The Whangarei Town Basin - a study of public awareness and attitudes.

In view of a renewed interest by Whangarei District Council, in an original scheme ("Vision 20/20") drawn up by consultants in 1996 in respect of enhancement developments for the Town Basin area, this study was commissioned to measure public attitudes toward various options suggested.

Specifically it has been designed to survey ratepayer acceptance in forms of financing future developments in the area and the levels of interest in aesthetic options indicated by Council in the most recent update of “Vision 20/20” that was released in June 2006.

A view was also sought, in conjunction with the option measurement, in terms of the placement of an iconic visitor attraction that could be sited in the Town Basin and the public reaction to that proposal.

The Questions:
1. Are you aware that the Whangarei District Council is proposing to further develop the area known as the Town Basin?
2. Are you in favour of Council selling land at the Town Basin?
3. Do you consider it appropriate that ratepayer funds be used developing this area?
4. Which of the following options do you prefer:
a) Green open space design
b) Continuation of the current style buildings
c) Mix of previous two
d) Don’t know.
5. Do you think a replica of the Bounty or Endeavour, funded by a
mix of grants, sponsorship and rates would add value to the
Town Basin?

Question 1.
Awareness of proposal to develop.
“Yes” 312 89.10%
“No” 38 10.90%

Total:  350 100.0%

Comment: Whilst the great majority of respondents were aware of Council proposals for the further development of the Town Basin, a not insignificant 11% were not familiar with the information.

Question 2.
To sell community owned property.
“Yes” 58 16.60%
“No” 250 71.40%
“D/K” 42 12.00%

Total:  350 100.00%

Comment: A ratio of more than 4:1 were opposed to Council selling public owned land to developers in the Town Basin area.
One person in eight was in the “Don’t Know” category, indicating a relatively polarised position.

Question 3.
Ratepayer funds for development.
“Yes” 156 53.40%
“No” 104 35.60%
“D/K” 32 11.00%
Total 292 100.00%

Comment: The sample size was reduced to 292 as these respondents were opposed to developers purchasing land. Over half were in favour of the use of ratepayer funds to develop the area while one third were against. Only 11% were in the “D/K” group.

Question 4.
Development options.

Option Not in favour or selling In favour of selling Total
(a)
Green/open 64 20.80% 20 6.50% 84 27.30%

(b)
Existing style 20 6.50% 4 1.30% 24 7.80%

(c)
Mix of two 130 42.20% 28 9.10% 158 51.30%

(d)
Don’t know 36 11.70% 6 1.90% 42 13.60%

Total 250 81.20% 58 18.80% 308 100.00%

Comment: Of the respondents not approving sale of land (81.2%). The majority, 42.2% favoured option ‘C’ – mix of green & existing style. Similarly the majority in favour of selling, preferred option ‘C’. Over the total sample the majority chose option ‘C’ in preference to other options.

Question 5
An iconic ship as added attraction.
“Yes” 152 43.40%
“No” 144 41.10%
“D/K” 54 15.50%
Total 350 100.00%

Comment: The margin between those positive and those negative on this proposal falls within the 3.6% margin of error for this measurement. It is clear that this is a 50/50 call with respondents evenly divided.  The “Don’t Know” factor is relatively high [see Conclusions].

Conclusions.
Dealing firstly with the possibly most controversial issue of publicly owned land being sold to property developers by the Whangarei District Council.

Close to three quarters of Whangarei ratepayers are opposed to Council selling land at the Town Basin (71.4%). Only 16.6% were in favour of selling and it would appear, informally, from reservations expressed by some respondents to the research interviewers, that there were a number of qualifications necessary before those in favour of selling were in fact satisfied.

A high level of awareness that Council is considering development in the Town Basin (Q.1) has the local residents focused on the issues surrounding ownership and financing of any steps undertaken in the area under discussion – nearly 90% of ratepayers are familiar with some aspects of the proposals.

Respondents opposed to developers purchasing publicly owned land in the Town Basin were asked if they favoured ratepayer funds being used on the project.  This “sting in the tail” query divided the sample, with over half indicating that they thought it appropriate. Over one third of respondents were not happy with the use of their money for this purpose.  The 36% negative response is probably indicative of those not wanting ‘change’ and who were probably imbedded in the positive response to the ‘Green’ option in Q.4. Over the complete sample of the survey, the preferred option (“C” – Mix of green and structures) epitomises the “middle of the road” approach often expressed by the majority of a conservative community.

The concept of a famous ship replica sited in the Town Basin has the residents evenly split down the middle in their responses, with only 2.3% between the ‘positives’ and the ‘negatives’. Whilst an older generation may have a mental picture of the last replica moored in the Town Basin, the remainder probably struggle to creatively visualize the design and scale, whilst in common with others they have no ability to guess the individual cost contributions necessary should the idea become a reality.