Dear Tama Potaka,

We are forwarding this OIA Request to you as Minister of Conservation as it involves, in our view, the Ruapehu District Council (RDC) apparent disregard for compliance with the provisions of the Reserves Act, being:

A.Not having a Reserves Management Plan for the (gazetted) Ohakune Domain, aka Carrot Park, Rockfort Park Reserve.
B.During around 2017/18 carrying out the following physical works, within the aforesaid Reserve, without the proper legislative consents, including it would appear from yourself and/or another Minister.
i) Constructing a public road formation.
ii) Constructing a carpark,
iii) Constructing a Toilet Block.

Our OIA Request is;
1. Please provide a copy of all communications, file notes etc between RDC and yourself and any other Minister in relation to i-iii above.
2. As Minister:
a) Does it concern you that RDC is/has ignored the statutory provisions of the Reserves Act for the above 3 items
b) What steps are you to take to ensure RDC comply with the provisions of the Act (and other Acts if applicable) for the above 3 items.

Yours faithfully,

Ohakune Ratepayers and Residents' Society Inc

Dear Tama Potaka (MIN),

Thank you for your response, however i believe you have missed the key point here.

The road (Teitei Drive) is officially designated as a public road, rather than an internal driveway or access road, this raises legal concerns under the Reserves Act 1977. Based on the legislation, the construction of an official public road within a recreation reserve is not permitted under Section 53(1)(h), which only authorizes footpaths, driveways, and parking areas. The road serves multiple homes since it was installed and council have had plans to build 140+ (originally consented for 44 homes under phase 1) additional homes on this encroaching road.

Council was provided funding by MBIE and NZTA towards the project; all scoping documents and applications for funding stated the road would be built in the designated road reserve, however this did not happen. Council under OIA has conveniently stated that they cannot locate any emails, documents, memos or communications with regards to the approval of the option that clearly shows the encroachment.

Key Legal Issues:
1./ Potential Breach of Reserves Act 1977
- Section 53(1)(h) allows councils to construct driveways and public facilities, but it does not explicitly authorize the creation of a public road.
- A public road is fundamentally different from a driveway or carpark, as it is designated for general public use and can be vested as a legal road.
- If the council has designated part of the reserve as a public road servicing multiple private homes and future developments (157 homes), this could be inconsistent with the legal purpose of a recreation reserve.

2./ Requirement for Ministerial Consent (Section 48)
- If the road provides access to private properties or is used for residential development, then Section 48 of the Reserves Act may apply.
- Section 48 states that a right of way or roadway easement through a reserve requires the Minister’s consent.
- Since the council's response indicates that no Ministerial consent was obtained, this could mean the road was constructed without proper statutory approval.

3./ Change of Reserve Status Required
- Under Section 24, if the council wanted to legally use reserve land for a public road, it would have needed to go through a formal process to change the reserve classification.
- This process would typically involve:
--- Public consultation
--- Ministerial approval
--- Gazetting the change in reserve status
- If this process was not followed, the road has been constructed unlawfully.

4./ I refer you to an official request of council and suggest your team read the responses. https://fyi.org.nz/request/27868-teitei-... and more details at https://www.saveohakune.com/post/teitei-...
- Council has continually denied any wrong doing
- Council can provide design documents that shows 4 clear options
- Council did consult with the community on the carpark & toilets, but did not reveal their intention of encroaching a public road onto the reserve, while having prior knowledge that they would be doing so.
- As at 12 December 2024 "Council accepts that there is a small encroachment of the formed road on the adjoining reserve land which, for future road maintenance purposes, should undergo a road legalisation process"

Yours sincerely,

Ohakune Ratepayers and Residents' Society Inc