Mt Roskill stormwater upgrades urgently needed

The heavy weekend downpour saw Mt Roskill residents being forced to endure water lapping around their ankles and lawns. Blocks of residents were awash with stormwater overflows in their homes.

It was heartbreaking to drive down the streets in our areas such as May Road, and see people standing out on the side of the road as they watched their homes engulfed with overflowing stormwater.

“The residents affected are upset and highlighted that this was becoming a more regular occurrence. They feel that Council are not providing a quality service”, says Nigel Turnbull, Deputy Chair of the Puketapapa Local Board.

Considering that Auckland’s stormwater network requires an investment of approximately $9.9 billion over the next 50 years, there appears little commitment by Council to address this critical underground infrastructure in the Council’s 10-year budget or Long Term Plan, signed off in June 2012.

“Apparently, the Council only plans to spend up to $768 million on capital (stormwater) projects’ over the coming decade. This is less than 10% of what is required to adequately upgrade our underground infrastructure and is consigning our community to on-going floods over the next decade.

“For Auckland to be a truly liveable city requires us to prioritise what is important to residents. I will work hard to address this key public service and support proper investment into our core public infrastructure, rather than funding ‘nice to have’ projects like white water rafting or expensive public art along Dominion Road.”

“With regards to Unitary Plan, communities have been told the underground infrastructure will be able to cope with the proposed residential intensification. However, this weekend’s recent storm event clearly demonstrates that it’s not even coping at the moment, and the current budget remains completely inadequate to solve our current issues, let alone future pressures on the network,” says Turnbull.

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