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DCC optimistic of sea wall deal with company | Otago Daily Times Online News : Otago, South Island, New Zealand & International News


Dunedin City Council staff are to meet the company it believes responsible for a failed ramp and steps on the sea wall at St Clair, optimistic a settlement can be negotiated this month.
Any resolution is also expected to include a decision on new access to the beach.
Early this year, a report to the council said the sea wall had failed to gain a code of compliance certificate when it was completed in 2004, mainly because of concerns over the durability of a ramp and stairs leading from the Esplanade to the beach.
Since then, the ramp and stairs have been damaged in heavy seas six times, most recently in September last year when they were closed after concrete cracked, exposing steel reinforcing rods.
A council report after incidents in 2004 and 2005 found failures then were caused by a combination of construction and design faults.
Design consultant Duffill Watts and King and construction company Naylor Love agreed to strengthen and repair the ramp and staircase at no cost to the council, and the facilities were replaced in 2007.
The most recent damage appears to be in the same area, materials used to reinforce the ramp having failed.
Duffill Watts and King has merged with the firm CPG, which has not accepted liability for the failings.
The council is seeking resolution through a settlement, rather than court action, while also working with the company on redesigning the sea wall's steps and ramps.
Council transportation operations manager Graeme Hamilton said councillors were updated on progress last week, in a non-public part of the infrastructure services committee meeting.
He could not discuss details, saying he did not want to prejudice the outcome of the meeting, but said council staff would discuss "everything" with CPG at a meeting in mid-August.
The council has previously said the existing ramp and some of the existing stairs would be removed and a new set of stairs built at the St Clair Salt Water Pool end of the sea wall, but Mr Hamilton would not confirm that yesterday, other than to say design, location and a timeframe would be discussed at the meeting.
The council has tagged $250,000 for the beach access project this financial year.
He was "always optimistic" a resolution could be reached with CPG, he said.
"It's [the meeting's] a positive move forward, to resolve what has been a difficult issue."

Erosion-plan vote next week | Otago Daily Times Online News : Otago, South Island, New Zealand & International News

Dunedin city councillors will decide next week whether to back a plan to continue a holding pattern in the battle against erosion in the Ocean Beach Domain area for the next decade.
In the meantime, staff would do the costed design work on what are considered to be the two most viable medium- to long-term ways to manage erosion in the area - a buried backstop wall 10m inland and/or a 30m managed retreat of the dunes.
Work on developing a long-term plan for the coastal area between St Clair and Lawyers Head began after severe storms caused significant erosion in the area in 2007.
The council has continued to battle erosion on the stretch, using sand replenishment and other minor work.
A report from consultants Tonkin and Taylor, commissioned in 2010, suggested the long-term "adaptive management approach" now being recommended to council following public consultation.
The council received 26 submissions on the report, offering mixed views on how to proceed.
Some submitters clearly favoured a managed retreat at Middle Beach, but the hearings committee considering submissions concluded a buried wall and a retreat were both viable options and data collection over the next five years would confirm which option was then considered most appropriate.
Councillors will consider a report containing recommendations from the hearings committee and council parks manager Lisa Wheeler at Monday's community development meeting.
The report recommends the council continue sand replenishment and other minor work alongside careful monitoring of the area for up to 10 years, at an expected to cost of $4 million to $8 million.
A buried backstop wall 10m back from the 2007 dune toe position should be designed and costed in the meantime, for intended installation between the end of the St Clair seawall and the cultural centre in 10 to 50 years' time, but earlier if required.
A continuation of the buried wall along Middle Beach to the St Kilda Surf Club should also be designed and costed, as should a managed retreat based on a 30m setback from the 2007 dune toe.
Ms Wheeler said sports fields at Kettle Park would not be substantially affected by a buried wall, other than during its construction, but a managed retreat would have a significant effect on the fields, which would become part of the dune area.
The fields were fine in the meantime, and clubs would be consulted if monitoring showed that had changed, she said.
Initial estimates put the cost of an inland wall at $8 million to $13 million, or $11 million to $19 million for a managed retreat, including the cost of cleaning up a historic landfill under Kettle Park, the report said.

