Frequently Asked Questions

Nga Patai

Landowner Questions

We want to meet and engage with you to share more about the project, how it impacts your whenua, and the opportunities it could unlock. In order for us to develop Te Ara Tipuna (TAT), we need to reach agreement with each landblock/trust along the Ara. At the point that the track is to be developed across your whenua, we will negotiate a legal easement with you.
The following support is available.

The Project Team is working alongisde Te Puni Kokiri and Te Kooti Whenua Maori to ensure whenua Maori landowners are supported, including assisting ungoverned landblocks to set up governance structures.

Te Herenga a Nuku (Walking Access Commission) is also working alongside the project team; their purpose is to help establish public walkways, support landowners with legal instruments and what that means for their whenua.

You can get in touch with the Te Ara Tipuna project team at [email protected] to discuss your specific enquiry.

At this stage of the Consenting process there are two levels of support that we are seeking. They are: 

  • A general supportive submission for the overall TAT kaupapa; 
  • and/or a specific agreement in principle to your landblock being involved. 

At the point that the track is to be developed across your whenua, we will negotiate a legal easement with you. 

You can support by: 

Talking to your fellow trustees, landowners, whanau and friends about Te Ara Tipuna. Asking people to complete the Support Submission on our website. Keep in touch with our Te Ara Tipuna team to see if there is anything else you can do to help. Speaking well of this kaupapa! 
Possibly. We are happy to discuss what you think a better option might be, and whether it could be accommodated within the Consent guidelines. To note - the current route has been assessed by technical experts across a range of disciplines (see Consent Questions for further detail). 
Please refer to the Track Design Detail documents in your pack to see what is proposed for the track across your whenua. 95% of the Ara will be wayfaring across the natural state of the whenua.
Kei te pai! We will work with you to include necessary caveats in the easement agreement to ensure you are comfortable with the arrangements for the Ara crossing your whenua. For example, you may wish to include “No crossing during lambing time” as a caveat. However, the point of the Ara is that it is a continuous trail. So we would need to work together to identify an alternative, such as a different route during sensitive farming times.  
You, the landowner, will be chiefly responsible. We aim to begin an ancillary project at the end of 2024 to co-design a ‘kawa’ for the Ara. This will be for both landowners and users of the trail. 

We are also working toward developing partnerships with Department of Conservation to support and establish maintenance and management standards.
Then that stage of Te Ara Tipuna cannot be built. This is an opt-in kaupapa that relies on agreement all the way along. We hope people will see the benefits and opportunities Te Ara Tipuna will bring to landowners, whanau, hapu, and their whenua.
The views of hapu will be taken into account during negotiations concerning the Ara but the final decision on whether the trail is to cross an owner’s land or not will be made by the landowner/s.

Overall Project Questions

It is estimated to take 5-7 years to completely develop Te Ara Tipuna (TAT), from Te Toka a Taiau to Tarakeha (start and end points at Makorori, near Gisborne and Opotiki). The project has committed to using local contractors to develop and maintain the tracks and trails. Given the pressures of recovery work, and ongoing maintenance and repair of SH35 and local roads, this timeline of 5-7 years is realistic. It could be sooner if funding and resources allow. 

Yes, it will be developed in stages. What stage is developed when, will depend on negotiation and agreement from landowners. Currently, those stages (in geographical, not priority order) are: 

  • Te Toka a Taiau (Gisborne) to Tolaga Bay
  • Tolaga Bay to Tokomaru Bay
  • Tokomaru Bay to Ruatoria
  • Ruatoria to East Cape
  • East Cape to Te Kaha
  • Te Kaha to Opotiki
This will depend on negotiations and agreement with landowners, and securing funding! 
We are prioritising the Ara between Tokomaru Bay and Ruatoria. The track will be built to be resilient to extreme weather events and capable of taking emergency vehicles (ATVs). 
We have yet to secure funding for the development of Te Ara Tipuna. To date, we have received funding support from Te Puni Kokiri and Te Runanganui o Ngati Porou to plot the route, engage with communities, build the 1km model in Ruatoria, and apply for consents.
The core kaupapa is about connectivity between our people and our whenua. This is a multi-layered kaupapa, of which tourism is one layer.

Consent Questions 

We have lodged a single Global Consent with the Gisborne District Council (GDC), the Opotiki District Council (ODC), and the Bay of Plenty Regional Council (BOPRC) for the entirety of Te Ara Tipuna.

This Global Consent is at a high level and includes impact assessments and management plans from a range of disciplines.

All members of the public, including landowners, will have an opportunity to provide their views on the Project via the public notification and submission process.

More information about the resource consent process can be found here: https://environment.govt.nz/publications/applying-for-a-resource-consent/consent-process/
The technical impact assessments submitted as a part of our global consent application were: archaeological, cultural, ecological, coastal erosion, social, recreational, geotechnical, landscape and visual, traffic, and stakeholder engagement. 
Yes. Please email [email protected] for a copy of the application. Once notified, the application will be available on our website, and from the GDC.

You can also view them here on our website.

Resource Consent Application - click here 
Technical Impact Reports - click here
No. The track development will begin once we have reached specific legal agreements with specific affected landowners. And, when have secured funding. 
No. We have applied for this Global Consent through the usual Resource Management Act (RMA) consenting process. Although we qualify to apply for the Fast-Track process, the TAT kaupapa will only be a success if we all want it. The usual RMA process allows more opportunity for public engagement, so that is the option we are taking. 

The Trail Questions

The proposed trail was mapped to provide links to as many existing tracks as possible. 
Paper roads are legal public access-ways. However, we respect the association of former owners to the underlying whenua, and we will be engaging on that basis.
Te Ara Tipuna means ‘the ways of our ancestors’. And our many ancestors travelled many ways! It is not proposed to replace, or duplicate, any other ancestral trails. The proposal is that this Te Ara Tipuna can act as a connector between these already existing trails if those landowners and hapu wish to do so. 
The 1km track at the Ruatoria - Tikitiki turnoff is a model of the four levels of “built track” that will be used, only when necessary, along Te Ara Tipuna. We hope that seeing and using, is understanding and supporting. Even inspiring! 
95% of the Ara will be wayfaring across the natural state of the whenua. Boardwalks will typically be used around ecologically or culturally sensitive areas, and coming in and out of townships.
We have had some concerns raised about “te tini me te mano” that could potentially be on the trail. Some days there will be no one on a specific track, other days there could be individuals or a small group. We do not expect that there will be large hoardes of people on the trail all at once, every day - unless, for example, a hapu day has been organised, or an inter-marae activity, or a kura project.
Te Ara Tipuna is about connection, therefore any further connecting of safe and well-managed trails and tracks is welcomed and encouraged - enabling greater sharing of our local stories and histories!
crossmenuchevron-down