Organ Pipes Track Network

Update from Richard Greenhill re the progress of the track network on Mt Wellington:

The Chair of the Parks and Customer Services Committee (Alderman Briscoe) requested that the proposal be discussed at that committee prior to being discussed at the Development and Environmental Services Committee for Planning Approval. So I’ve written a report, and that will be discussed at the PCS Committee at 5pm tonight. This is a simple process, but a positive one as it then provides landlord approval for the submission of the DA. If any of you wish to come to the meeting then you are welcome to as it is open to the public. It’s on in the Lady Osborne Room on Level 1 of the Town Hall. You won’t be able to ask questions or answer them though, unless asked by the Chair. Same goes for everyone else at the meeting.

(I attended the HCC Parks Committee meeting this evening, along with Richard. After sitting through a rather tedious and adversarial discussion about parking on the Domain, our network came up for discussion and was supported unopposed. Lots of positive comments.)

Richard has a tentative time schedule for the rest of the process, as below:

Once Landlord approval is provided at the next full council meeting, the proposal will then be discussed by the Development and Environmental Services Committee and full Council for Planning Approval. And then, the proposal will need to be submitted to the Wellington Park Management Trust for their approval. Yes the cogs of Council move slowly..

So I suspect we won’t receive the necessary Planning Permit and Work Permit to do the work until mid June, by then the weather is too cold to send the track team to the Organ Pipes to do the on-ground work. So I’m setting the start date to mid Spring, after the weather has warmed up some and the chance of snow and ice, and potential safety issues to the staff, has reduced.

 I’m assuming not a lot of climbing occurs on the mountain over Winter, so you may be ok to wait til mid Spring?

So, all things being equal, work should start around mid October.

Cheers

Doug