Erosion-plan vote next week

Home » News » Dunedin
By Debbie Porteous on Fri, 20 Jul 2012
News: Dunedin

Dunedin city councillors will decide next week whether to back a plan to continue a holding pattern in the battle against erosion in the Ocean Beach Domain area for the next decade.In the meantime, staff would do the costed design work on what are considered to be the two most viable medium- to long-term ways to manage erosion in the area - a buried backstop wall 10m inland and/or a 30m managed retreat of the dunes.
Work on developing a long-term plan for the coastal area between St Clair and Lawyers Head began after severe storms caused significant erosion in the area in 2007.
The council has continued to battle erosion on the stretch, using sand replenishment and other minor work.
A report from consultants Tonkin and Taylor, commissioned in 2010, suggested the long-term "adaptive management approach" now being recommended to council following public consultation.
The council received 26 submissions on the report, offering mixed views on how to proceed.
Some submitters clearly favoured a managed retreat at Middle Beach, but the hearings committee considering submissions concluded a buried wall and a retreat were both viable options and data collection over the next five years would confirm which option was then considered most appropriate.
Councillors will consider a report containing recommendations from the hearings committee and council parks manager Lisa Wheeler at Monday's community development meeting.
The report recommends the council continue sand replenishment and other minor work alongside careful monitoring of the area for up to 10 years, at an expected to cost of $4 million to $8 million.
A buried backstop wall 10m back from the 2007 dune toe position should be designed and costed in the meantime, for intended installation between the end of the St Clair seawall and the cultural centre in 10 to 50 years' time, but earlier if required.
A continuation of the buried wall along Middle Beach to the St Kilda Surf Club should also be designed and costed, as should a managed retreat based on a 30m setback from the 2007 dune toe.
Ms Wheeler said sports fields at Kettle Park would not be substantially affected by a buried wall, other than during its construction, but a managed retreat would have a significant effect on the fields, which would become part of the dune area.
The fields were fine in the meantime, and clubs would be consulted if monitoring showed that had changed, she said.
Initial estimates put the cost of an inland wall at $8 million to $13 million, or $11 million to $19 million for a managed retreat, including the cost of cleaning up a historic landfill under Kettle Park, the report said.


DCC mulls options as erosion closes beach track

Home » News » Dunedin
Tue, 3 Jul 2012
News: Dunedin
Photo by Craig Baxter
Photo by Craig Baxter
Dunedin City Council sportsfields and facilities officer Harold Driver looks at erosion on the walkway between St Clair and St Kilda Beaches which forced the closure of the track last week.
Council staff and consultants met on site yesterday morning to determine what repairs were required.
Parks and reserves team leader Lisa Wheeler said part of the track had been narrowed and an 80m realignment would "hopefully" be in place by the end of the week.
She said the council would eventually decide whether the realignment would become permanent, or the original track repaired.
"We will wait until the weather calms down a bit and if it's worth doing repairs there, then we will."
The council's position on the erosion meant monitoring and replenishment work was being carried out as required, but major work to protect the area would not occur for another decade.
However, "one of the goals that we are trying to achieve is maintaining that recreation flow through there", Ms Wheeler said.
Signs notifying the public of the realignment would be erected today.


