Hamilton City Council
Te kaunihera o Kirikiriroa
We're upgrading the parkland above one of Hamilton's favourite beaches.
Suburb Hamilton East
Status Underway
Programme City wide community
We’re upgrading the area above Wellington Street Beach to provide a safer recreation environment with enhanced amenities and landscaping. The design for this space was based on community feedback received in late 2023 and includes repurposing the existing building to modern toilet standards, adding a new shade structure, barbeque, drinking fountain and seating, and carrying out planting and landscaping.
The refreshed space will also improve sightlines from the road to the beach, helping to keep families safer as they enjoy the space.
Work on the improvements will get underway from 8 July and are expected to take around four months to complete.
Wellington Street Beach is a popular spot for our community and is loved by many Hamiltonians. We want to make sure that the park is safe, accessible and fit-for-purpose. These improvements are part of our 2021-2031 Long-Term Plan.
The jetty previously located at Wellington Street Beach had to be removed after it was significantly damaged due to severe weather and fluctuating river levels. Since then, a pontoon has been used here instead – feedback from the community has been that people enjoy using the pontoon and at this stage there are no plans to replace the jetty.
Erosion mitigation and beach access improvements began at Wellington Street Beach while the park improvements were underway – our intention was to do this work together to help minimise inconvenience for the public and ensure contractors had easy access to the lower park and beach area. Unfortunately, high river levels in late 2025 slowed progress on this work and the decision was made to pause the remaining erosion control work until March/April 2026 to avoid impacting on the communities’ ability to enjoy this space over summer. It is also hoped that river levels will be more favourable at this time.
The erosion mitigation work involves construction of concrete block retaining walls to stabilise the bank and provide an improved pathway down to the beach for easier and safer access.
Last updated 18 July 2025