Sanders Reserve Update

First of all, a big thank you to all of you that took time out of your week last Thursday to come along to the Albany Community Board meeting at North Harbour Stadium and show your support for the trail development proposed for Sanders Reserve.

It was a strange evening with representatives from dog-owners strongly voicing their opposition to trails being developed in 'their' reserve. I say strange because officially submissions closed on this reserve over a year ago and the proposed development plan is fully supported by North Shore City Council and has been voted on and passed. Furthermore, there seemed to be some confusion regarding the funding of the reserve development - it was believed that their dog licence fee was contributing (it is not) and that our taxes were contributing (they are not). The park is being developed using Development Contributions from major developers (such as Westfield) to help North Shore City Council achieve strategic recreational targets set by Regional and National government. Supplying off-road cycling trails is identified in the NSCC Recreational Cycling Strategy document (2007) as being a key area of development currently lacking and desperately needed.

I spoke on behalf of the club, its members and the wider off-road cycling community in the Auckland Region. I was saddened by the extent of selfishness on display and the extent of opposition to this development, bearing in mind that dogs are permitted to be off-leash and under voice control in every one of the 560 parks on the North Shore and our beaches, some of which do not have seasonal restrictions on them. It was disappointing to see such a well-provided for user group fighting so strongly against a user group that has experienced zero investment to date by NSCC.

The subject is far from closed however, with representatives from dog-owners preparing a further submission to NSCC to oppose the Sanders Reserve Development Plan, we vow to respond to this swiftly.

It was discussed at the meeting that if the dog-owners engaged with us, we could use the experience gained in parks where the needs of different user groups have been successfully integrated (such as Whitianga Bike Park) to find a harmonious solution. I am not holding my breath....

I am in no way suggesting that we are in a 'war' here, nor should there be battle lines drawn. Preferably we will see dialogue between all users to ensure a happy outcome, accepted by the majority. There is clearly enough space on the North Shore for all park users and we fully support the proposed Sanders Reserve Development Plans to give off-road cyclists some facilities on the North Shore for the first time.

Watch this space…

Marke

This land has been a public reserve for five years now and I understand that it is being used by the public to a limited extent.

Are bikes allowed, even to a limited extent, respecting stock and others etc?

Hey Surveyor Steve,

At this stage and to avoid providing those against cycling being permitted in Sanders Reserve with more ammunition, the official line from the Auckland MTB Club is that we would prefer no cyclists on the land until such time as the council designate it as a Bike Park.

Until then, as with all other reserves on the Shore, cycling is not permitted. Given the delicate nature of this one, it might be best if we follow the rules, no matter how frustrating it is right now.

It will be worth it in the long-run I'm sure.

Cheers
Marke

No worries, I'm looking forward to it opening.

has there been any progress on this place??

i found a link to the north shore plan if anyone wants to have a look!

http://www.northshorecity.govt.nz/pdfs/ ... t-plan.pdf

i hope this all works out, it looks very exiting