Warning on beach scheme

Home » News » Dunedin
By Chris Morris on Thu, 29 Mar 2012
News: Dunedin
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Mike Hilton
Mike Hilton
The Dunedin City Council's luck could run out if severe storms force it to bring forward millions of dollars worth of erosion protection work planned for Ocean Beach, a hearings committee has been told.
The warning came from University of Otago coastal processes specialist Dr Mike Hilton yesterday, as the council's Ocean Beach hearings committee backed plans for a holding pattern in the area for the next decade.
The holding pattern would include beach monitoring and replenishment work as required, and could cost up to $8 million over the decade.
It was to be followed by even more expensive work to protect the area, including a buried backstop wall, managed retreat and clean-up of an old landfill under Kettle Park.
The options - covering the area from St Clair to Lawyers Head - were detailed in a report by Tonkin and Taylor, which led to public consultation and yesterday's deliberations.
However, Dr Hilton told the meeting yesterday the timeframes for when the work would be required remained uncertain, and could be "quite wrong" if more severe weather struck.
The margin of error east of the St Clair sea wall was "quite small", with protective sand sausages already exposed by the elements, he said.
The council had been "quite lucky" since severe storms in 2007 led to emergency repairs and prompted the start of the planning process for the future management of Ocean Beach.
However, another severe weather event could force the council's hand at any time.
"We could be very unlucky at any time," Dr Hilton said.
Richard Reinen-Hamill, the author of the Tonlin and Taylor report, agreed, saying the work timeframes in his report were "just predictions".
"We are dealing with uncertainty and trying to manage uncertainty." However, the prospect of a sudden bill for major work would also be "problematic" for the council, given present financial constraints, council community and recreation services manager Mick Reece told the meeting.
"Paying for it in the next financial year has never been an option," he said.
The discussion came as councillors endorsed recommendations contained in the report, beginning with the holding pattern over the next decade costing up to $8 million.
That was to be followed by construction of an expensive buried backstop wall, costing up to $3 million, inland from the sand dunes, stretching 300m east from the end of the existing St Clair sea wall. Elsewhere, the report recommended a managed retreat along a 1km front at Middle Beach, allowing the sea to reclaim parts of Kettle Park, or a second buried backstop wall to protect the playing fields.
A managed retreat would cost up to $16 million, as a historic landfill under the playing fields would need to be cleaned up, while a second buried backstop wall could cost $10 million.
The committee yesterday endorsed plans for the managed retreat at Middle Beach, but chairman Cr Colin Weatherall stressed that did not mean the area was being abandoned, although some Kettle Park playing fields would be lost.
Council parks manager Lisa Wheeler said the council would work with the Dunedin Rugby Football Club - which used the park - to accommodate its needs as part of a wider review of sportsfield capacity.
Also yesterday, committee member Cr Bill Acklin questioned whether it would be better to bring forward work on the buried backstop wall and managed retreat.
That would allow funding of $250,000 a year - included in the council's draft long-term plan for the next decade - to be used to offset loan servicing costs to pay for the major work, he suggested.
However, Mr Reece said the annual sum in the draft budget was a contingency fund, and might not need to be spent from year to year.
Delaying the work by up to a decade would also allow more data to be collected, helping shape the best options to protect the coastline.
It was possible work could be brought forward when the council's financial position was "more favourable", and work on consents and designs could begin in the meantime, he said.
Following the deliberations, committee chairman Cr Colin Weatherall asked staff to report back in June with recommendations.


By Chris Morris on Thu, 5 Jan 2012
News: Dunedin | DCC


A public hearing next month will help decide what to do about erosion problems threatening Dunedin's Middle Beach.

The Dunedin City Council has been investigating the problems, and what to do about them, since severe storms in 2007 first highlighted the threat of erosion to Kettle Park and other facilities in the area.

That resulted in a draft Ocean Beach management plan prepared by consultant Tonkin and Taylor last year, covering a 4km area stretching from St Clair to Lawyers Head.

The draft plan recommended continuing the council's holding pattern of monitoring and sand-replenishment work - put in place after the 2007 storms - in the meantime.

However, the report also canvassed 13 longer-term options and recommended a managed retreat from Middle Beach and Kettle Park, or construction of an inland buried backstop wall to protect the area over the next 10 to 50 years, at an initial estimated cost of between $8 million and $19 million.

Yesterday, council community and recreation services manager Mick Reece said public consultation on the draft plan had prompted 17 submissions, including input from the Department of Conservation and individuals.


About half supported the draft plan's recommendations, while the rest had mixed views, he said.

A public hearing, set down for February 21 to 23, would be held to help determine a way forward, Mr Reece said.

chris.morris@odt.co.nz

News: Dunedin | DCC
A clay cap stretching 150m on top of sand dunes at Dunedin's Middle Beach has been removed by Dunedin City Council contractors, amid concerns further erosion could have caused it to collapse. Photo by Craig Baxter.
A clay cap stretching 150m on top of sand dunes at Dunedin's Middle Beach has been removed by Dunedin City Council contractors, amid concerns further erosion could have caused it to collapse. Photo by Craig Baxter.

