Mt Crawford Prison
The Dom Post Editorial on Wednesday discusses the proposal to scrap Mt Crawford Prison (by enlarging Rimutaka) and turn that whole area into a tourism area.
I know that prison area well having camped on their grounds (when I was in Scouting) many times, and also having explored the disused underground WWII bunker in the nearby pine forest (it used to host a battery gun to get an enemy ship entering the harbour). Also the Massey Memorial is next door.
The views from up there are amazing and spectacular. It is an irony that a bloody prison enjoys the best views and probably most valuable real estate in Wellington.
So if it was practical I’d love to see it happen. It is an absolute waste of great property. However Mt Crawford has a more secure rating than Rimutaka so one couldn’t just expand Rimutaka. You would need to build a new Wellington Prison, and that would take years with the consent process.
June 7th, 2007 at 8:29 am
How about we build a new prison on Matiu (Soames) Island. I understand that it is government land, having been used by ag and fish, but is now idle.
It would also be a great tourist attraction in about 60 years! (wink wink).
June 7th, 2007 at 11:13 am
I lived on Akaroa Drive in Maupuia for twenty-six years from the mid 70s. Being an RNZAF person it was handy for the Base – reached from my place by a precarious track – and, in particular, for the Base’s social activities. Aside from that, with my children I spent many, many happy hours roaming through the pine woods that cloak the penninsula and in swimming and boating off its beaches. Above the road it was, and is, a magic and sylvan wonderland populated by birds and rabbits,a green, peaceful and remote piece of the city. Driving along the winding Shelly Bay Road was to me reminiscent of driving along the shore of a Scotish Loch – if one ignored the Hataitai shore. To ‘develop’ with hotels or other similar projects this wooded jewel lying within the embrace of Wellington city would, in my view be nothing more than heartless phillistine vandalism. Why, oh why, do we have to ‘develop’,'improve’ and ‘open up’ such rare pockets of truly delightful country instead of leaving them be?. (Don’t worry, I know the answer – it starts with $$$$$$$!)
June 7th, 2007 at 2:05 pm
Overall the proposal is excellent. It will provide the impetus that Wellington will need once the Labour govt has been deposed, and the unnessecessary bureaucrats are culled from the public trough that will undoubtably happen when the change in govt occurs. Wellington needs some affordable accommodation, and the area immediately adjacent current residential housing would suffice, and then there could be a green belt, with the necessary parklands that everyone demands of new developments, all acting as a buffer to the new commercial district which will be centred on the new hotels to be built. There could be specialist tourist enterprises set up, and potentially a commercial park for southern Wellington. The ratepayes would benefit massively, as the new subdivisions would effectively upgrade Mirimars infrastructure. A problem is access to the Southern suburbs will be increased, and alternatives must be found. Examples would include the second mt vic tunnel, widening the current one to 4 lanes, or submerging a new habour crossing to Shelly bay.
As for the prison, why not move the prison to the other side of Wainui hill so it is on the border or in the sthn wairarapa, and of sufficient distance from current subdivisions. There is a lot of land that is simply gorse ridden wind swept and completely untenable for alternative commercial or recreational use. levelling these areas and infilling some of the gullies would provide the flat space needed to build the thing. As for cost, it wouldn’t come in at much more than what Labour are spending now on new prisons.
June 7th, 2007 at 3:09 pm
where is the liarbour prison to be built as I have huge power plant and other vital accessories like straight jackets and electrodes ,1080 electrodes,1080 electrodes,1080, oh yes the dog area and toilet are to be combined in the same compound , dogs starved regularly . Ooops wrong thread ? oh yes Minister we have special tennis court for panty slut boy and the ball boy will toss hand grenades, nice day MADspeaker isn’t it ?
June 7th, 2007 at 5:05 pm
Maybe we could name the new prison – ” THE CLAW INN” ?? just a thought .
June 7th, 2007 at 5:17 pm
While it’s great that the old bunkers and parts of the old base would be restored/kept, there is the unfortunate likelihood of vast amounts of cheesy exclusive housing being built on the top of the hill.
