A 92-year-old Kaiapoi woman says she's living under a cloud of uncertainty as politicians campaign to build a bypass through her paddock.
The woman, who did not wish to be named, has lived near Pine Acres since the 1950s – an area designated for the Woodend Bypass in North Canterbury.
The woman and her family have been in limbo since 2014 when Waka Kotahi designated a corner of her land to build the four-lane highway, diverting traffic to the east of Woodend to improve safety.
The women’s daughter, Nicky Auld, said the family’s anxiety has been reignited with both Labour and National promising to build the bypass if elected.
"Where does that leave us?"
"We can’t sub-divide [the paddock] and put a house on it because we don’t know what’s going to happen.
"It is just the uncertainty. We don’t know how much land they will take or whether it will even go ahead."
The only contact the family has received from Waka Kotahi was a letter to say the land had been designated, the 92-year-old woman said.
"They have just said they will take a corner, but how much is a corner?"
She said she worried the bypass might go through other people's homes and questioned the importance of the new bypass in the current economic climate.
"We can’t even build hospitals and they still have a one-lane bridge over the Hurunui River [on State Highway 1], isn’t that more important?"
The woman's paddock is by a large shingle pit lake, which is used by the Waimakariri Sailing Club to train young sailors.
Auld said the area has potential for recreation activities, with the Kaiapoi Lakes to the south. Wildlife had returned to the area since 100 hectares of east Kaiapoi land was made red zone after the earthquakes.
"In the future it could be pretty impressive. You could have swimming races and even triathlons at the [shingle pit] lake."
Auld also questioned the risk of lateral spread in an earthquake.
"If you wanted to build a house beside the lake you would need a large setback, so how can you build four-lane highway?"
Currently, State Highway 1 runs through the Woodend community, which has created safety concerns among some residents.
Under the Waka Kotahi proposal, the flyover would shift traffic from just north of the Cam River and finish in the corner of the 4 hectare paddock, before crossing a neighbouring, large shingle pit lake.
The lake, created from extracting highly-valued shingle, will likely need to be refilled to build the bypass.
The Woodend Bypass has been talked about for decades, with a different route designated in the 1960s, before being lifted in the 1990s.
Several options were then explored between the transport agency and the Waimakariri District Council, including extending the road through Woodend to four lanes.
In 2013, the group finally settled on the proposed route to the east of Woodend.
Waka Kotahi announced the plan in 2014, saying at the time it would 10 to 15 years away.
The National Party then promised to build the bypass in the lead up to the 2017 general election.
Now, with both Labour and National promising to build the bypass, it's back on the table.
Waimakariri Mayor Dan Gordon said he was happy to meet with the family and liaise with Waka Kotahi.
He said he expected issues such as the potential of lateral spreading to be addressed in the detailed design.
Waka Kotahi has been approached for comment.
By David Hill, Local Democracy Reporter
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