Tolaga Bay wharf full inspection scheduled amid ongoing structural concerns
People are bypassing barriers to use a historic wharf deemed unsafe by Gisborne District Council as they wait for a decision on its future.
Tolaga Bay residents have become increasingly frustrated by the partial closure of their iconic wharf.
The nearly 100-year-old Tolaga Bay wharf, a Category 1 Historic Place, was closed after Cyclone Hale damage in 2023.
Owned and maintained by the council, the wharf reopened to the halfway point in February 2024.
Since then, residents have been pushing for updates on when the full structure will be accessible.
Tolaga Bay resident and Uawa Civil Defence area manager Greg Shelton said the community felt like “we’re kind of hitting our heads against a brick wall”.
The community wanted to know what safety risks were causing the closure, what work was needed, the repair timeline and if the structure would remain closed, Shelton said.
He believed there had been no meetings about the issue, and since hearing rumours about a structural feasibility study six months ago, there had been no update.
If the structure was unsound, he had concerns about the impact of weather and swells on the wharf.
“If there is a problem, get in there and fix it up,” Shelton said. “It’s the domino effect. It’ll just start to crumble on us, and then everything will be lost.”
Although maintained by the council, the community felt it was their taonga and asset for daily use, as well as a tourism attraction during summer months.
“I think the important thing is with summer coming on, our area is renowned for the wharf, for the Cooks Cove Walkway, for the safe beaches,” and he believed the partial closure would make the wharf less attractive for tourists.
“Families go out on the wharf with little kiddies. Older people, they fish, they go out there and enjoy a quiet walk out there, and that’s been taken away from them.”
Visitors to the wharf benefited the nearby Tolaga Bay Top Ten Holiday Park – managed by the council’s commercial arm Gisborne Holdings – and local shopping facilities, Shelton said.
There had been community discussion about reopening the Tolaga Bay Save The Wharf Charitable Trust, which had helped with restoration work in the past, he said.
“But until we get feedback or a decision back from the council, it’s kind of pointless because why go out and raise a lot of money and then get told ‘yes’ or ‘no’ from the Gisborne District Council?”
Shelton said some community members were climbing through closure barriers on the wharf and would continue to do so.
Former Tolaga Bay resident and long-time wharf restoration advocate Clive Bibby said he met Mayor Rehette Stoltz and director community lifelines Tim Barry in August and urged them to make a decision.
He highlighted the importance of the taonga for the community and tourism and called on them to reopen the site.
Bibby said the community had not seen reports on the concerns council engineers had, so he asked for an engineering report and for safety issues to be presented to the community.
According to minutes from a council meeting in February 2025, staff had sought a structural engineer assessment of the entranceway structure in December 2024.
A council spokesperson said structural integrity concerns meant the end of the wharf remained closed to the public, and there were no plans for repairs.
Council staff had been inspecting the wharf every three months.
Council also hired professional services to assess the wharf for safety after weather events.
The cost for these services since January 1 was $5000.
A full wharf inspection was scheduled this week, and the fence preventing access would be replaced by the end of the month.
Repairing damage to the gate preventing access had cost $2300.
The council was aware the public had been seen on the bridge past the fence.
In May, general manager of journeys Libby Young told the Gisborne Herald the wharf was closed beyond the halfway point due to safety issues.
“Inspections identified critical issues, including two missing piles at the berth, exposed and dangling steel rods, significant concrete corrosion and reinforced steel exposed along supporting beams,” Young said.
“This decision follows multiple engineering assessments, which concluded that the structure is in poor condition and continues to deteriorate, particularly under the impact of high swells and adverse weather conditions.”
Options would be considered through the Long Term Plan process, she said.
A spokesperson said the council was yet to prioritise Long Term Plan budgets.
“Our current ‘vibe check’ engagement is an opportunity for the community to tell us what level of investment they would like to see in our historic wharves and how that sits alongside the other priorities they want council to focus on over the next 10 years.”
Funding levels would be consulted on as part of theLong Term planning process.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.