Cyclists and pedestrians have been making the most of Ōpōtiki’s beautiful new harbour seawalls since the opening in September, with hundreds of visitors wandering to the end to enjoy the views.

Ōpōtiki District councillor Barry Howe said that he'd had feedback from the community and there was “some anxiety out there” and a sense that the project was finished with the opening of the seawalls.

“While we have made a lot of progress and, yes, recreational boaties can use the entrance and people can walk out on the seawalls, there is still a lot of work to do across all the different projects,” he said.

Mr Howe is chairman of the Ōpōtiki Marine Advisory Group (OMAG), which was established in 2009 as a technical advisory group with representatives from the Ōpōtiki community, Ōpōtiki District Council, Whakatōhea Māori Trust Board (now Te Tāwharau O Te Whakatōhea), Te Whānau a Apanui, Eastern Sea Farms Limited, Whakatōhea Mussels (Ōpōtiki) Limited, harbour contractors HEB Construction, Coastguard, Ōpōtiki Marine Industrial Zone (OMAI), and Toi-EDA.

OMAG met yesterday and the agenda provided an update on a wide range of projects that make up the family of projects that are anchored by the aquaculture industry and harbour entrance.

“I’d say it is important for people to have patience at this time to make sure we get all the pieces right. Like a good cheese – good things do take time,” Mr Howe said.

“Dredging is a big one – there is still a lot of sand to move as part of the construction process with Kānoa. In fact, there is more dredging to be done than has even been done to date so it will really ramp up.

“A lot of work is also going on around the restoration of the dunes on the western side of Pākihikura and we talked today about pedestrian access out to that wall, which is good news, and it also means there will be vehicle access in the other direction, particularly for residents of the Drifts and Dunes subdivisions,” Mr Howe said.

He said the various projects were at different stages and the pieces were still coming together.

Key would be the opening of the private marina, OMAI, on the western wide of Pākihikura, with Ōpōtiki’s small town wharf to be used by the mussel boats in the interim.

“Council agreed to upgrade the Ōpōtiki wharf so that the boats have somewhere to tie up and get their mussels offloaded and to the factory.

“I know some people are grumbling about that fencing and I agree. But it was good to better understand that in the meeting today, there is still services to put in and work to be done so that area stays fenced off, for health and safety reasons. It also means the commercial operators can move around with trucks and forklifts safely when they start coming in,” Mr Howe said.

The group in OMAI also got an update on the extension to the public jetty at the Ōpōtiki wharf and council is working to get consent for that work so that construction could start in late summer.

There are a number of other improvements happening in the area, including the extension of carparking behind the Coastguard building for more cars and trailers, which is likely to be much appreciated heading into the popular holiday season.

“The bits and pieces are slowly coming together, and we are seeing some of the benefits. But it was clear at OMAG today that there is still more to go. So be patient, we’re getting there, and things are progressing well,” Mr Howe said.