Vehicle access to Muriwai Beach

Fee for Muriwai Beach Access Permit

Motorised vehicles accessing Te Oneone Rangatira / Muriwai Beach have resulted in ongoing concerns about:

• beach user safety
• environmental protection
• fire risk
• driver behaviour.
  

Under our Public Safety and Nuisance Bylaw 2013, we currently require people to obtain a permit in order to drive or park vehicles on Muriwai beach, other than if they are depositing or retrieving boats in certain circumstances, and in emergencies.

We do not currently charge a fee for obtaining this permit.

In September 2021, Auckland Council's Parks, Arts, Community and Events Committee decided to introduce controls on vehicle access to the beach.

These measures included:

• a seasonal closure of vehicle access for the summer period
• investigating a gate and fee-based permit system on the Coast Road entrance to Muriwai Beach.

What we are proposing

We are now proposing to introduce a fee, in order to recover costs that Council incurs in relation to the permit system. We consider that a fee is a more fair and equitable way of recovering these costs than, for example, through general operational budgets.

Under this proposal, we would issue the permit once the applicant has committed to follow the safety rules of driving on the beach and paid the fee.

What we want your feedback on

We want to know your feedback on the following:

• implementing a fee for permits for vehicle access to Muriwai Beach
• the annual value of the fee
• the time periods for which a fee-based permit could be issued.

When you can have your say

You can have your say from Friday 17 June to Monday 18 July 2022.

Please note:

Following further consideration from the team some adjustments were made to the feedback form following the initial consultation start date of 13 June. If you provided feedback prior to Friday 17 June we encourage you to read the updated content and feedback form questions and resubmit.

Previous feedback will still be considered, but we acknowledge that these adjustments may change your opinions. Therefore, to ensure we accurately capture your views, we encourage anyone who has previously submitted to read the updated content and feedback form questions and resubmit.

Your views are important to us and so it is vital that we provide the correct information and seek feedback on the right questions. We apologise for any inconvenience that making these adjustments may have caused and thank you for your understanding.