The deadline for feedback on the impacts of locating a national Erebus memorial in Dove-Myer Robinson Park in Parnell has been extended until 29 October .
Last month Waitematā Local Board received a report seeking approval for a landowner consent for Manatū Taonga Ministry for Culture and Heritage to build the memorial in the park.
The board resolved to ask the community for feedback on how the memorial may affect their experience of the park before making its decision.
The proposed national memorial looks to remember the 257 people who lost their lives when Air New Zealand flight TE901 crashed into Mt Erebus nearly 40 years ago. It remains to this day the worst civil aviation accident in New Zealand history.
The scale of the loss shocked the country. A national memorial in a beautiful public space will go some way to acknowledge the immense loss experienced by the families and the nation.
“In response to concerns raised with us we undertook consultation on the landowner consent in good faith as an additional step in the process and originally to allow time for the sod turning to take place on the 40th anniversary next month,” says Waitematā Local Board chair Pippa Coom.
“Due to the need to make available additional information and to allow everyone with an interest to provide input we have decided to extend the consultation period and defer the landowner decision to the first available board meeting following the completion of the consultation."
Auckland Council started working with the Ministry for Culture and Heritage last year to identify a site that would be appropriate and suitable for the siting of the national memorial.
Several sites were looked at against a range of criteria, including accessibility, compatibility to the use of adjacent space and ability to host formal and informal events.
Families of those who lost their lives in the Erebus accident also expressed a strong desire for a site in a peaceful park-like setting. Dove-Myer Robinson Park was selected as the best fit.
A report outlining the consultation feedback will be considered by the new board*.
Auckland Council continues to work with the Ministry to ensure that this memorial is one that brings New Zealanders together in remembrance of the Erebus tragedy.
Have your say
Go online for more information and to have your say and where you can also find:
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Additional information including details of the decision-making and design process, the proposed memorial's special design features and links to where you can view the most up to date drawings and information on the impact on trees within the park.
Purpose of consultation
The focus of the consultation is asking for feedback on how the memorial would impact on people’s use and enjoyment of the park to inform the local board’s decision, as the landowner.
The consultation on the design was and continues to be led by Manatū Taonga, Ministry for Culture and Heritage. The winning design was the result of a design competition it ran last year, based on the Dove-Myer Robinson Park site.
Next steps
The term for the newly elected Waitematā Local Board starts on the 22 October.
The new members cannot act as members of the local board until they have made their statutory declaration at the inaugural local board meeting on 30 October.
Background
The local board gave approval in principle for the siting of the memorial at Dove-Myer Robinson Park in November 2018, subject to the memorial design accommodating/meeting several outcomes.
In February 2019, the Auckland Urban Design Panel reviewed the final designs and considered that the Te Paerangi Ataata – Sky Song memorial will work well within, and is appropriate to, the natural park setting.
On 17 September 2019 Waitematā Local Board heard from individual local residents and local community groups who sought the opportunity to have their say through a public consultation on the effects of the proposed memorial at Dove-Myer Robinson park.
