Suggestions welcomed for eco marae
Te Atatu¯ ’s marae is a step closer to being built.
Plans were being drafted for the marae, which would sit on 2.5 hectares of land on Harbourview, west Auckland.
The reserve land, zoned for a marae, was the subject of a legal battle in the past. Descendents of those who used to own the site wanted Auckland council to sell the land back to them. The group lost their application in the Court of Appeal, and again in the Supreme Court.
Te Atatu¯ Marae Coalition chairman David Tanenui said they could now move ahead with plans to build the marae.
‘‘It’s an aspiration that our leaders have wanted for a long time,’’ Tanenui said.
He hoped to finalise the signing of the land agreement by June 2018, before Matariki Day. Current work has centred around gathering information on necessary consents needed for building to go ahead.
Tanenui said it was important to involve the community. He called on the public to contact them with suggestions on how they could make the marae ecofriendly, sustainable and enjoyable for all.
‘‘There’s been a lot of misinformation in the past and we just want to make sure that the community
‘‘It will not just be our marae, it will be a community marae.’’
David Tanenui
has the right information about where we are going, what we are doing and how we are doing it.
‘‘Because it will not just be our marae, it will be a community marae. The marae will be used by all cultures. It will have the Ma¯ ori kaupapa but it’s for everyone.’’
The coalition had received several good suggestions for the design, including an underground car park and having the marae built halfway underground for sustainable heating.
‘‘If we are all on the same page, that would be awesome. We don’t want to rock the boat anywhere we are an anti-rock the boat marae. We don’t want to get into anybody’s faces and we’d love more ideas to come through.’’
Henderson-Massey Local Board’s first maori member Will Flavell said the marae was an exciting venture that would benefit the whole community. Local board chairman Shane Henderson said they strongly supported a marae and would hold consultations with the community for a masterplan for HarbourviewOrangihina.