The side of the peninsula is too steep to build on, meaning that most of the development would occur along the ridge, ruining the skyline for ever.
Perhaps the part of the peninsula with the bunkers (up from Massey memorial) could be protected as a reserve at the very least.
June 19th, 2007 at 10:17 am
NOT IN MY BACKYARD!!!
How many of you actually live in the area? Access it every day? Feed the horses their favourite treat – pick mint for dinner from the overgrown gardens of former staff?
I live all of 3 houses away from the Prison and I tell you what – half the appeal of that area is the pristine untouched land.
The feeling when you go for a walk like you’ve stepped back 70 odd years into the past.
I am absolutely disgusted – over the last 2 weeks I have watched and listened as bulldozers and other earthworks machines scrape all of that land bare (where all the prison guard houses were) – and for what? Tourism??
Yea right, the reality is you’ll have a tonne of dog kennels built up there coz dog kennels hold more people and make the most money – who wants to go and have a look at that?
If hotels go up do you really think they’ll want people trapsing around their properties? Of course not – the land itself would be made completely inaccessable to all the people who currently use it. And please… don’t make me laugh – affordable accommodation? with views like that? If anything it’ll be luxury hillside retreats built up there that only wealthy foreigners could afford.
And anyway.. I was always told that the land was gifted to the council much like the town belt – yes they can have a prison there but as soon as that goes the land is to go back to the people of Wellington – private property does not belong there.
It’ll be like every other new development Wellington City Council is involved in – good old Rex’ll have a hand in there somewhere, it’ll be a disgusting eyesore that no one will want to have a look at and it’ll be millions more $$’s down the drain, but hey Kerry that’s ok coz it’s not your money is it?
That land is currently being raped and pilaged and it’s disheartening to know that some people are so greedy they think that it’s ok.. in the name of progress.
June 19th, 2007 at 10:19 am
NOT IN MY BACKYARD!!!
How many of you actually live in the area? Access it every day? Feed the horses their favourite treat – pick mint for dinner from the overgrown gardens of former staff?
I live all of 3 houses away from the Prison and I tell you what – half the appeal of that area is the pristine untouched land.
The feeling when you go for a walk like you’ve stepped back 70 odd years into the past.
I am absolutely disgusted – over the last 2 weeks I have watched and listened as bulldozers and other earthworks machines scrape all of that land bare (where all the prison guard houses were) – and for what? Tourism??
Yea right, the reality is you’ll have a tonne of dog kennels built up there coz dog kennels hold more people and make the most money – who wants to go and have a look at that?
If hotels go up do you really think they’ll want people trapsing around their properties? Of course not – the land itself would be made completely inaccessable to all the people who currently use it. And please… don’t make me laugh – affordable accommodation? with views like that? If anything it’ll be luxury hillside retreats built up there that only wealthy foreigners could afford.
And anyway.. I was always told that the land was gifted to the council much like the town belt – yes they can have a prison there but as soon as that goes the land is to go back to the people of Wellington – private property does not belong there.
It’ll be like every other new development Wellington City Council is involved in – good old Rex’ll have a hand in there somewhere, it’ll be a disgusting eyesore that no one will want to have a look at and it’ll be millions more $$’s down the drain, but hey Kerry that’s ok coz it’s not your money is it?
That land is currently being raped and pilaged and it’s disheartening to know that some people are so greedy they think that it’s ok.. in the name of progress.
June 22nd, 2008 at 5:52 pm
I myself many many times have visited the defence/prison site. Though i’m 12 I love the place and have met the shelly bay caretaker and have been told much of the history of the site. And every time I see one of those stupid and utterly dumb stories about how there going to put this hotel on the land remove all the historical significance of the site I nearly break down in tears.
The site is completly unaccsessable bar 3 roads, two of which are 1 lane and one of them leads through Mahanga Bay NIWA research place and right through the middle of Fort Ballance. If they build up there they will most likely have fill in the underground bunkers which will be a huge historical lose. As lollipop said Kerry is a greedy money waster and I think she should be burnt at the stake (sorry for any offence).
All in all it’s a stupid idea.