Marine management area conversation begins

Apr 1, 2025

3 min read

Updated: Sep 4

Worser Bay Boating Club has kicked off a community conversation about establishing a voluntary no take zone around the club as part of a Worser Bay marine management area, alongside amenities to support education, recreation, culture and events at Worser Bay.

Ten information panels are prominently displayed on the side of one of the sheds at the club, outlining what is proposed to be put in place at Worser Bay. The panels also describe a series of projects that local school children have underway to restore the marine ecosystems at Worser Bay.

Tātou ki Uta, the Coastal Reserves Management Plan.

In December 2025 Tātou Ki Uta, Wellington's Coastal Reserves Management Plan was published, and policies and actions were put in place for the management of Wellington’s coastal reserves, including at Worser Bay. The policies and actions in the plan for Worser Bay are:

Management policies

Work alongside Te Herenga Waka o Whetūkairangi (Worser Bay Boating Club) in exploring opportunities for storytelling, and community-driven marine restoration initiatives like the NZL Blue Belt project, and their other aspirations for this area, while ensuring alignment with council priorities and environmental policies.

Actions

Seek coastal engineering advice to assess the Te Herenga Waka o Whetūkairangi (Worser Bay Boat Club) proposals for dune restoration, ramp, and boardwalk development at Worser Bay
Install interpretative signage at key cultural and ecological sites, including at Kākāriki Hūtia Pā to enhance public understanding of the sector’s history and significance
Restore historic names by renaming the unnamed Worser Bay lawn area to Kākāriki Hūtia Reserve.
Support the long-term resilience of the Worser Bay dune system by continuing restoration efforts, ensuring recreational activities and infrastructure are designed to minimise impacts, and allowing space for natural dune expansion.
Balance recreation and environmental management at Worser Bay by enabling space for sailing, wind-powered water sports, events, and surf lifesaving activities while not making too much of an impact on long-term dune restoration and coastal resilience.
Support an integrated approach to managing the Worser Bay lease cluster, fostering collaboration between the yacht club, surf club, scout hall, and other recreation groups, including through applying Te Awe Māpara principles to enhance collaboration.
Recognise and interpret the historic sites of the Eastern Bays sector, including at Worser Bay by integrating cultural narratives into reserve management, signage, and storytelling initiatives.

Conceptual designs

At the beginning of 2026 Worser Bay Boating Club and the Boat & Beach Wise Education Centre commissioned the Landscape Architecture Programme at Victoria University of Wellington to interpret their proposals into a set of concept plans.

The proposed plans are published in a report called Te Kahu Moana ki Kākāriki.

There are four focus areas for the plans. The following galleries show what is proposed in each area.

The Worser Bay beach pavilion precinct, around the beach pavilion

The Worser Bay lawn and dune, to the north of the pavilion.

Worser Bay Boating Club carpark, around the club car park.

Worser Bay artificial reef/rock pool, at the inter-tidal zone adjacent to the club slipway.

Feedback sought

We are seeking feedback from the community on the proposals. This feedback can be given at any time through to the end of October through the following link.

https://www.wbbc.org.nz/moanamana.

A series of hui are being held for at Worser Bay Boating Club for people to come and hear more about the plans.