A spokesperson for the group occupying disputed land at Shelly Bay in Wellington, says "watch this space" with regards to future legal action.
Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
An attempt to block a planned development at the site on the Miramar Peninsula, on the grounds of traffic and infrastructure issues, has failed, but the fight over who owns the land continues.
Mau Whenua spokesperson Dr Catherine Love said they empathised with the group that tried to have the consent quashed over roading issues, but their grievance was different.
"The focus of our legal actions is to prove that the sale and transfer was illegal and invalid in both English law and Māori law.
"We're talking at political levels, we're talking at court and criminal levels as well, so watch this space."
Dr Love said Mau Whenua would continue to peacefully protest at the site.
The Wellington Company, headed by high-profile developer Ian Cassels, first applied in 2016 for resource consent to build a mixed-use residential and commercial development at the site.
Wellington City Council granted him the consent but Enterprise Miramar, a business group, sought judicial review.
The application was initially dismissed, but then the decision was quashed by the Court of Appeal and the council was told to reconsider.
It appointed a panel of independent commissioners to do that.
In October 2019, the panel decided to grant the consent, and it was a review of that decision, brought again by Enterprise Miramar, which was upheld yesterday by the High Court in Wellington.
Cassels said he was glad but not surprised.
"We had a bit of a suspicion that it would be fine. We've worked on it for a long time, we didn't really think there would be an issue with the consent because we've spent a lot of time working and making decisions, engaging consultants and spending a lot of money.
"If it isn't bullet-proof now it will be close to it."
He said it would be a beautiful development, adding 300 houses and various commercial sites such as craft breweries.
"It'll be really something for the capital city I think it will attract an awful lot of people that otherwise wouldn't have been attracted ."
Enterprise Miramar chairman Thomas Wutzler was disappointed.
"Our experts say that this development will have major traffic impacts for the Peninsula and that Shelly Bay Road will be unsafe for cyclists, runners and walkers and that is why we took the case.
"Council will need to address safety and traffic issues in the future, and our members, who are all ratepayers, will be left with paying for it."
Mayor Andy Foster said he had always been opposed to the development but the chance of it going ahead was likely.
"I'm unaware of any other legal processes, there's none in train."
Councillor Fleur Fitzsimons hoped the High Court decision would see the end of the dispute.
"There were now three independent assessors, there's a High Court judge and all these people have comprehensively looked at the work that council officers did around traffic and the resource consent and have found that it was totally appropriate.
"So I hope we can draw a line under this and move on."
