Porirua City Council’s proposed $10 million contribution to protecting Tītahi Bay Road from coastal erosion is scheduled for 2032/33 and 2033/34, according to budget papers considered by councillors on 8 October.
The project also includes a new walking and cycling route beside Porirua Harbour, but construction remains dependent on future budget decisions and external funding.
Councillors have retained the $10 million coastal protection allocation in their developing 2027–37 Long-term Plan. A further $4 million proposal for the shared pathway and harbourside planting was added to the list of capital projects under consideration.
The additional funding proposal was moved by Councillor Moira Lawler. The vote was tied five votes each before meeting chair Josh Trlin exercised his casting vote in favour, according to the council’s official meeting record.
Council documents estimate the full project at $24 million, comprising $20 million for coastal erosion protection along Tītahi Bay Road and Wi Neera Drive, and $4 million for a 1.4-kilometre shared pathway between Wi Neera Drive and Onepoto.
The proposed works would address erosion along a shoreline substantially altered by land reclamation in the 1950s. Sections of the reclaimed harbour edge have deteriorated over time, threatening the stability of the land beside the road.
Earlier council investigations identified particularly vulnerable areas near Onepoto, south of Te Pene Avenue and beside Takapūwāhia Reserve.
Rather than relying entirely on rock barriers, the coastal protection design combines engineered defences with saltmarsh planting and other measures intended to stabilise the shoreline and restore habitat within Te Awarua-o-Porirua Harbour.
The proposed pathway would also improve connections between Tītahi Bay, Takapūwāhia and central Porirua for people travelling on foot or by bicycle.
The project has a long history. Porirua City Council and Ngāti Toa first explored a harbourside boardwalk in 2002, with later proposals incorporating road protection and harbour restoration.
During consultation in 2018, 73 per cent of respondents who commented on pathway and coastal protection options supported a harbourside route and erosion repairs.
Subsequent consultation also identified concerns over parking, narrower traffic lanes and safe crossing points along Tītahi Bay Road. These issues helped shape the project’s design.
The necessary resource consents were secured by 2024, but rising construction costs and changes to government transport funding priorities prevented the project from proceeding to construction.
The latest council decision keeps the proposal in the city’s long-term planning process. It does not represent final construction approval or guarantee that all the necessary funding will be available.
Residents will have an opportunity to comment on the proposed spending during formal consultation on the draft 2027–37 Long-term Plan in March and April next year. The council expects to adopt the final plan in June 2027.