| Waiheke (Māori) | |
|---|---|
Landsat image of the island, August 2002. |
|
| Geography | |
| Location | Hauraki Gulf |
| Archipelago | New Zealand archipelago |
| Area | 92 km2 (35.5 sq mi) |
| Length | 19.3 km (11.99 mi) |
| Width | 0.64–9.65 km (0.40–6.00 mi) |
| Coastline | 133.5 km (82.95 mi) |
| Highest elevation | 231 m (758 ft) |
| Highest point | Maunganui |
| Country | |
|
New Zealand
|
|
| Regional Council | Auckland Region |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 7,689 (as of 2006) |
| Density | 83.58 /km2 (216.47 /sq mi) |
| Ethnic groups | New Zealanders |
Waiheke Island (pronounced [ˈwaihɛkɛ] in Māori but often /waɪˈhɛkiː/ in English) is an island in the Hauraki Gulf of New Zealand, located about 17.7 km (11.0 mi) from Auckland.[1]
The island is the second-largest in the Hauraki Gulf after Great Barrier Island. It is the most populated, with nearly 8,000 permanent residents plus another estimated 3,400 who have second or holiday homes on the island.[2] It is New Zealand's most densely populated island, with 83.58 people/km², and the third most populated after the North and South Island. It is the most accessible offshore island in the Gulf, due to regular passenger and car ferry services and some air links.[1]
Waiheke translates as "the descending waters"[3] or "ebbing water".[4] This refers to an event when Maori explorer Kahumatamomoe landed on the island and urinated.[3] The name originally referred only to the stream at Onetangi, but now is used to refer to the entire island.
Contents |
The island is 19.3 km (12.0 mi) long from west to east, varies in width from 0.64 to 9.65 km (0.40 to 6.00 mi), and has a surface area of 92 km2 (36 sq mi). The coastline is 133.5 km (83.0 mi), including 40 km (25 mi) of beaches. The port of Matiatia at the western end of the island is 17.7 km (11.0 mi) from Auckland and the eastern end is 21.4 km (13.3 mi) from Coromandel.[1] The much smaller Tarahiki Island lies 3 km (1.9 mi) to the east. Waiheke is very hilly with few flat areas, the highest point being Maunganui at 231 m (758 ft).[5] The climate is slightly warmer than Auckland with less humidity and rain and more sunshine hours.[1]
Waiheke has several locations of interest to geologists, namely an argillite outcrop in Omiha Bay and a chert stack at the end of Pohutukawa Point, the latter considered as "one of the best exposures of folded chert in Auckland City".[6]
Waiheke Island has many scenic beaches all around the island. They include:
Waiheke has a resident population of 7,689 people (2006 Census)[7] with most of the population living close to the western end of the island,[8] or near the isthmus between Huruhi Bay and Oneroa Bay which, at its narrowest, is only 600 metres wide.[9] The settlements of Oneroa and Blackpool are the furthest west, followed by Palm Beach, Surfdale, and Ostend. Further east lies Onetangi, which is located on the northern coast on the wide Onetangi Bay.[9] To the south of this on the opposing coast is Whakanewha Regional Park, Whakanewha and Omiha, or Rocky Bay. Much of the eastern half of the island is privately owned farmland[9] and vineyards.
Waiheke Island is a popular holiday spot, and during the main summer season, especially around Christmas and Easter, the population on the island increases substantially due to the number of holiday homes being rented out, corporate functions and dance parties at vineyards and restaurants, the Wine Festival and the Jazz Festival and weekend trippers from around the country and the world. It is safe to say the population increases significantly, rents go up, almost all homes and baches are full and a festive atmosphere exists.
