Hot Water Beach Community Plan “Hot Water Beach Preserved” Hot Water Beach Community Plan February 2006 – Issue 1 1 Vision The Hot Water Beach community will grow and develop in ways that are consistent with the concept that we are stewards of our environment and the well being of the people who live there. Hot Water Beach Community Plan February 2006 – Issue 1 2 HOT WATER BEACH COMMUNITY PLAN Foreword Why develop a Community Plan for Hot Water Beach This Community Plan has been prepared to provide the framework for the management, protection and development of Hot Water Beach as a national icon and world famous tourist destination and as a place to live and holiday in. Hot Water Beach experiences a constant flow of visitors on a daily basis throughout the year and during the peak summer period there are regularly in excess of a hundred people gathered around the hot springs on the beach during low tide. This is in addition to the two to three hundred people who will have come to the beach to enjoy swimming in the surf and the beautiful beach. The novelty of the hot springs continues to draw increasing numbers of tourists throughout the year and there are occasions when as many as four tourist’s buses can be parked in the very small parking area. The impact of these visitors puts unique demands on services, the environment and land usage. Also, as in other parts of the Coromandel, subdivision of coastal land is becoming more prevalent and in some cases with negative environmental impacts. To mitigate against these impacts and to ensure the sustainability of the natural resource base, a carefully constructed plan that specifically addresses these issues at Hot Water Beach is urgently required in order to protect and enhance the environment, better facilitate decision making on land development, and ensure the areas strong tourist appeal continues. The plan and the planning process are intended to: • Help focus community debate and involve the stakeholders in making decisions and taking responsibility for HWB. • Set direction and common goals, promote consensus and avoid division • Help safeguard the community and the environment from exploitation • Capture good ideas and identify initiatives suitable for external funding • Help avoid haphazard development • Provide a mechanism for influencing the Mercury Bay Community Board and Thames-Coromandel District Council (TCDC) through both the initial plan and subsequent reviews of the Community Plan Hot Water Beach Community Plan February 2006 – Issue 1 3 TCDC is committed to the planning process. The Local Government Act 2002 requires Local Authorities to develop Community Plans in consultation with communities to identify the outcomes that residents desire for their community’. ‘These plans are to be included in the Long Term Council Community Plan (LTCCP) which all local authorities must have’. Many of the issues that are identified in the Hot Water Beach Community Plan will have implications for the District Plan, and will, as a result of the LTCCP process, require changes to the District Plan to ensure that the community’s input is recognized. VISION/OUTCOMES The Vision - Where do we want to be in 20 years time? The Hot Water Beach community will grow and develop in ways that are consistent with the concept that we are stewards of our environment and the well being of the people who live there. Any change will be in harmony with the low impact, quiet beach community-village concept. Commercial activities such as tourism and the support facilities will be appropriate to day visitors and residents and not impact negatively on the environment. Other points include: • A place to live in and visit that captures and provides for a relaxed and low impact New Zealand beach village lifestyle that meets the needs of the local community. • Low rise dwellings and a balance of appropriate commercial activities that fit with a beach holiday location. • A tourist draw-card that is carefully managed to ensure that the appropriate services and facilities are in place to adequately cater for the tourists basic needs. • The reserves and surrounding land returned to its pre-farming state with native flora, clean streams and an abundance of native fauna and protected for posterity. THE WAY FORWARD Hot Water Beach is a beautiful location, with a small number of permanent residents (perhaps 90 in the overall catchment), where land and sea come together in a unique combination. Within the beach settlement itself the land area is limited and the established land-use activities mainly comprise of a small number of houses, a general shop, a craft shop and two cafés. The bulk of the support services are provided by nearby communities. Hot Water Beach Community Plan February 2006 – Issue 1 4 As a place HWB serves as an important tourist attraction for the Coromandel Peninsular and New Zealand. Most of the tourists are day visitors