Auckland mayor Wayne Brown during a visit to the Mangere Emergency Centre on 27 January last year, following the devastating Auckland Anniversary weekend floods. Photo: RNZ/Angus Dreaver
Auckland will take years to recover from the the Anniversary Floods and Cyclone Gabrielle devastation, Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown says.
On 27 January 2023, Auckland experienced catastrophic flooding which displaced residents and cost billions of dollars in recovery efforts.
A year on, much of the city is back to normal, but there are still those struggling in the wake of the floods, still unable to return to their homes.
Over 4500 households required some form of storm-related assistance, with more than 600 receiving emergency accommodation.
Images from across Auckland on 27 January, 2023 Photo: RNZ / Christina Persico, Jonty Dine and Jordan Dunn
Brown said a year later, the impact for the communities continued.
"As a city, we will still be recovering from this in years to come.
"We learned a lot from these catastrophic events. There is still work to be done, but I am confident that we can reduce Auckland's exposure to risk when, and not if, something like this happens again."
Brown said the council was working with communities to help mark this milestone in the ways they want, which include memorials, community days, morning teas, and well-being sessions across the region over the next two months.
"It's a milestone that means different things to different people - for some it's a time of gratitude, for others it's a stark reminder they're still in limbo."
"Regrettable that it has taken this long" - Brown on buy-outs
More than 7000 properties were stickered in the aftermath of the floods, following rapid building assessments.
As of 1 December 2023, there were just over 8000 insurance claims outstanding from the floods.
Damage from the Auckland Anniversary Weekend floods, from top left: Derek Judge's Swanson home was flooded by the rapidly rising Waimoko Stream; houses in Swanson sit abandoned and vandalised in November; Andrew Marshall's red-stricken house in Swanson is still being hit by vandals a year on from the floods; Julie Armstrong's Northcote home was badly damaged by the flood waters. Photo: RNZ and supplied
The first Category 3 property buy-outs in Auckland were completed in December.
Brown said the buy-out scheme should move quickly.
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"Dealing with storm-damaged private property was new territory for local government. With the critical policy and government co-funding now in place, the buy-out scheme should move quickly.
"Our progress is in line with other affected regions, but it is regrettable that it has taken this long."
The Auckland mayor said the recovery work was complex and required a lot of resources.
"In Auckland, the damage was widespread, from the top of the region to the bottom, and the needs of these communities are diverse."
He said Auckland's programme of repairs to public infrastructure and facilities would take several years, with many of the bigger projects needing business cases, and the government to approve the budget.
"A critical issue to work through is how we partner with government and others to deliver a more resilient region, given that our infrastructure needs a lot of work.
"We have to step up and exercise better management of public assets and services for Aucklanders, but the government has to meet us halfway."
The interior of flood-damaged homes in Auckland, in September. Photo: Supplied
It would take a full 10 years to complete most projects, Brown said.
"As we get through a lot of this work, it will become clear that we can't address everyone's needs, particularly general flooding damage that doesn't pose a serious risk to life.
"We must be in a better financial position to adapt and recover from future shocks."
Strengthening financial and physical resilience
Brown said the impact of the floods and Cyclone Gabrielle was reflected in his commitment to strengthening the region's financial and physical resilience over the next decade.
He said on his Mayoral Proposal for Auckland's Long-term Plan 2024-34 that he advocated an approach to building resilience, encompassing risk reduction, preparedness, and better reconstruction.
The Making Space for Water programme illustrates this approach, Brown said.
"Over the next 10 years, I am proposing to invest billions in the quality and security of our infrastructure.
"This includes renewing roads and upgrading bridges, creating blue-green networks in critical flood-risk areas, and supporting community-led resilience."
He said to reduce the impact of future shocks on Auckland households and businesses, he needed planning and investment to secure the city's financial position.
"That means protecting our investments from all hazards and ensuring the infrastructure that Aucklanders rely on every day is secure."
Brown said Auckland's publicly owned strategic assets, such as public transport and water networks, stadiums, the port and airport were geographically concentrated in one region.
"We need to think seriously about reducing Auckland's exposure to risk by diversifying our asset base across different geographic regions, industries, and asset classes.
"If our city's strategic assets end up under water, which is entirely possible, we'll have nothing to fall back on."
Brown assessing the damage from the flooding across Auckland from a helicopter on 28 January, 2023. Photo: SUPPLIED
Public consultation will be open from 28 February to 28 March to gather feedback on the council's priorities and how they will be funded for the next 10 years, as part of Auckland's Long-term Plan.
For the plan, Brown was proposing to lease the Port of Auckland's port operations and invest the multi-billion-dollar proceeds in a council-owned, diversified regional wealth fund.
The council's remaining shareholding in Auckland International Airport Limited (AIAL) could also be transferred to the proposed Auckland Future Fund.
"The potential benefits are multi-layered, including reduced risk exposure, a better return on investment, and preserving the value of public assets over time. A portion of the fund's higher yield would be reinvested, harnessing the power of compounding returns, much like KiwiSaver.
"More importantly, returns would be set aside for self-insurance and to secure access to funding," he said.
"This year alone, the cost of insurance for council-owned assets increased by 44 percent."
Being able to access funds in times of crisis was a major challenge for households and organisations alike, including Auckland Council, Brown said.
"Having predictable, pre-arranged funding is also critical for building physical and social resilience, including quality infrastructure, and helping communities cope with future shocks."
"Our financial planning must follow emerging good practices to ensure the council's investments are good value for money and lead to better post-disaster outcomes for Aucklanders."
The lessons learned
The Auckland Anniversary floods brought scrutiny over Brown's timely response and community engagement.
He said procrastination made easy things hard and hard things harder.
"The Auckland Anniversary floods were an important wake-up call.
"Looking back over the past year, I'm proud of the critical work and planning that's been done, which was long overdue, and the mammoth effort from teams across the wider council group.
The response from Auckland Council during the floods and Cyclone Gabrielle last year prompted a review led by former police commissioner Mike Bush.
The review included a long list of recommendations, which Brown said were two-thirds complete.
"These events have taught me that we must all be good kaitiaki of our region, our resources, and our people," Brown said.
"I want to reassure Aucklanders that we can all adapt to change, no matter how drastic or unexpected."