The story of Lincoln Rd
vans. Outside his window cars are a more common sight than people.
But Hazel Tarr, who is still driving, said the stream of vehicles did not bother her. “In fact, I quite enjoy it, I know what time it is by the traffic.
“They all stop for me, I just go out, front-first into the traffic and they all stop and make way.”
A melting landscape
What was more concerning for Tarr was the effect the ongoing developments seem to have had on her place.
While old records showed her land was prone to dampness, Tarr felt it had got notably worse after excavation problems on the road outside.
Since then Tarr said her basement has been permanently damp, flooding was a regular occurrence and when it rained her front yard was often full of puddles.
Auckland Council wrote to Tarr saying its assessment of the land indicated the issue was “not uncommon” among properties in the city, and in this case it was mainly due to watertightness issues on basement walls and/or failed subsoil drains.
A council spokeswoman told the Herald it had nothing further to add to what it had told Tarr.
Tarr was unhappy at the council’s response but said getting in a private civil engineer to go into the problem would cost her thousands — something she could not afford.
Future upheaval
Even as Tarr continued to battle with her frustrations at what council had deemed was now a “closed matter”, there was more change afoot.
AT has planned to widen the road to provide an additional bus and T3 transit lane on each side of Lincoln Rd, as well as a cycleway, which it hoped to complete by 2023.
The Lincoln Rd Corridor Improvement project, as it is known, would cost an estimated $85 million.
Mark Hannan of AT said the budget could change as time passes and costs or land values increase.
He expected a detailed design and the allocation of budgets would be finished by the end of this year.
To make it happen land would need to be bought from owners on Lincoln Rd — including Tarr and Ross.
In all, 94 properties would be affected by land purchase, whole or partial. Of these at least 16 were residential, with a further nine not needed for the project but that AT had offered to buy due to the project’s impact on their homes.
Tarr said she would be more than happy to move into a smaller home in a retirement village, but was worried the damage and ongoing construction would mean she’d lose value on her property if she sold.
“I would gladly leave and go into a retirement village, if I could get compensation.”
AT correspondence to owners along Lincoln Rd showed they would be paid the difference of the value of the property as it is now and its value once the land had been purchased and public works was complete.
AT would also pay owners a rental fee for temporary access to part of their land while the works went on.
Ross said the land would be acquired — whether they liked it or not. “It’s going to happen.”