I don’t agree with Wayne Brown about many things, but he is 100% right about this being a hustle…
Auckland mayor Wayne Brown claims Takapuna-Milford property owners ‘blackmailers’ over coastal walk
Owners of the Paul Firth cottage and Auckland Council are attempting to reopen negotiations and access to the Takapuna-Milford coastal walk after mayor Wayne Brown’s fiery accusations of blackmail.
The first negotiations to try to reopen one of Auckland’s most iconic walkways for summer were understood to be taking place yesterday, after the mayor levelled blackmail accusations last week.
The owners of the Paul Firth cottage recently closed access to the tens of thousands of walkers who pass through their private land each year while following the 2.5km Takapuna-Milford coastal walk.
Former owner Firth had opened his land free of charge in 2011 after a public bridge washed away in front of the property.
The current owners earlier said they wanted to gift that slice of land to Auckland Council to be permanently used as part of the walkway, on condition the council removes a 2013 heritage listing placed over the cottage.
But when the council was slow to respond to their offer, they fenced off their property, forcing walkers to scamper over “dangerous” rocks or take a longer detour.
Mayor Wayne Brown last week lashed the closure as “blackmail”.
…only rich white people can be this selfish!
It is such a hustle.
These new owners have closed down the walk way to force the Council to allow them to make a fortune on the land by lifting the heritage listing.
Screw them!
Walkers should smash down the wall and retake the access back.
Screw the owners when they use their rights against the people.
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I disagree (noting I use this walkway every year – well, it won’t be this summer by the looks of it).
It’s private property and they have every right to restrict access. The council has freeloaded off them and avoided repairing the original bridge. They have every right to tell the owners they won’t change the heritage status but they either do nothing (and shut up) or they build a new bridge.
I think the point is that the owners didn’t close the walkway because of any legitimate concerns about public use of their private land – the reason they closed the walkway is because they simply wanted to force the council’s hand into ensuring windfall private profits for themselves. That is indeed blackmail, and the council ought not to budge. If the council and public need to devise another way to walk around the property, then so be it.
Direct action! yesssss…they won’t like it up ’em…
Similar to what I have been saying for several years on TDB about Auckland’s 30,000 plus purposefully empty houses, not to mention commercial property as well–occupy it for accomodation purposes (without vandalism) and collective small businesses and traders.
There are not enough cops in the country to keep a handle on a politically driven mass occupation of “private” property.
I guess people in Takapuna don’t have their own chainsaws.
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