 As waves continue to erode Dunedin's Middle Beach, major excavations have been carried out in recent weeks to remove a clay cap covering sand dunes, which was at risk of collapse.
Dunedin City Council staff yesterday confirmed a clay cap stretching about 150m along the top of dunes at Middle Beach had been removed by contractors, amid fears it was being undermined by waves.
Parts of the cap had already fallen away, leaving plant roots exposed and the remaining cap at risk of collapsing on to the beach below, council parks manager Lisa Wheeler said.
Instead, the cap - up to 1m deep in places - and vegetation in the area was removed by council contractors last month, leaving a flat shelf, she said.
The clay was then replaced with about 7000cu m of sand dredged from Otago Harbour, to restore some of the top of the dunes, Mrs Wheeler said.
"When we took the clay capping off, it was just a flat shelf. We've actually brought the sand back on to try and build the dune back up again.
"It was quite significant [work]," she said.
Otago Regional Council consents required the city council to collect any clay falling on to beach, to prevent it being washed into the marine environment, she said.
The work was undertaken as a "precautionary" measure to avoid that, at a cost of $70,000, but also to ensure public safety for beach-goers, she said.
Public access to the dunes was already restricted, with the area above fenced off since it was discovered the dunes were contaminated by material from a historic landfill located under nearby Kettle Park.
However, plants left leaning over after parts of the cap collapsed were adding to the pressure on the shelf, Mrs Wheeler said.
"Some of it had [collapsed], and there were big cracks where even the pressure of just someone standing on it was moving some other areas of it.
"You just need another little bit of imbalance and it all would have just gone."
Council community and recreation services manager Mick Reece said the clay had been placed on top of the dunes "years ago" - although the exact date was not known - to help promote plant growth.
Adding the clay was "not a good move, as we now know", and would have had to be removed regardless of what decisions were made about the long-term future of Middle Beach.
"As the face of the dune was tested in any way by the weather, you have this great big pie crust on the top that if it was undercut at all, the whole thing collapsed, like slabs of clay down on to the beach.
"Whatever happens in the future ... that clay had to go anyway."

you have until 5pm today to send in your submission for Ocean beach, i haven't even started writing mine!!

Proposed Management Options for Ocean Beach

Closes: 25/11/2011

In 2008, the Council appointed a Project Team to gather data and consider management options for Ocean Beach. This followed significant erosion on the beach in June/July 2007, the DCC’s replenishment of sand on the beach and other remedial works as part of a now established ‘holding pattern’, and a comprehensive consultation process. Since then the Project Team has gathered and analysed that data and completed a risk assessment process. It has now identified proposed management options for Ocean Beach, taking into account the existing processes and risks.

A report from Tonkin & Taylor dated October 2011 entitled: ‘Ocean Beach, Coastal Issues and Options’, sets out preferred options for managing the area using an adaptive management approach. The report is available for inspection at the DCC’s Customer Services Centre and Libraries from Tuesday 25 October during their ordinary opening hours. A summary of intent and submission forms are also available. The information, plus background material on erosion at Ocean Beach, can be found at www.dunedin.govt.nz/consultation.

Submissions must be received by 5.00 pm on Friday 25 November. Hearing dates have been scheduled for Tuesday 31 January to Thursday 2 February 2012. Please state in your submission whether or not you wish to be heard.

Consultation documents

Consultation details

Closing date25/11/2011
Contact personBusiness Development Team Leader
Public feedback
  • Online submission form (new window)
  • Email to - oceanbeach.comment@dcc.govt.nz
  • Post to - Proposed Management Options for Ocean Beach, Community and Recreation Services, Dunedin City Council, PO Box 5045 Moray Place, Dunedin 9058, Attention: Lisa Labuchagne
  • Hand deliver to - Proposed Management Options for Ocean Beach, Customer Service Centre, Ground Floor Civic Centre, 50 The Octagon - Attention Lisa Labuchagne
Public meetings

The public meeting is to be held on Monday 7 November 2011 at 7.00 pm.

The venue is the Port Otago Room, first floor, Edgar Centre, corner Portsmouth Drive and Teviot Street.

All interested members of the public are cordially invited to attend. A summary of the options and submission forms will also be available at the meeting

.

