Tokomaru Bay's Hatea-a-Rangi Memorial Park is also the site of an urupa. The sports club (green-roofed buildings on the beach side) situated on the park is applying for a lease extension, much to the concern of some of the community. Photo: Gisborne Herald / Ben Cowper
An East Coast sports club wanting to renew its lease on land it shares with a Māori burial site has sparked frustration from pockets of the community who call it a desecration.
Tokomaru Bay United Sports Club has leased land at Hatea-a-Rangi Memorial Park since 1981, remaining on site despite that agreement expiring in 2014 with no right of renewal.
The club is applying to Gisborne District Council for the re-issue of the lease with an increased footprint to develop an area next to the clubrooms into a multi-purpose court.
Although the renewal was approved in principle by the council's operations committee last September, feedback from the community constituted "significant objection", prompting a committee hearing which will be held next week.
However, various organisations have also shown support for the renewal, citing the club's contribution to the community.
One of the objectors is Nga Hapū o Tokomaru Ākau representative Roger Tichborne, who laid out his concerns to the council as early as 1997 in his then-capacity of temporary chairperson Te Ari Uru Marae and executive project manager Tawhiti Blocks.
That year, a pou whenua rahui was placed on the land when koiwi (skeletal remains) were unearthed during work to extend the clubrooms.
"When skeletal bones were first dug up on the site one day after the commencement of the project, a review of the situation permit should have been instituted," Tichborne told then-council chief executive Bob Elliot in a letter dated 24 March 1997.
"That it wasn't is an affront to our ancestor Te Ao Tawarirangi in view of what this site is - urupa and battleground."
A rahui was placed on the site and Tichborne told Local Democracy Reporting it remains in place to this day.
In his most recent feedback dated September 2022, Tichborne told the council he was disappointed the hapū was not consulted when the club's lease expired in 2014.
He was also worried the proposed multi-purpose courts proximity to a site where alcohol was served could expose rangatahi to intoxicated adults.
Frustration at the council's handling of the whenua has also been expressed by Tina Olsen-Ratana - a descendent of one of the original owners of the land - who backed up Tichborne's point that the area is wāhi tapu because of its history.
Olsen-Ratana alleged the land was taken by dubious means, saying although its owners agreed to gift it for recreational purposes, it was conditional on a co-governance structure.
A committee to this effect had never operated, which was something the council needed to address, she said.
Written objections were also given by Keita Brightwell and Tracey Takarua on behalf of the Lee and Tiger Whakataka Whānau Trust.
Those who wrote in favour of the lease being extended spoke of the sports club being a valuable community asset used for a range of purposes, including emergency response.
Civil Defence overseer Lillian Te Hau-Ward said the sports club provided a base for Civil Defence operations and a place to coordinate volunteers in response to severe weather events.
The club also provided a space for Covid support work, including education sessions and storage for donations, she said.
Hatea-a-Rangi School principal Karla Kohatu said the club had been a practical venue for the kura to utilise.
"It is a great venue for whānau to meet and relax. There are a large number of whānau who are founding members of this club and they have worked hard to maintain it for future generations."
Te Ataarangi ki Tokomaru kaituhi, Kura Tihore, said the club had provided an alternative facility to accommodate organisations such as hers offering full immersion te reo seminars.
The club had been a special part of the community and had a long history of sporting greats, she said.
Other organisations that wrote in favour of the lease renewal included Awhina Fishing Club, Ngāti Porou Boardriders Club, RSA Tokomaru Bay, Gisborne Volunteer Centre and Tokomaru Bay United Sports Club.
The club has secured external funding from Trust Tairāwhiti for its proposed development.
Local Democracy Reporting is Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air
