Unlikely campground worth trying

AT FIRST blush, a campground in Happy Valley sounds more like a punchline to an unpleasant joke than a serious idea.

Even by Wellington’s generous standards, the area is cold and windswept, lost in the shadows of long nearby hills. The southern landfill looms just off stage with its plastic bags and seagulls – not classic holiday promotional material.

So while tourists looking for relief from our harsh UV rays may find it on the bleak tundra of Happy Valley, most others will probably agree: there must be better places to camp in the city.

Yet Wellington City Council is indeed proposing to accommodate the city’s annual influx of low-budget tourists at Happy Valley – and despite all the easy jokes, it is not such a bad idea.

The first thing to consider is that Wellington currently has nowhere for campers to go. Tourists in proper campervans have a couple of options, but those wanting to put up a tent or sleep in their vans have to wing it.

This isn’t really good enough for the ‘‘coolest little capital’’ – cool, after all, is so often defined by the adventurous and bedraggled. The numbers are not tiny either. About 100 vehicles land on the city every night from December to April, according to the council.

Helpfully, most backpackers are keen on an official place to stay. That’s why, for instance, many ended up at Owhiro Bay last summer. Yet that council trial did not fare so well, with many residents upset and reports of rubbish and toilet paper left on the beach.

So something needed to happen. A low-budget campsite with some basic facilities presents itself as an obvious idea, and the question becomes: where?

Before settling on its Happy Valley recommendation, the council also considered and discarded other options – mostly waterfront sites near Lyall Bay, Houghton Bay and Evans Bay.

It decided these were either unsuitable or, to put it bluntly, too good. Hataitai residents, for instance, objected loudly to the idea of using Cog Park for the campsite, telling the council it would be swapping a pristine space for a ‘‘carpark’’, and ‘‘effectively displacing a majority of people for a minority’’.

That’s fair enough – it is a great spot. So Happy Valley it is instead, pending local consultation. One residents association thinks local support is at 50-50 for the idea, which might be as good as can be hoped for.

The point with the campground is not to build a world-class tourist attraction. Any entrepreneur who wants to can do that – and put it on the water’s edge with spectacular views.

Rather it’s to have a basic option available for tourists who trundle into town in their ancient vans looking for a place to park up for a night or two.

Inevitably there will be challenges. The odd person will abuse the place. The council needs to work out how to monitor it sufficiently without huge costs – it is considering a pay and display system. If it is too lax, local residents will wear any problems.

On the other hand, if the council can get it right, campers’ fees might pay for the running costs. That would be a winwin – a welcome mat for the low-budget tourist, at minimal cost to the city.