Damage to the St Clair access ramp, which occurred following heavy seas earlier this month. Photo by Stephen Jaquiery.
Damage to the St Clair access ramp, which occurred following heavy seas earlier this month. Photo by Stephen Jaquiery.
 Major changes may be in store for a ramp and staircase at Dunedin's St Clair Beach, facilities which have had repeated failures in the face of heavy seas.
Dunedin community life general manager Graeme Hall said the ramp might be shifted further down the Esplanade towards Middle Beach, once councillors had made a decision on its future.
And with extensive research on the troublesome coastline recently, any decision made should be based on better information.
Mr Hall is writing a report on the future of the ramp and staircase, after the ramp failed earlier this month - the third time since the sea wall was built in 2004.
Council staff acted to keep the public safe by closing access. It has remained closed.
The damage followed rough seas that scoured sand from Tomahawk Beach and forced the council to shore up dunes at Middle Beach and disconnect electricity to lights at Kettle Park after sand hills were cut to within metres of the sportsground's light poles.
At St Clair, the ramp's concrete cracked, and steel reinforcing rods were exposed.
Asked about the likely contents of his report, Mr Hall said while sea walls at St Clair had historically had problems, the new wall itself had handled all the sea had thrown at it since it was established in 2004.
The ramp and the nearby staircase, however, had been a problem, he said.
Mr Hall said he had been writing a report on the history of the issue, dealing with engineering, insurance and guarantees, when the latest damage occurred.
After the recent damage the council would attempt to discover who was responsible for the constructions unable to stand the force of the sea.
Design consultant Duffill Watts and King and construction company Naylor Love agreed to strengthen and repair the ramp and staircase at no cost to the council when the facilities were replaced in 2007.
Mr Hall said it had been known since that time that the position and construction of the ramp was "not ideal" for the sea conditions in the area.
At the same time as the ramp and stair issues, the council had been dealing with erosion as a separate matter, and it was sensible to wait until reports, like the recently released Tonkin and Taylor report on coastal erosion, before making decisions.
"Whatever solutions come up, we will have a greater understanding of the beach than we have had previously," Mr Hall said.
Asked if the council had to provide the ramp for disability access, he said the council had the opportunity in the past to get a government exemption from having disability access at the beach, but had not followed that route.
The report will go before the next community development committee meeting on November 30.


St Clair ramp damaged again

Home » News » Dunedin
By David Loughrey on Thu, 6 Oct 2011
News: Dunedin | St Clair beach
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2011: A close-up of the cracked concrete, taken yesterday.
2011: A close-up of the cracked concrete, taken yesterday.
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A damaged ramp at the Esplanade in St Clair will remain closed, as the Dunedin City Council attempts to discover who is responsible for a construction unable to stand the tests of time and tide.
The ramp has failed for the third time since the seawall was built in 2004, and council staff have acted to keep the public safe by closing access.
The damage follows rough seas that scoured sand from Tomahawk Beach and forced the council to shore up dunes at Middle Beach and disconnect electricity to lights at Kettle Park after sand hills were cut to within metres of the sportsground's light poles.
At St Clair, the concrete ramp was hit so hard concrete cracked and steel reinforcing rods were exposed.
Council project engineer Evan Matheson yesterday said he had been notified of the damage by a property owner at the beach.
There was a "long history" to the issue, and council community life general manager Graeme Hall was writing a report to the council.
That report would help decide "what we do next".
Mr Hall was on leave, but council community development committee chairman Cr Bill Acklin said the report would be coming to his committee.
The council was recently forced to accept its design requirements for guard rails on the Esplanade were not up to scratch after it spent $347,000 repairing corrosion.
The ramp was damaged twice in three months during storms late in 2004 and early in 2005, not long after the seawall was built. The stairs were also damaged at the time.
A report commissioned by the council after those incidents found the failures were caused by a combination of construction and design faults.
Design consultant Duffill Watts and King and construction company Naylor Love agreed to strengthen and repair the ramp and staircase at no cost to the council, and the facilities were replaced in 2007.
Cr Acklin yesterday said he understood there were "issues in relation to who is responsible", which Mr Hall's report would consider.
The issue was not listed in the agenda for the next committee meeting on October 19, so he expected it to go before the November 30 meeting.

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