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Mangere heritage lobby group Save Our Unique Landscape is questioning the archaeological survey presented by Fletcher Building to support its consent for a special housing area at Ihumatao.
The report to the February hearing said the only feature of archaeological interest worth protecting was the concrete farm house built in 1906.
But a quick survey of the site last week by archaeologist Dave Veart identified a shell midden and fire remains in the centre of the block.
Mr Veart, who is a member of Auckland Council’s heritage advisory panel, says middens are piles of rubbish that give clues about diet, environment and dates of those who previously occupied the area.
SOUL spokesperson Waimarie McFarland says the discovery confirms the wahi tapu aspect of the Otuataua Stonefields Historic Reserve extends into the land now known as Special Housing Area 62.
She says if the experts employed by Fletchers failed to spot the midden, it raises questions about what else they missed.
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