Waiheke Island has a higher proportion of 'Europeans' (92.8%) compared to 65.7% for Auckland City and 80.1% for New Zealand as a whole (2001 Census). The proportion of Pacific Islanders and Asians is thus also much lower than in the rest of the city.[10]
Socially the island is highly diverse, with the creative sector (artists, musicians, scientists, writers, poets and actors) and eccentrics strongly represented.[9] Around two thousand people commute daily to Auckland for work[9] as career opportunities on the island are limited. The main employment sectors are horticulture (wine and olives), agriculture, tourism, construction, food services, retail and real estate. Gentrification and land speculation is having an impact, with high rates and mortgage interest rates forcing some people on fixed incomes to relocate off the island.[11] New Zealand council rates are based on land and building valuations, which take into account potential value for redevelopment even if the owners live on the property and have no intention to sell or redevelop.[12] The cost of living on the island is higher compared to the mainland, due to the shipping freight costs of most foodstuffs, fuel and amenities.
The income distribution (2001 Census) shows a higher proportion of lower income groups and a lower proportion of higher income groups, compared to the whole of Auckland City. This is partially due to a higher number of pensioners and single parent families who are usually on fixed incomes and poorer. In 2001, the median income for those older than 15 was $15,600 compared to $23,500 in 2006. Waiheke is now edging towards the national median of $24,400, with the median income having increased 51 per cent over five years. The increase in wealth on Waiheke is also reflected in the number of families earning more than $100,000 per year, which has more than doubled since 2001.[13]
Race relations are supportive, by New Zealand standards. The local marae was not ancestral Māori land held in Māori title but belonged to the Waiheke County Council. Its citizens, both Pākehā and Māori, got together, arranged for a long-term lease of council-owned land and built the marae. One of the earliest Māori land claims was driven by Waiheke citizens, who at the time did not know who the tangata whenua Māori were for the island.[14]
Waiheke Island is part of the territorial authority of Auckland City. From 1970 until its amalgamation with Auckland City in 1989, it was administered by the Waiheke County Council. Since 1989 there is a locally elected community board with limited, mainly representational powers, in line with other neighbourhoods in Auckland City. One member on the City Council represents all the inhabited Hauraki Gulf Islands (i.e. Waiheke, Great Barrier and Rakino) plus the downtown area in the central business district.
In 1989, the former Waiheke County Council was forcibly amalgamated with Auckland City Council as part of Local Government restructuring of that year. Pundits predicted a stormy relationship.
In 1990 the Waiheke Community Board formally requested the right to de-amalgamate from the City. A 'De-amalgamation Committee' was established by Council to facilitate the Board's wish. However, this proved not to be to the liking of most of the new Auckland citizenry. In 1991, the city responded to a campaign run by a pro-union group, the Waiheke Island Residents & Ratepayers Association (Inc) by holding a democratic referendum. The de-amalgamation proposal sponsored by the Community Board was defeated.[15]
The subject of amalgamation is still a hot topic on the island. In 2008, the Royal Commission on Auckland Governance received 3,537 submissions, 615 of which were made by Waihekeans, over 1/6 of all submissions.[16] A public meeting of 150 residents on 29 March 2008 found a majority in favour of breaking away from Auckland City.[17]
The Royal Commission[18] recommended that Waiheke Island retain its community board with enhanced powers. The Waiheke Local Board was elected in the October 2010 Auckland local elections as part of the Auckland Council.[19]
The 2010 local elections resulted in Waiheke resident Mike Lee becoming the Councillor for the Waitemata and Gulf Ward. Denise Roche, Faye Storer, Jo Holmes, Don McKenzie and Jim Hannan were elected to the new Local Board.
A number of scheduled ferry services (passenger and freight) sail to and from Waiheke. Fullers runs the main passenger ferry, with trips taking 35 minutes from downtown Auckland.
There are various air connections including Air Discovery, an aeroplane service based at the privately operated Waiheke Island Aerodrome (NZKE) near Onetangi Bay, and a number of Auckland helicopter operators that charter to the island.
The island has less infrastructure than mainland Auckland. The roads are mainly narrow and in many places unsealed and unlit, especially on the eastern half of the island. The Waiheke Bus Company (owned by Fullers) services most inhabited parts of the island, linking to the ferry sailings from Matiatia.