and thus the development of facilities to support tourism should be appropriate to the needs of day visitors, relying on other nearby communities to provide for the bulk of the services needed. The opportunities for further subdivision of land in Hot Water Beach are very limited by the topography and in particular the need to protect the overall integrity of the land in this area and for this reason there is a need for extremely sensitive management of the area. The natural boundaries of development have been established by past subdivision. These need to be integrated into an overall plan for the HWB area. This plan should define the interrelationships and status of the small land lots (sections) in the old settlement area with the larger lots immediately behind the settlement and link to the larger viable agricultural or preservation/reserve lots beyond. It is essential for Hot Water Beach to have its own structured plan to ensure the preservation of the area. 1.0 The Hot Water Beach Community Plan Development Process • The Hot Water Beach Ratepayers Association agreed at the AGM in January 2005 to support the development of a Community Plan for the Hot Water Beach Community. • A subcommittee and a facilitator were appointed to move this process forward. • Community Planning Workshop (July 23) • Draft plan developed from workshop outcomes – circulated to HWB stakeholders for comment and input. • HWB Community Plan to TCDC March 2006 Hot Water Beach Community Plan February 2006 – Issue 1 5 2.0 Background Historical information of Hot Water Beach Maori settlement • Maori settlement dates back to 950 AD. • Ngati Hei are the dominant Iwi. • The Pa site and Urupa at HWB are testimony to the historical importance of Te Puia to Ngati Hei. This prominent headland was an important Pa site which has original land formations and defences. Farming • Mathew Creed established an orchard at Hot Water Beach around 1900. • Charles Pye began farming here in 1926 and farming has continued through the Pye and other families. • Main farming activities include - dairy, dry stock, olives and avocado. Hot Water Beach Community Plan February 2006 – Issue 1 6 Baches and houses • Holiday makers began coming here in the late 1940’s and the numbers have gradually increased since that time. Hot water Beach settlement borders the Taiwawe Stream and is nestled against the backdrop of hills Hot Water Beach Community Plan February 2006 – Issue 1 7 Tourist attraction • Hot Water Beach is mentioned in the Lonely Planet Guide as one of the top 10 beaches to visit in the world. HWB and Cathedral Cove draw thousands of tourists to the Coromandel each year. Demographics The Hot Water Beach community consists of the main settlement at the south end of the beach which consists of some fifty residences of which approximately half are permanent. There is a small settlement developing of eight residences at the north end of the beach on the Link Road extension of which most are permanent. There is a sprinkling of approximately 12 homes between HWB North and South and inland, all of which are permanent residents. The total permanent is approximately sixty adults and twenty-five children under the age of eighteen. These figures are trebled during vacation periods when absentee property owners visit. Hot Water Beach Community Plan February 2006 – Issue 1 8 3.0 Well-being and Community Outcomes 3.1 Economic (community outcomes; monitoring progress) To the people who live in and have businesses in and around Hot Water Beach, economic security is important. These businesses provide local employment, including holiday work for students and also draw people in from outside the community. Having viable local businesses is important to this small community as they allow residents to earn a living without travelling away to other centres. These businesses also provide the opportunity for tourists to put something back into the community. The community as a whole support the concept of local businesses functioning at Hot Water Beach so long as they are compatible and complimentary to the beach community way of living and do not compromise environmental well being. 3.2 Social We wish to retain a friendly, supportive, village like atmosphere where the community can work together to achieve desired long term outcomes for Hot Water Beach as well as perform specific short term projects. New comers to the area are welcomed and encouraged to support community initiatives. We want key stakeholder groups (Reserves, Ratepayers and Surf Club) to work together to achieve their respective objectives in a manner that ensures full community participation. Progress monitored during Ratepayers Association AGM reviewing the previous year. 3.3 Cultural Hot Water Beach is a ‘beach community’ with most of the cultural and recreational activities focused around beach activities such as swimming, surfing and surf lifesaving.