1. Introduction

The City Rail Link (CRL) project comprises the construction, operation and maintenance of a 3.4 km underground passenger railway, running between Britomart Station and the North Auckland Rail Line in the vicinity of Mt Eden Station. The CRL also involves the construction of two new underground stations at Aotea and Karangahape and the redevelopment of the station at Mt Eden (refer to Figure 1-1). The design and construction of the CRL infrastructure between the Aotea and Mt Eden Stations is being delivered by the Link Alliance.

Figure 1-1: CRL Route and Location

This Trees and Vegetation Delivery Work Plan (TV DWP) has been prepared in relation to the main construction works for the new Aotea Station.

1.1 Aotea Station

Once completed, the Aotea Station will include platforms, lifts, escalators, rooms for housing stations and tunnel services equipment, an entrance building at Wellesley Street, two additional entrance buildings at Victoria Street, a Plenum at Kingston Street, services, internal and architectural finishings, structural fittings, utilities services diversions and connections.

The location of the Aotea Station is primarily beneath Albert Street, connecting the Contract 2 (C2) cut and cover tunnels to the north and the tunnel-boring-machine (TBM) tunnels to the south. The works are approximately 380m long by 18m wide and will be excavated around 18-20m below

ground level. Additional boxes branch off from the tunnel alignment at Kingston Street (to form the Plenum), Victoria Street (for two entrance buildings to the Aotea Station) and Wellesley Street (to form the main entrance building to the Aotea Station (refer to Figure 1-2 below) 1 .

1 Auckland Transport (AT) has obtained a resource consent for an Over Station Development (OSD) on the Bledisloe Car Park site (Council Reference R/LUC/2016/2647). The proposal involves the construction of a 24-level building comprising offices, retail and food and beverage tenancies, and public features including a plaza and a through site link. The proposed OSD is not part of the Link Alliance contract and will be progressed separately by Auckland Council / Panuku.

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Figure 1-2 Indicative Aotea Station indicating length of underground station box with the associated above-ground Main Station structure at Wellesley Street, entrance structures at Victoria Street and the Kingston Street Plenum.

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Given the nature and scale of the Aotea Station construction, works will be undertaken in a staged manner, involving:

Five stages of early works (canopy removal, network utility relocation and site establishment work), being undertaken from October 2019 to March 2020 (Stages 1 to 3) and December 2019 through to August 2020 (Stages 4 and 5); these works have been authorised by separate Outline Plans (Council ref. OPW60345651 and OPW60348747);

Main construction works (the ‘Aotea main works’) involving construction of the station box,

associated above ground structures, mined tunnels for the rail tracks, internal finishings, structural fitout, all Mechanical, Electrical, Fire and Hydraulic (MEFH) installation, and architectural finishings 2 . The Aotea main works will be undertaken from early-2020 through to late-2023;

Ground reinstatements (from late-2022) and urban realm improvements. These works will be described in a future Outline Plan 2 .

This TV DWP relates to the Aotea main works, in which the installation of diaphragm walls will require removal or relocation of 11 pōhutukawa (T34) trees situated at the southern end of Albert Street, outside the Crowne Plaza Hotel.

Refer to Section 2 of the Construction Environmental Management Plan (CEMP) for a detailed description of the Aotea main works.

1.2 Purpose of the Trees and Vegetation DWP

In accordance with CRL designation condition 55, this TV DWP has been prepared to identify measures that will be implemented to mitigate and manage the potential adverse effects on trees and vegetation during the Aotea main works. The objective of the DWP (designation Condition 55.2) is:

To avoid the removal of scheduled trees as far as practicable; and Where trees are identified for removal during surface works the Requiring Authority will remedy or mitigate the adverse effects of construction on trees and vegetation.

This TV DWP addresses the requirements of CRL designation condition 55 and will be implemented throughout the construction period.

This TV DWP has been prepared in consultation with the Aotea Community and Business Liaison Group (CLG) and has undergone Independent Peer Review (IPR) prior to submission to Auckland Council (as per designation conditions 7 and 11). A record of CLG consultation outcomes and IPR review comments is provided in Appendix A.

Relevant Conditions

2 It is noted the architectural finishing component of works (the exterior look and feel of the Aotea Station) will occur during Phase 5 of the Aotea main works (approx. 2022 –December 2023). These finishings are still being designed and determined. Once designs are completed a separate Outline Plan and suite of DWPs will be prepared, describing the finishings and other permanent above ground public realm reinstatements. That Outline Plan package will address the relevant Urban Design related Designation conditions (condition 47 –54, including landscaping (condition 55.3(c))). Page 6 | Aotea Station Main Works

Table 1-1 identifies the designation conditions relevant to this TV DWP and where they are addressed in the document.

Table 1-1: Trees and Vegetation conditions and location in the TV DWP

Condition No.

55.1

55.2

55.3

Condition Relevant

section of DWP

A Trees and Vegetation DWP shall be prepared to manage the adverse effects from the removal of trees and vegetation during the construction of the City Rail Link or any part of it.

The objective of the Trees and Vegetation DWP is to avoid the removal of scheduled trees as far as practicable. Where trees are identified for removal in surface works the Requiring Authority will remedy or mitigate the adverse effects of construction on trees and vegetation. 1.2

To achieve the above objective the following shall be included in the Trees and Vegetation DWP and implemented as required:

(a) Confirmation of the trees to be removed due to surface construction works and whether it is appropriate and feasible to relocate or store these trees for replanting. The removal of scheduled trees which form a significant group should only be undertaken as a last resort; Sections 3 and 4.1

(b) A list of trees, which due to being in proximity to construction works, have root systems and / or foliage within and / or overhanging the surface designation footprint, and the methods to be used, where practicable, to protect these trees from construction works;

(c) Cross references to the Urban Design DWP and the proposed mitigation of any tree / vegetation removal through replanting trees at a 1:1 ratio, reinstatement of the area, and other methods. In preparing the Trees and Vegetation DWP, the Requiring Authority shall seek input from the Auckland Council Parks Department with regard to tree species / vegetation selection, tree pit construction where deemed necessary, and the positioning of replacement trees and from directly affected land owners with regards to preferences for any replacement planting for vegetation / trees removed from private property or for any replacement planting on private property;

(d) Other methods to be used to monitor and report on the management of the adverse effects from tree / vegetation removal;

(e) Cross references to the specific sections in the Communication and Consultation Plan which detail how the Auckland Council Parks Department, mana whenua (see condition 8) are consulted, and communication with the general public on the management of the adverse effects relating to the removal of trees and vegetation. Section 3

Section 4.1.2 and Appendix B

Section 4.1 4.2

Section 5

1.3 DWP Review and Updates

This TV DWP is a live document that will be reviewed at least annually, or as a result of a material change to the project, or to address unforeseen adverse effects on trees and vegetation arising from construction, or unresolved complaints. Any material changes to this TV DWP must be approved by Auckland Council prior to any on-site activity reliant upon the change commencing. Refer to the CEMP for further detail on the review and updating process.

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