If you see me walking down the street, don't walk on by, chat with me and help create solutions for a safe, vibrant city.
I have lots of ideas, starting with ditching the ill-conceived ‘Centre City Master Plan’ that has brought our once thriving city to this state of doom and gloom. This ludicrous CCMP that has destroyed our city was endorsed by several mayors who lacked vision, allowing Ludo Campbell-Reid to wreak havoc with his ‘urbanist’ views .His YouTube videos show him strutting with self importance, chest puffed out decreeing “tackling the car dominance on the city.” Where he lays out a stealth approach of simple tools that people won’t notice until it is too late – “started narrowing [arterial] roads [with cycle and bus lanes], taking free left hand turns [and car parks], it is how people move across the city and around it,” showing a complete lack of understanding of how we work and play in ‘Godzone’. After he embarrassed himself and had to leave town in a hurry, his acolytes have been continuing with the destructive 'urbanist' plan to cut off commuters going to and through the city centre. As he says, “it’s a bit like salt in cooking, once it is in, it’s hard to get out."
Here’s the solution, the golden rule of retail, 'through traffic brings passing trade’. It is how shopping villages were formed along our arterial routes. Shopping malls do it by providing free parking. Bring the bustle back, personal vehicles, and turn them over with short stay parking.
Traffic that passed from Parnell through Victoria Street to the harbour bridge got replaced by the so-called 'Linear Park' down a street too steep for mobility access to Queen Street in the valley where it doglegs, before continuing up an equally steep road to the train station that will need escalators on the footpath to be accessible for quarter of the population. Then, beyond concrete ‘tim-tams’ further restricting movement. What an ugly mess.
Commuters' other route from the bays to the bridge along Quay Street has also been narrowed. The biggest blow will be felt when the Lower Hobson Street Flyover is demolished, along with the Downtown Carpark. It’s to be replaced by towers that will cast a shadow across Albert Park and create a wind tunnel while 5500 18-ton double truckloads, belching diesel fumes, carting 99,000 tons of concrete, wreck roads that ratepayers will have to reinstate – all part of the CCMP. This will cause major havoc from people in the Orakei Ward travelling to the city and the North Shore. So, too, AT’s revenue traps on Queen Street that are going to be extended under the guise of making the whole of downtown a ‘Low Emission Zone’. Here’s some news for AT, electric vehicles don’t cause emissions!
Downtown has become an unsafe space with the stench of grimy urine-stained footpaths, full of despair, with crazies on scooters and reeking of desperation with homeless sleeping in doorways of empty shops lacking hope of a warm hearth.
Auckland City Mission’s ‘Home Ground’ is at capacity. Just up the road is a great opportunity for a second shelter with a magnificent timber-lined hall (pictured above) perfect for community dinners, instead of dissuading customers from city restaurants and retail by having them in the Ellen Melville Centre and outside the Public Library. The former police headquarters, on a 4580sqm site, is a strategic and large-scale CBD property at the intersection of Hobson Street, Vincent Street and Cook Street with an 11 storey tower and potential expansion. It’s for sale for $6 million ono.
There are also some permanent homes available from the state. In March 2025, there were 396 Kāinga Ora vacant properties and 19,308 applicants on the Housing Register in Auckland. The KO vacant properties are listed by Local Board area: 30 Waitematā; 37 Albert-Eden; 62 Manurewa; 46 Maungakiekie-Tāmaki; 46 Puketāpapa; and 51 Whau (New Lynn).
This CCMP madness has to stop! I used to go downtown, “where all the lights are bright. You can forget all your troubles, forget all your cares and go Downtown, things'll be great when you're Downtown, don't wait a minute more, Downtown.”
I’ve been a community advocate from the outside. Only if I’m on the WLB can I stop Auckland Transport's unsafe, expensive and congestion causing practices. I have 30+ years architectural experience and understand movement patterns. Boards don’t need lawyers and biology teachers like the chair, they need people like me who can read drawing plans and design solutions.
Gael Baldock, community advocate, GaelB@xtra.co.nz
#ponsonbynews #iloveponsonby #loveponsonby #ponsonby #auckland #aucklandshippestrip #onlyponsonby #ponsonbyroad #Greylynn #freemansbay #westmere #ponsonby #hernebay #stmarysbay #archhill #coxsbay @followers #followers @everyone #everyone #waitematalocalboard @highlight
