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 In a democracy everyone would get a boatramp.
Hon John Banks QSO
Mayor of Auckland City
Dear John
When Doug Armstrong arranged for the Council to install gabion walling in front of his house he recognised that this was going to block off his access to the beach. To overcome this difficulty he arranged for the ratepayers to build him a private boat ramp so that he could still get up and down.
Doug Armstrong is now proposing to put gabion walling in front of my house and boatshed , which will block off my access to the beach. It seems only reasonable that I should also have a boat ramp built for me by the ratepayers to retain my access. Would you please be kind enough to arrange to have this done.
Because Doug’s boat ramp was built without any permits, Resource Consent, or Coastal Resource Consent and the budget was concealed you will probably find no record of this in Council files. However all you need to do is to come down to Karaka Bay and have a look.
I cannot see any difficulty in you providing me with an exactly similar boat ramp as it could be handled in precisely the same way as Doug’s. This would mean that no permits, Resource Consents of Coastal Resource Consents would be required and the budget could just be slipped through under the radar so that no one would know anything about it.
I am not asking for anything special. I only need an acceptance of the principle that what is good enough for one person is good enough for another.
Building this boat ramp for me would send a powerful message to the community that in spite of all the negative rumours to the contrary the Super-City will be truly democratic, with all citizens being treated in a fair and equitable manner.
I trust you will give this matter your urgent attention. The Council is acting with all possible speed to block off my access with their gabion walling, and it is critical for the boat ramp to go in at the same time so that I will have continuous access to the beach. Once again it is important for people to see that the Super-City is more than promises, and that in the Super-City the voice of the people will still be heard.
I need hardly say that I am not a selfish person and I would be pleased for any member of the public wanting to go for a swim to use my boat ramp to gain access to the beach.
I would of course be delighted for you to come down to cut the ribbon for the official opening of my boat ramp, and this would create a superb photo opportunity for the media. As far as I am concerned you can put in any plug for the Super-City you like. All I want is to able to go for a swim or to launch a boat to rescue people who are drowning, as has happened a couple of times in the last year. We have had one death, but everyone else was saved. If the Council had blocked off our access, as they intend to do, there would have been two more deaths last week.
Thank you for your assistance.
Tony Watkins
Mayor John Banks declined to offer a reply, an explanation, or a boatramp.
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