | 232,319 | 220,014 |
| Refuse Raglan | (499,034) | (641,834) |
| Raglan Hall | 15,307 | 17,187 |
| Te Mata Hall | 1,920 | 1,941 |
There’s an attitude survey showing that 87% think “A healthy environment is necessary for a healthy economy”, but only 29% think “The benefits of maximising agricultural productivity outweigh the costs of harming waterways” and several graphs such as in the year to June Waikato construction jobs were down by about 1150.
Alcohol bylaw – Clause 11.3 has been added to exclude James St from the exemption (see Clause 11.2) which allows people to consume alcohol within self-contained vehicles.
WRC went out for public consultation for the proposed bus networks WRC received 1,218 responses; 576 for Hamilton, 348 for Thames-Coromandel and Hauraki, 178 for Raglan At the time of writing this report, WRC staff are still analysing the feedback. However, in general, there has been support for most of what was proposed.
Sustainability 4/8
Putoetoe Project at 1 Wi Neera & 3 Bow St is being lead by RN with a funding grant with Paua Architects. Communicating the project vision and details to the wider Whāingaroa/Raglan community, including through the use of social media and story boards.
Also the Waikato Times of August 20 had this –
Behind the seawall: Ratepayers foot bill in scramble for answers Madeleine Powers
When a cr asked why Raglan locals were finding plastic strands coming from the new seawall, the engineering firm behind the project billed ratepayers to give them an answer. The incident is among revelations in correspondence obtained under the OIA that shows WDC staff and its contractors scrambling to explain why plastic fibres had been used at all. Not long after the brand new coastal walkway opened, residents began reporting “heaps of plastic pieces” flaking into the harbour. Cr Lisa Thomson raised the alarm after being shown photos and FB posts of fibres washing into the ocean. “Is this normal?”, Thomson asked. Behind the scenes, contractor Richard Cowie of R & H Contracting ordered an urgent response, warning the project was bound by environmental consent conditions. He noted construction crews had not collected stray fibres and questioned whether plastic should have been specified for use in a marine environment. Included in the released documents was the design report by Tonkin & Taylor prescribing “BOSFA synthetic fibres” at a rate of 5kg per cubic metre in the seawall’s shotcrete surface. When Cowie sought information for a statement to be given to cr Thomson, T&T geologist John Brzeski refused to respond without payment. “Hi Johnny,” Cowie wrote, “with reference to the email below..we have committed to the 2hrs for your initial response on Mon….. Any further cost commitment will need to be agreed with WDC upfront.” WDC paid for 2 hours of consulting fees. with Brzeski describing the material as a “BPA free, low-toxicity polymer … used extensively in marine applications such as ropes and nets. T+T have specified it in similar seawall settings,” he said. But Thomson was unconvinced. “I feel really disappointed that plastic got into our waterways,” she wrote, noting pieces had washed as far as Ngarunui Beach. “To say the fibre is common in ropes isn’t good enough.” Cowie, pointing to a Tauranga wharf built with marine-grade concrete requiring no plastic, pressed T&T for examples of shotcrete reinforced with fibres in coastal waters. The product’s own datasheet mentioned mining and tunnelling but made “no mention of the marine environment”. In emails with WDC staff, he stressed the firm bore responsibility. “I want to reinforce that T+T have role to play in this. They have specified the product for use in a coastal marine environment.” WDC staff asked if an environmental assessment had addressed the shotcrete, but Cowie said it was “silent” on the material. Structure Tech, which built the seawall, deployed contractors to scrub and collect loose fibres from the surface. Its general manager, Clayton Heine, confirmed fibres were migrating from the wall but argued the fibres were chosen to control shrinkage and avoid corrosion. Some strands, he said run parallel to the surface and failed to embed. “This is why we are mechanically brushing the walls to ensure any fibres not fully embedded are removed. There should be little to no migration in the future once we have these rogue fibres under control.” Pressed by Thomson on why the issue wasn’t noticed earlier, Heine said inspections with the WRC days before had revealed no loose fibre. Publicly, however, WDC continued to claim the cause remained a mystery. In July it told WT: “No clear reason has been identified.” They could not comment further because key stakeholders were “away sick.” When asked by staff for further information about “unanswered questions”, Cowie wrote back to Project Manager Niall McGrath, “As far as I’m concerned, the investigation has occurred, is complete, inconclusive and the MSQA (management, surveillance and quality assurance) loop has been closed. There is no one item in apportioning the why to adequately close a lesson learnt process.”
Other issues missing from the RCB agenda – transport assessment, speed limits, alcohol ban, Wainui parking, Manu Bay boat ramp, Bushpark cycle access, WRC LTP, Papahua erosion, bus publicity, Cliff St pohutukawas, development next to 4 Square, freedom camping, footpath obstruction by cafes, old Harbour Care site, Manu Bay planting, Raglan Naturally, overflow car parking, fluoride, Community Energy Whāingaroa, Blueprints, organic waste, rubbish on SH23, Area School road safety, 3 Bow St, Greenslade Rd SH23 junction, Connectivity Strategy, Surf2surf walkway, speeding on Main Rd, Harbour Strategy, Animal Control late responses, cycle counts, Bayview Rd safety, Canada geese, Cliff St, Park Dr/Long St crossing, town square, Town Hall Committee, WRAP, Calvert Rd parking, volunteer worker safety.
Should WED be taking up these or other issues?