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National Of ice
The President
18-22 Manners Street
Ohakune Ratepayers and Residents' Society Inc
P.O. Box 10420
[FYI request #29394 email]
Wellington,6143
doc.govt.nz
17 March 2025
Ref: CORD-1266
Tēnā koe Mr Murphy
Public road construction within recreation reserve - Ruapehu District Council-
Teitei Drive
Thank you for your email to the Minister of Conservation (the Minister) of 13 February 2025 outlining
various concerns with the Ruapehu District Council’s 2017/18 developments in the Ohakune
Recreation Reserve. Your concerns have been referred to the Department for reply.
As the Minister’s reply to your OIA request of 30 November 2024 explained:
• The Minister did not have any correspondence relating to the Ruapehu District Council (the
Council) 2017/18 development (the Development) in the Ohakune Recreation Reserve (the
Reserve);
• The Council has statutory exemption from requirements for the Minister’s consent under
section 53(1)(h) of the Reserves Act (the Act).
In response you raised several concerns about the Development including whether it:
• involved a ‘
potential breach of the’ Act;
• required
o an easement under section 48 or;
o a change of classification from recreation reserve to road reserve under section 24 of
the Act to legalise the realigned Teitei Drive.
You also advised that the 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’.
As you are seeking explanations/opinions about the application of legislation to the Development,
these are not official information requests
1. In any case the Department of Conservation (the
Department) was not one of the agencies involved in the Development and has no information about
them.
1
Your ability to request official information | Ombudsman New Zealand
Official information laws can’t be used to force agencies to engage in debate or to create justifications or
explanations in relation to something a person might be interested in.
Consequently, I have no information about, and cannot comment on, the Development. What I can
provide, which might be helpful, is a general explanation about road legalisation processes involving
reserves.
Many reserves are bordered by public roads – both local and State Highways. Over time, it is not
unusual for reserves to be affected by changes to the road alignment. Road safety improvements
such as road straightening and widening can impact on an adjoining reserve.
Processes and timeframes can differ depending on the particular circumstances. Commonly the road
will be physical y formed before formal legalisation of any new part occurs. This is because
legalisation requires a formal survey to legally define the road and any specific parts of a reserve
that require taking for the road.
The legal taking of reserve for public road can occur in several ways – none of which involve section
48 or 24 of the Act:
• sometimes this is by way of an exchange – if the road formation leaves surplus parts of old
road beside the reserve which are suitable for addition to the reserve, they could be
exchanged for the areas of reserve being taken for the road. This is relatively unusual;
• if the public road is being formed on a ‘road’ reserve under the Act then it is done by
dedication under section 111 of the Act. Again relatively rare;
• more usually it involves legalisation under other legislation e.g. the Public Works Act 1981. A
taking of part of a reserve under the Public Works Act would not require revocation of reserve
status under section 24 of the Act.
To summarise the process for taking reserve for public roads:
• it is not uncommon where a road borders a reserve;
• the legalisation is usually the last step in the road building process after the survey of the built
road;
• legalisation is normally done under the legislation for public works rather than reserves.
I hope this explanation wil assist the Society with its understanding of the processes involved in road
legalisation.
In the instance of Teitei Drive and the Reserve, you have stated the Council has accepted the need
to undertake a ‘road legalisation process’. Any questions about that process and timeframe should
be directed to the Council, which wil be provided with a copy of this letter.
Nāku noa, nā
Ewan Delany
Director Treaty Negotiations and Land
Department of Conservation
Te Papa Atawhai
Document Outline
