Council allocates $12m to Petone wharf

Saturday, 18 May 2024

Supporters of the Petone wharf have been calling on the Hutt City council to repair the wharf. On Friday, the council allocated $12m to investigate future options, including repairing, the wharf.

Supporters of the Petone wharf have received a boost with the Hutt City Council allocating $12 million to repair or demolish it.

Save the Petone Wharf spokesperson Rodger Blakeley said it was good news and he was confident the wharf would now be saved.

Councillors agreed that after years of debate, an independent report looking at all options was needed to finally resolve the contentious issue.

The draft annual plan had contained $6m to demolish the historic wharf, which is closed after suffering earthquake and storm damage.

A teenager making the most of the wharf when it was open.

The future of the wharf had dominated two days of public submissions on the long-term plan.

Mayor Campbell Barry noted the council had received a lot of verbal submissions in support of the wharf. There had also been a significant number of written submissions calling for the wharf to be demolished.

He signalled his annoyance with earlier comments made by community board chair Mike Fisher suggesting that consultation had been predetermined.

Barry said a lot of hard work had gone in to getting the information needed to make an informed decision.

Tui Lewis, who lives in Petone, thanked her colleagues for backing the proposal for a detailed report.

The possible demolition of a much-loved Petone landmark had caused a lot of angst in the community.

Over time, many of the piles have been attacked by worms.

Restoring it would allow it to become a stop on the Remutaka Cycleway, which includes the Petone Esplanade, she said.

She predicted that cyclists would come from all over the world to be photographed at the end of the wharf.

Councillors emphasised that the council would commit only $12m and the budget would not be increased.

Save the Petone Wharf supporters from left Julie Ingham, Phil Waddington, Liz Collins and Bill Allan.

Simon Edwards said $12m was not a target. “It would be nice if it came in under that.”

Blakeley said that his interest in the wharf reflected his background in structural engineering.

A former regional councillor, he was asked to join Save the Petone Wharf due to his background in engineering and had always believed it could be saved.

The level of support received showed how much the wharf was valued. He had been particularly impressed by a delegation of children from Wilford School.

They had made an impassioned plea to councillors to save the wharf and in doing so had demonstrated how much community support there was for the wharf.

He believed it could be repaired for less than $12m and was looking forward to the day it reopened.

On Thursday councillors considering the future of the wharf were told that although it was in poor condition, it could still be saved.

Local firm GK Shaw said that, based on previous work it had done on the wharf, repairing the first 275 metres would cost $9m.

Company engineer Francis O’Riley said that did not include the demolition of the 100-metre wharf head.

Shaw’s proposal would leave a 275m long wharf that could still be used for fishing and wharf jumping.

Another firm, Rockbond, estimated the cost of a total repair at $6m. Blakeley said he had confidence in the Rockbond proposal and believes the entire wharf can be repaired within the $12m budget.

The cost of demolishing the wharf is unknown and will be included in the report.