A work plan concerning the proposed Cathedral Coast Walkway has now been discussed by the Coromandel Great Walks Governance Group.

The proposed route of the Cathedral Coast Walk takes in Public Conservation Land, Thames-Coromandel District Council and QE2 land, and eventually connect Whitianga to Hot Water Beach.

A work plan for the Cathedral Coast Walkway was discussed by the Coromandel Great Walks Governance Group during it's April meeting. Photo: TCDC

Walks from Whitianga and north to Kuaotunu and further south from Hot Water Beach into Tairua, Pauanui and Whangamata are also being investigated.

TCDC's representative for the project Garry Towler says the Governance Group, made up of council and DOC staff plus local iwi Ngati Hei, discussed several issues at its April meeting.

'[These] included whether the project could go ahead without external funding and if that was the case, how staging of work would be rolled out.”

The Department of Conservation has committed $250,000 towards the project and has now also ring-fenced an additional $200k, which will be approved subject to a business case.

This takes DOC's contribution to $450k while the Thames-Coromandel District Council will contribute just under $1.13 million.

A revenue generation strategy has now been devised and external funding applications have also been submitted with Trust Waikato and Central Government, with a response expect by late June.

With the extra $200k from DOC, the first phase of work can now begin, but council will wait to hear whether it was also successful with funding applications before starting on any physical work.

The first part of the work programme would involve building a 100-plus space car park at Pa Rd, Hahei, on council land beside the Wastewater Treatment Plant, to be ready by summer 2015/16.

This area will also be used for a park and ride so people can park and be shuttled up to Grange Rd, which is a main feeder into the already well-established Cathedral Cove Walk.

Then work would take place to build the track from the Purangi Estuary/Stella Evered Reserve up to Lees Rd. There is already an existing track there which needs upgrading.

Following the completion of these two pieces of work the focus would then turn to building the track from Lees Rd through to the iconic ‘Blowhole' at Te Pupuha Recreation Reserve, Hahei.

A draft Memorandum of Understanding is being worked on with a private landowner investigating the development of a car park at Lees Rd, which lies between the Stella Evered Reserve and Cathedral Cove.

'If we're successful in coming to an agreement with the landowner,” says Garry, 'then this will help to alleviate the parking problems longer-term and also help move people on through to Whitianga and further north.

'Also the next section of walk from the Blowhole, through Hahei and Pa Rd, on to Hot Water Beach also remains our priority.”

At its April meeting the Governance Group also agreed to retain the services of veteran track builder John Gaukrodger.