Council's farewell splash | Auckland News | Local News in Auckland

Judges Bay cleaned up, Parnell's baths about to re-open, a new walkway at Orakei... Sophie Bond tots up the city council's farewell presents to the eastern suburbs

TWO long-necked orange diggers squat in the shallows of Judges Bay, each pulling up scoop after scoop of grey sludge.

Commuters and Sunday drivers on Tamaki Drive may well catch a glimpse and wonder what the pair are up to.

They're dredging silt from Judges Bay - a tidal basin separated from the Waitemata Harbour by Tamaki Drive and the railway line - in stage one of a project to refurbish the beach.

Roger Cole-Baker, chair of Parnell Community Committee, says the work is desperately needed: "There was no sand left. It was all mud and, from time to time, there was a problem with water quality and the Pacific oysters were starting to come in."

The beach had been left to deteriorate for several years, Mr Cole-Baker says, and he believes the work will benefit both locals and tourism. "Here on the doorstep of the city, Judges Bay is the closest beach and it will be a major attraction."

The first stage involves dredging and removing approximately 20,000 cu m of sediment and rock from the tidal flat before bringing in new sand.

This will create an extended beach next to Parnell Baths allowing for all-tide swimming and should be completed by November. The baths are also undergoing a makeover and are due to open in the first week of November.

Stage two will spruce up the foreshore, at the foot of the Parnell Rose Gardens, through landscaping and features such as a paved picnic area. That should begin early next year.

Aaron Bhatnagar, the outgoing Hobson representative on the Auckland City Council, fought for the $5 million overhaul of the bay after years of silting caused by stormwater run-off.

That problem is worsened because the bay is small and has a slim outlet to the harbour.

Judges Bay was closed to swimmers last summer because of high bacteria levels.

An update on the project is scheduled to be tabled with the Auckland City Council's arts, culture and recreation committee today.

Not far away, a new timber walkway is also taking shape. Running next to the railway track between Orakei and Purewa roads, it will be suited to both cyclists and walkers and should be completed by the end of this month.

However as it is linked to the renewal of a sluice gate between the basin and Purewa Creek so it won't be open to the public until December.

Further boardwalks, tracks and a bridge are planned to link with existing paths and eventually form a loop around the Orakei Basin.