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Westhaven is a public Amenity


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Anyway just got this letter from the marina saying crime in the marina precinct is at an all time high. If they are saying it then I guess its got some substance.

Amazingly if you build retail adjacent, encourage public use of the area etc then you get more people and surprise surprise some bottom feeders. I have noticed during lockdown the fast and furious set blasting their subwoofers and blue downlighting their way around the circuit out to A pier and parking up on the northern seawall for beers etc. I dont have a problem with any of that, in fact if I was 18 I'd probably be joining in 😀

I think its the difficulty of balancing the public amenity of the Westhaven with the marina users, sometimes to get to the gate I have to wait for 3 runners, a man on a scooter, the couple on the electric tandem, the older lady walking toodles, the triathlete guy and the policeman directing walking traffic.... Its actually quite mad at times and often I get the old side eye from these members of the public as I charge across their bows with a loaded trolley as in WTF are you doing interfering with my exercise.

The public are fully entitled to use the area and it seems a a bit selfish for it to be reserved for boat owners, but I wonder how if it will interfere with crew parking as a lot of people turn up to fish and perambulate on weekends.  Its like Westhaven and the area under the bridge has been discovered by the public during the lockdown and its only going to get busier. I would like to see what management plan the council has, after all it has encouraged this usage and it does seem unfair that boaties cars are now targets and I wonder if electronics and booze will start to go missing from parked boats once thieves realise how easy it is.

 

 

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My favourite game is to load up my trolley(s) and only look at the gate, walk to the gate. If i stop to check for cyclists, scooters, dogs, ill never get there. 
The marina was built for boaties. Who pay obscene amounts to keep their boats there. Public are welcome to walk around, the area, but not welcome to hold up access to my boat. 

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 I agree Clipper, we pay ridiculous amounts to park our boats with virtually no other option especially if we want to race yachts in the city. That Panuku ramps up fees at a whim even during a pandemic with seemingly no justification is a bit hard to swallow when they have decided that its such a wonderful public area (which it is) with boaties paying for it! How about a discount ((yeah right!)

Last year the marina was peaceful, no subwoofer action but not now. I had a chat with one of the staff and they know it's happening, nothing they can do because its not an issue for council. I don't want it gated and further promote the image of rich elitists hogging the waterfront but if i recall did they say a while ago that they were going to have a barrier and card entry?  They keep changing their minds, but  you can be sure that extra security patrols wont make much difference.

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I have noticed a change this summer -got too lazy to leave a couple of days after Christmas so stayed aboard- just after dark half of South Auckland appeared either riding rented scooters wearing American basketball plastic singlets or cruising very slowly in jeep things with flashing lights underneath and all windows open to expose Auckland to a stereo more powerful than the engine, yep they have just discovered Westhaven it seems.

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5 hours ago, aardvarkash10 said:

interesting assumption.  Any basis?

Exactly. In a marina crime would be mostly like done by sneaking around in a dinghy.

Pay absorbent amounts HAHA just wait till Seymour and Co gets in.As I have said before we are labelled as rich pricks included is the guy with 10ft dinghy who fishes off the beach.

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57 minutes ago, waikiore said:

Slow down boys-did i ever suggest that the doof doof crowd were going near the boats? Just that they are now there at night.

less that than the wild, unfounded assumption that a group you find antisocial must be from South Auckland.  As if this behaviour is somehow not exhibited and evident anywhere else.

Its profiling in the same way that assuming all Westhaven boatowners are arrogant rich pricks is profiling.

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This wasnt intended to be an us vs them topic, if I was from a non waterfront suburb its very attractive, even the locals from the very well to do 'burbs love it. The bridge, the boats and parking virtually over the water makes it unique. Walking around the marina is interesting, it really is an asset to the city for all citizens to enjoy. The rumblings I had were more over what is the management plan for parking and long term use of the precinct, yet again it feels (although it may not be true) that yachting as a sport is being disregarded at Panuku. I have also nearly been run down by Fwits several times on electric bikes and scooters going way too fast past the marina gate. What is the marina/council doing about that?

Some ideas would be no powered vehicles on the footpath in the marina, parking for marina users only on race days etc

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The no powered (including electric) is a sensible idea, the race days and evenings idea is in the Westhaven plan -the gates so that they can charge for day parkers was too since 2012 -I believe there may have been a legal hurdle that has stopped that being implemented (and some cost overruns) .

Not profiling and not guessing sorry Aa I asked one of the happy but going deaf crew and he pointed to their obvious club names on the cars, which is geographically specific. 

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Parking (white spaces) is time limited during the week (P120), but the limit deliberately ends at 4pm to not disrupt crew parking. Personally, I want to see more parking for bikes, as it's a great way for people to get to their boats.

As for behaviour, I'd be happy enough if people in cars would observe the speed limits.

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22 hours ago, waikiore said:

Not profiling and not guessing sorry Aa I asked one of the happy but going deaf crew and he pointed to their obvious club names on the cars, which is geographically specific. 

Nonetheless, the implication of your original statement (intended or otherwise) is that those people do not belong there or are suspect because of where they come from.  Otherwise, why mention it?

Its a public facility peeps.  The public will therefore use it.  Sometimes they will do stuff that is annoying.  We all do.   All the matters raised about the relatively minor inconveniences encountered are transferable to businesses and homes that front any busy thoroughfare - Eden Park-adjascent housing comes to mind. 

Whether you see Westhaven as a right bestowed on a privileged few or not, the boating community is actually fortunate that it has this facility in this location, providing what is effectively an exclusive use right to the highly desirable waters and shoreline in the inner harbour.   It could just as easily be wiped off the face of the harbour, or the land around it Gulf Harbour'ed with a resulting increase in non-marine activity.

 

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I tend to agree broadly AA10 , with two points that have to be borne in mind -the yachties paid for Westhaven Marinas upfront before construction via debentures (the original ones where I started sailing) it is gradually becoming Gulf Harboured check out Beaumont street the few remaining marine businesses are clinging on despite ridiculous rentals, many have already left. We have medical supply companies, corporate travel etc already in Westhaven drive. Orams/Ariadne  only managed to get the new yard done by  partnering with Panuku the council formed money making landlord.

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Also to address the original title of this thread, Westhaven only came under the council and therefore public in the 90s, prior was part of the Harbour Board like Okahu Hardstand and both run with a tighter control on costs. 

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In my opinion, everything the council has done, including Panuku, is all illegal, it is just that no one has the time nor money to take these scumbags to court.

Glad I am out of Westhaven, never to return if I can help it.

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