HYDROSLIDE PROPOSAL WOULD REQUIRE PLANNING Picton councillor David Oddie says there will be a range of issues to be resolved before any decision can be reached about a proposal to operate a commercial hydroslide business on Picton’s foreshore. He has commended the man behind the proposal, Terry Brown, for bringing a new idea forward and says public views will now have to be sought. The 79-metre fibreglass hydroslide was originally designed as part of Timaru’s indoor swimming pool but, after a new pool was built there, the waterslide was no longer a good fit and was put up for sale. After purchasing the hydroslide from the Timaru District Council, Mr Brown announced he wanted to run it as a commercial venture on Picton’s waterfront. Mr Brown’s business team met Marlborough District Council staff on Tuesday for an initial discussion about the proposal. Councillor Oddie says there are two aspects to any decision on a hydroslide. Firstly the Council and the public would have to consider whether it would fit into the long term plan for the foreshore area and then the business would have to meet the legal requirements relating to planning and health and safety standards. Councillor Oddie says more details are required before Council can discuss the proposal but he hoped that would be possible by the next meeting of Council’s Assets and Services Committee at the end of this month. “A project like this also carries with it an obligation on the Council for public consultation,” he said. The Council’s new Management Plan for the Picton Foreshore, currently still in draft form, sets out guidelines for design and development for the foreshore area. “The draft Management Plan has to be approved by Council and then put out to the public for a formal eight-week consultation process as required under local government legislation. If there is a sufficiently advanced hydroslide proposal then the public consultation on it could be conducted along with the Management Plan,” suggested Councillor Oddie. Council is scheduled to consider submissions and finalise the Foreshore Management Plan on 21 November this year. “Council would also have to draw up a lease if the waterslide was to be located on public reserves and that would require more detail about the size and scale of activity than is currently known. However I don’t anticipate Mr Brown would have any difficulty supplying this information,” said Councillor Oddie. This kind of construction would also be subject to the resource consent process so there could be implications for water take and water discharges; conditions would apply. The waterslide would also need a building consent, the councillor said. Any new business on the foreshore would also require the Council to grant a concession. There is currently only one concession for a water-based recreational business on Picton’s seafront; a kayak hire company. “I realise some people may think it’s a simple job to set up a water slide but there are various obligations on the Council and on the operator before permission could be granted,” says Councillor Oddie. “Picton’s foreshore is public property and a gem that Council must carefully manage. After meeting Mr Brown’s representatives, I feel they understood that.”
Posted on: Thu, 08 Aug 2013 05:10:00 +0000
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