Published on 21 November 2024
The future of Beach Road will be considered by the Mayor and Councillors at next week’s full meeting of Waitaki District Council.
Work recently finished on extracting 19,000 tonne of fly-tipped waste from two sites on Beach Road as part of Project Reclaim. The excavation sites have been shaped by Fulton-Hogan, and hydroseeded this week. These sites were at risk of coastal erosion and a potential environmental disaster for the Waitaki coastline.
Following conclusion of the waste removal, Council has erected barriers at each end of the road in order to save on traffic management costs and pending a decision on the future of the road.
Beach Road itself has long been recognised as a site of continuous coastal erosion with a Southern section between Thousand Acre and Gardiners Road rerouted in the past.
The proposal before Council recommends engaging with the community about the future of Beach Road, including the former excavation sites.
Other options in the report include realigning the entire of Beach Road North, closing from Awamoa Road to Beach Road North and realigning the Awamoa Road junction to keep Beach Road open to Gardiners Road, or keeping the current closures in place permanently.
Councillors will discuss the proposals and make a decision on Tuesday’s full Council meeting. It will be livestreamed, and open to the public.
You can read the agenda here.
ENDS