It has been another very busy year for the committee of the Grey Lynn Residents Association, which has had several key issues to address during the year…
Great North Road
With the encouragement and assistance of Local Board member Vernon Tava, we successfully applied in late 2016 for $10,000 in funding from Council for Grey Lynn Residents Association to undertake a community-endorsed plan for Great North Road. Athena Rhodes was contracted to conduct in-depth interviews with key stakeholders in the community and David Batten and Brandon Wilcox have managed the interaction with Auckland Transport.
To date 90% of the interviews have been transcribed and the online Survey Monkey community response mechanism finishes on 30th November with anticipated respondent numbers around 100. While the initial target completion date was to be end of December the extra time afforded by the WLB extended break looks to a new deadline for the first WLB meeting in February.
Heritage
We were alarmed to see how a developer demolished a villa in Castle Street on what seemed to the flimsiest of pretences and faced no admonishment from Council. We raised our concerns with both Council and the relevant Local Board member and were very disappointed by the tepid response.
Grey Lynn Park
We have been proactive about the neglected state of the Rose Road Gully and the lack of mowing that was so frustrating local residents.
We have stressed to Council that now the pump track has been completed the adjacent volleyball court must remediated so that traditional users of the park have equally good facilities to use.
We have not been able to establish a working relationship with the two Waitemata Local Board members who have the park in their portfolios and remedying this must be a priority in 2018.
Street trees
A meeting with the Council arborist and Urban Forest manager has given rise to a very good plan to get streets to agitate for new and replacement trees, which Council seems likely to provide. We will be urging neighbours to work together to look after the trees in the first few years. We will roll this out in the new year.
Cycle way
Grey Lynn Residents Association made a formal submission on the cycleway and highlighted issues for Dryden Street and Grosvenor Street. We also submitted on the Point Chevalier and Westmere cycleway plans. The outcome for Dryden was mostly favourable due to energetic resident engagement with the proposal.
West Lynn shops street changes
Like most locals, business people and residents alike, we were startled by many of the decisions made by AT in its recent reconstruction. We have listened to their views and have filtered them back to the chair of the local board.
Website
Our website continues to function well and there have been regular blog posts. Facebook has also been strategically utilised – we have 402 followers.
Kerbs and gutters
We contacted the Local Board in October to urge them to press for weed removal and for storm water grates to be unblocked of mud/leaves/ other detritus, i.e. we asked for the sort of basic maintenance that other councils around the country manage to do. The chair of the WLB reported that AT had admonished the contractor however as of the time of writing little had materially improved across most of the neighbourhood.
We remain concerned that across the neighbourhood and city service levels have dropped very significantly and many tasks that were once routine and core are only done when the residents call the Council’s attention to them.
Selbourne Street plane trees
It was heartbreaking to discover in November that two of these magnificent and historic trees had been poisoned. We have been pursuing Council for firm investigation and action.
Thanks
Thanks are due to the Grey Lynn Residents Association committee members, who have worked hard this year for the neighbourhood, despite their own busy working and family lives. We especially thank our treasurer Paul Shortland, who has done an excellent job and who is stepping down due to other commitments.
Nicola Legat
Chair
