Submissions have now closed on the Long Term Plan
Thank you to everyone who made a submission
Council wants to give the public reserve known as the Silverstream Spur (yellow outline in picture above) to Guildford Timber Company (GTC) in exchange for their steep hillsides (green) so GTC can do a development on the Spur and Pinehaven hills. Costs to ratepayers for the land swap and Guildford development (aka Southern Growth Area) aren’t disclosed but are hidden in the Long Term Plan (Infrastructure Strategy p10). You can make a submission on the Long Term Plan to stop the land swap.
How to make a submission on the UHCC Long Term Plan (LTP)
There are two ways to make a submission. One way is to use the form in the LTP booklet you received in the mail from Upper Hutt City Council (UHCC). The other way is to make a submission on UHCC’s ‘Let’s Kōrero’ webpage.
Making an online submission through the “Let’s Kōrero” website
First you have to register by completing the following steps:
Open your browser (eg Firefox, Internet Explorer, Chrome, Safari etc)
Open https://letskorero.upperhuttcity.com and when the page opens
Click on: 'Sign Up' under 'Open consultations and engagements'
Click on 'REGISTER' then follow the screen prompts on the following webpage to register.
Once complete you should be receive an email to “Activate your account”, follow the directions, once your account is activated you are ready to make a submission to Upper Hutt City Council.
Now you can make a submission on the draft Long Term Plan by completing the following steps:
Open https://letskorero.upperhuttcity.com/login and follow the instructions to login.
Click on "Consultation on the Long Term Plan 2021 - 2031", where you will be asked to complete a survey.
Making your Submission
Whether you are making your submission online or through the form at the back of the document you received through the mail, the questions you will be asked will be the same.
This section is to give you advice on responding and to provide some examples for you to base your submission on.
Remember, if you disagree with the options presented, you can still tell them this by ticking the lesser option & entering into the comment something like “I Vote NO to either option”.
Interestingly, nothing is disclosed in this Long Term Plan about the land swap of the Spur, the Guildford development on the Spur & Pinehaven hills, and the fact that the majority of Pinehaven is excluded from flood protection in the Pinehaven Streamworks.
You are still able to comment on these issues even though by entering your comments into to “Anything else?” at the end of the survey.
Here are some possible responses you could make in your submission, but it is important that you put your comments into your own words. The more feedback you give, the stronger your submission to Council.
To stop the land swap, you could say something like:
Council must consult the public about swapping the Spur
I oppose the land swap – Keep the Spur as a public reserve accessible for recreation for my family/the community to enjoy
I’m opposed to a road thru the Silverstream Spur to open up the Guildford land for houses on the Spur and Pinehaven hills
I think Guildford development will cause unwanted increase in traffic congestion / noise / light pollution at night / the loss of the Spur reserve / the loss of the special character of Pinehaven
I don’t want to swap Silverstream Spur public reserve for 132ha of Guildford Timber’s steep hillsides and problem pine trees
To get flood protection for Pinehaven, you could say something like:
Don’t spend $3M replacing Pinehaven Rd culvert - an engineer’s report says it’s in good condition and can cope with 25-yr peak flow; instead spend the $3million fixing Pinehaven’s flood problems, specifically:
Replace driveway culvert at 122 Pinehaven Rd for 25-yr flow to stop flooding all down Pinehaven Rd and at 39 Jocelyn Cres etc;
Replace road culvert at 108A Wyndham Rd for 25-yr flow to stop flooding at 97 Wyndham, 23 & 40 Jocelyn, 68–74 Pinehaven Rd;
Connect road sumps in Jocelyn Cres to public stormwater drain down the road instead of discharging onto private property at 23 Jocelyn Cres and causing flooding at 68 – 74 Pinehaven Road;
Separate sewerage from stormwater in Pinehaven Rd by school;
Fix two Birch Gr cul-de-sac sumps that can’t discharge to stream
I want Pinehaven flood model revoked and done again correctly
I want flood protection for all Pinehaven from the streamworks
Other Important Issues in the Long Term Plan
Significance and Engagement Policy
This is about how Council engages with the public. SOH will vote NO to both options. We disagree with 'Criteria' (b) proposed new policy: engage with the public if an issue “Involves the transfer of ownership or control of strategic assets to or from the Council”. Harcourt Park, Maidstone Park and Trentham Memorial Park are listed by Council as “strategic assets” but not the Silverstream Spur.
Revenue and Financing Policy
SOH will vote NO to both options. The changes proposed provide for less public scrutiny of each financial activity. Saying that "This is a common approach across Councils" does not make it right. Many councils, including Upper Hutt City Council, do not like public scrutiny of their spending of ratepayer funds.
Infrastructure
Although it’s in the LTP, no Guildford costs are disclosed but are in generic activities like ‘Renewals Programme’ costing $653million. When Government sets up the “3-Waters” agency and Council loses about 1/3 of its core business (water supply, wastewater, stormwater), Council could spend its infrastructure budget elsewhere (eg Guildford) without further consultation. This is it. You can comment under “Anything else”.
The proposed Land Swap
This will start a dangerous chain reaction. It will enable a road that will unlock the Guildford Block for development on the hills that may cause bigger floods and slips due to Council’s flawed Pinehaven flood model. We must stop the land swap to break the chain.