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December 20, 2021
Name row threatens Mangonui bridge build
Adam Gifford
Posted On December 20, 2021
Download AudioA Mangonui kaumatua wants a new cultural impact report into a bridge project – or he’s threatening to seek an injunction.
On behalf of roading agency Waka Kotahi, contractor Fulton Hogan is 10 weeks into replacing a 50-year-old Papakawau culvert that connects the Aputerewa stream to the Mangonui Harbour.
The project is funded from the Government’s shovel ready Covid recovery fund and it’s designed to restore tidal flows which flush out the marine environment.
Freddy Matthews from Matarahurahu hapū says he’s happy with the intent of the project, but the representative from Kenana Marae who signed off on the cultural impact report is not seeking a mandate to do so.
He says the name Papakawau is wrong and should be Tokatoka.
“The historical record that was given in that (cultural impact assessment), I’m not happy with,” Mr Matthews says.
If the project goes ahead without interruption the Papakawau bridge is due to be completed by April 2022.
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