Ratepayers: Pond a storm water risk
Whangamata ratepayers are up in arms over a central park pond which they say has been nothing but a storm water risk with a stench due to a faulty drainage system.
Bordering the Whangamata coastline, Williamson Park in the Coromandel beach town has been at the centre of a dispute between Thames Coromandel District Council and ratepayers.
Whangamata has had flooding and storm water issues for years, Robert Boston, Chairman of the Whangamata Ratepayers Association (WRA), said.
When cyclone Gabrielle and cyclone Hale hit last year “the town was really badly flooded and several houses had to be evacuated”.
But concerns have risen, with a ratepayers group saying they are “disappointed” by a council proposal to turn the polluted park pond into a wetland without consulting them.
“This pond is not maintained as much as it should be, it often builds up which then becomes a flooding issue for residents, particularly in big rains falls last seen in Cyclones Gabrielle and Hale,” Boston said.
The now pond was once a stream where water used to overflow into the nearby Williamson Park until the storm water drainage system was installed.
But “the pond has struggled” as the town has got progressively bigger in population along with heavy rainfall inundating the drainage pipes.
Meanwhile the lingering smell of algae coming from the swamp-like waters continued to irk those living nearby.
Thames-Coromandel District Council says it has developed a solution for Williamson Park, allowing for water to be transferred via a wetland area and then dispersed out to sea.
Williamson Park area has been a key focus for due to the issues with flooding, TCDC Infrastructure Group Manager, Mohamed Imtiaz said.
“The existing pond was originally designed to be a soakage basin, with a spillway outlet, however, the existing pond provides a long water retention time which results in settlement of sediments and potential for growth of algae.”
While WRA had supported the option of diverting water from the pond out to sea as a solution to the storm water drainage issue, they say council hasn’t consulted them. TCDC says otherwise.
“This solution has been discussed at a recent meeting of a community engagement team TCDC said which was formed to gain community input into the work.
“This engagement team includes representatives of the Whangamatā Ratepayers Association, the Whangamatā Community Board and Council staff.“
A solution was expected by June.