Each house must maintain its own water supply, most collecting rainwater in cisterns, and must install a septic tank and septic field to handle sewage. This is a requirement in every building consent.[20]
The community established a charitable trust which bid on Auckland City's contract for solid waste disposal. After winning the bid, it was implemented with such success that the recycling centre soon had to be expanded to handle the volumes.[21]
The island has a lively press, with two weekly newspapers vying for attention: the long-established independently-owned Waiheke Gulf News and the Fairfax Media owned Waiheke Marketplace. A community radio station, Waiheke Radio, is broadcasting on 88.3 FM and 107.4 FM after Beach FM lost its licence in a commercial bid in 2008.
During World War II, three gun emplacements were built on the eastern edge of Waiheke to protect Allied shipping in Waitemata Harbour, in the fear that Japanese ships might reach all the way to New Zealand. This mirrored developments at North Head and Rangitoto Island. The guns were never fired in anger. The empty emplacements and the extensive tunnels below them can be visited seven days a week.[22]
Waiheke Island was the first community in New Zealand to vote for a nuclear free zone and this action is said to have contributed to the national decision to become nuclear-free under David Lange's government.
In 1999 Waiheke's community board voted Waiheke as a "genetic engineering free zone",[23] but this is a matter of principle rather than fact, as only national government controls exist over genetically engineered foods and grains.
The Gateway to Waiheke Island where the primary pedestrian ferry lands over 1 million passengers per year is a valley and harbour called Matiatia. In 2000 it was purchased by three investors in a company called Waitemata Infrastructure Ltd (WIL). In 2002 WIL proposed to change the Operative District Plan rules for their land to build a major shopping and hotel complex with 29,000 m² of gross floor area on buildable land of approximately 3 hectares. This united the residents of the island in opposition. Over 1,500 adult residents of the island (out of perhaps 3,000) joined together in an incorporated society, the Community and People of Waiheke Island (CAPOW),[24] to oppose the private plan change in court.
In 2004, they won an interlocutory judgement in which the environment court ruled that Auckland City Council had erred in the rules, and the current rules limited controlled development to 5,000 m² in what was called the Visitor Facility Precinct. In 2005, CAPOW won an interim judgement by the court which reduced the proposed redevelopment to about 1/3 of what the investors had originally sought.
This set the stage for confidential negotiations between Auckland's mayor Dick Hubbard and the investors, who on 31 August 2005 (now known as 'Matiatia Day' on the island) sold 100% of the stock in WIL to the city for $12.5 million. The unanimous vote on 30 June 2005 of the City Council to approve the purchase was said to have come about because of the unity of the people of Waiheke Island. The court case finally was concluded with permitted development set at 10,000 m2 of mixed use gross floor development. The Court also found Auckland City Council and WIL liable for costs in relationship to the interlocutory judgement. Since WIL was now owned by Council, it had to write a cheque for to CAPOW for $18,000, representing 75% of CAPOW's costs on that matter. This final cheque allowed CAPOW to pay all its debts and balance its books.
The Council organised a design competition in 2006 to find a suitable development plan and project for the Matiatia gateway. The competition winner's design (scheme 201) is available for comment on the Council website.[25] It has already attracted much criticism for the lack of car parking close to the ferry terminal, the transport hub function used by all islanders regularly and almost daily by around 850 commuters to Auckland.[26]
In May 2005, in a suspected capping stunt, a letter was sent to the New Zealand Prime Minister claiming that foot and mouth disease had been released on Waiheke Island and would be released elsewhere unless money was paid and tax reforms made. A full agricultural exotic disease response was initiated. No livestock were allowed to enter or leave the island. Stock on Waiheke Island was tested every 48 hours for symptoms of the virus, which would devastate New Zealand's agricultural exports.[27] After three weeks of testing, no infected animals were detected and the response staff were stood down.[28]
Waiheke Island has become known as New Zealand's "island of wine," home to a dedicated group of winegrowers who have successfully matched the maritime climate and ancient soil structures to the selection of classical grape varieties to produce red and white wines with distinctive varietal character.
Waiheke's climate are well suited to growing Bordeaux wine-type grapes, though some Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc varieties are also considered to be good. Waiheke winegrowers regularly win awards for Syrah, proving the island's terroir suits it well.
The local wines are relatively expensive because of the limited size of many of the vineyards.[29] Among the vineyards and wineries on Waiheke Island are: