Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown has revealed his vision to transform the city's port, with plans for a seaside amphitheatre, exhibition centre, and a saltwater pool.
The new plan covers a 2km stretch of land, most of which is currently owned by the Ports of Auckland, and could begin in as little as two years, according to the mayor.
Brown told 1News he wanted to impress visitors to the country's largest city with the redevelopment of the waterfront space.
"I want to get underway with those first three wharves that they can release ASAP. Then the other bits, there's no rush on those," he said.
"I'm not rushing to create a new port somewhere else. I'm just rushing to create a better downtown environment, with more access to really nice things on the waterfront, so that when people come here on a cruise liner, they think: 'Wow, that's cool!'
"Instead of: 'Urgh, what are they doing there with that stuff?'"
However, the cost of the project and full impact on the port operations are still unclear.
When asked about whether the city could afford the project, Brown retorted: "Can we afford to have waste land used by a port that doesn't earn much money?"
The mayor said he wants to release the land that the port does not really need and that relocating the port is a "downstream" issue.
Some major media companies weren’t invited, raising questions about transparency. (Source: 1News)
Ports of Auckland chief executive Roger Gray said he supports a "staged approach" and that he has developed a partnership with the mayor's office.
But the Maritime Union, which represents port workers, is sceptical about the plan. Union spokesperson Russell Mayn said taking land away from the port would be "reckless".
"It's operating very close to 100% — so to remove any of the usable land, I think, at this point in time, would be reckless."
The mayor has said that Aucklanders will get their say before any proposals are put through to implementation.
Speaking to 1News, Brown suggested he had already received broad support for revamping the port during his mayoral campaign last year.
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