Source: Auckland Council
Puketāpapa residents’ thoughts and comments are needed to help shape plans for the next three years.
The proposed plan prioritises upcoming neighbourhoods, and community facilities as two key areas of focus for Puketāpapa.
With less than a week left, the draft Puketāpapa Local Board plan consultation is open until 14 August and needs feedback from the community to know if it’s on the right track.
Board Chair, Ella Kumar explains, “Our plan aims to concentrate on our three rapidly growing neighbourhoods, Wesley, Waikōwhai and Three Kings – to ensure they are included, supported and well connected.”
“We’re also committed to ensuring facilities are efficiently delivered in partnership with community, so they meet expectations and are well-used.”
“Our area is unique and super diverse. I love that I can walk down the road and see people from all around the world. It is the diversity of our people and their connection to this place that makes Puketāpapa so special. We need to preserve this as we respond to our developing neighbourhoods,” says Kumar.
While diversity and culture are huge benefits, intensification can put pressure on existing communities, networks and facilities. Additionally, the council’s budget challenges will increase difficulty with maintaining a large and ageing facilities portfolio.
The good news is current and future urban growth can provide opportunities to attract investment from other agencies, which deliver long-term plans for the future.
The plan is to investigate, in future, how community can access services and facilities, connect through shared spaces, and where there are gaps considering population growth. It also plans to have support programmes that meet community needs and support leadership within diverse communities of those neighbourhoods.
To ensure investment in parks, facilities and projects are prioritised where they are needed, the board proposes to work closely with housing developers and seek external funding to improve neighbourhoods. Planning ahead with agencies can ensure provision for facilities and open space, such as the Three Kings development, which will have affordable long-term operational costs.
The board also proposes to investigate opportunities for facilities to deliver services better and reduce costs. Another initiative to address this is to look into community partnerships that can be delivered from community-owned facilities – enabling collaboration and increasing capacity across the neighbourhood.
What are your thoughts on this? The local board is fully open to suggestions from Puketāpapa residents.
Have your say here.
