Auckland Marina Users Will Benefit From
Planned Enhancements.
In comments reported today in the New Zealand Herald, the new Marina Users group implied Auckland Council has been
surreptitiously selling off marina assets to marine developer Empire Capital for many years.
The marina lobby group is concerned and critical that public assets are seemingly being sold to private interests.
This is simply not true.
Aucklanders should remember every marina in the city except Westhaven has been built and retained by private interests.
We have private companies to thank for these wonderful but underutilised coastal assets.
In the case of our own company, Empire Capital, we purchased all three existing marinas from private owners who, in two
out of three cases, developed the marinas themselves.
Private ownership of these sites is not new.
What's new is this: The Unitary Plan now allows marina owners to regenerate previously barren marina carparks and turn
them into vibrant mixed-use waterfront developments.
The aim is to have more people, not less. They'll be attracted by ferry terminals, cafes, and restaurants and
apartments.
Just as we have seen with the success of the Viaduct and Wynyard Wharf developments, our three marina sites can be
opened up for all of Auckland to enjoy. We can do that and still protect and improve the marina users’ amenities.
Hopefully, in time, the new Marina Users group will come to realise this. And Empire Capital will certainly do
everything it can to reassure them.