Aotea camp occupants given notice
It was a tough decision for Aotea Camping Ground co-owner Peter Huntington to sell but a business decision had to be made.
The campground, near the top of Whitford Brown Ave, is home for a number of beneficiaries and homeless people.
New owners Progressive Enterprises, who plan to build a $17 million Countdown supermarket on the site, are giving the semi-permanent residents a year’s notice to find other homes, Huntington said.
More than 50 submissions were received by Porirua City Council on a district plan change which would re-zone the area from residential to allow for the development. About three-quarters of the submitters wanted the proposal rejected entirely.
The proposed 12-metre high, 3160 square metre supermarket would tower over neighbouring properties, block sunlight and in some cases give shoppers a direct view into homes, according to one submitter. Others have expressed concern about the impact on traffic, pedestrian safety, noise, and the effect on their property values.
Huntington said there were a number of issues to be addressed, including pedestrian safety for nearby early childhood centres.
Progressive Enterprises spokes- man Adrian Walker said the supermarket would create up to 80 new jobs and would be a ‘‘great offer’’ for the rapidly growing Aotea suburb.
‘‘We’ve worked hard to put forward a design that complements the site and surrounding area with native trees and landscaping,’’ he said.
‘‘Feedback on the plan change is important to us, and we’ll continue to work through that feedback.’’
Its submission to the plan change asked for the supermarket to be allowed 3160sqm rather than the 3000sqm it initially asked for.
Several submitters pointed out that there were five other supermarkets within a 6 kilometre radius of the proposed site, including Countdown Porirua, and some said it would jeopardise the viability of smaller supermarkets in the area.
Carrus Corporation, the company behind the 246ha Aotea development, has opposed the application because there is already an area zoned for commercial development within its boundaries.
Hearings on the proposed plan change will be heard in early September. If approved, Progressive Enterprises would go through a resource consent process for its plans. The consent would not have to be publicly notified.