Franklin residents can give their ideas on what makes parks perfect.
Consultation to shape a draft Franklin Local Parks Management Plan to set a framework for the use, protection, and development of the area’s parks, is open until 12 November.
The board has decision-making authority over roughly 190 parks, 29 with management plans that will be superseded.
Franklin Local Board chair and Wairoa subdivision member Angela Fulljames says it’s important people get involved.
“There’s going to be consultation specific to local areas, so while Waiuku on one side of Franklin and Maraetai on the other might have lots in common, we want to be able to identify if there are specific needs.
“Local parks are exactly that, local. That makes it critical the people who call them their own have a say in what happens in and to them.
“We want engagement by subdivision because of the size of our area, and because there are extensive esplanade reserves around the Manukau Harbour and Wairoa River,” she says.
Any plan is a long way off being finalised, with consultation critical to the process. After feedback is analysed, a draft can be prepared.
The board is responsible for parks it has decision-making authority over, while in others it has only an advocacy role – where it can put forward suggestions, notably regional parks and drainage reserves.
“A completed plan will outline the reserves where there’s local decision-making, and where advocacy-only roles apply,” Fulljames says. “But it’s important to know we remain committed to partnerships and co-management.”
Open space not owned or managed by Auckland Council is excluded, as are regional parks.
Fulljames says management plans are an important tool to protect the values of parks while providing for appropriate activities.
“They provide a framework for consistent, transparent decision-making for managing and developing parks.”
It is anticipated a draft plan will be available for public consultation in early or mid-2025.
Have Your Say here.
