The Auckland Regional Council says it's relieved the Environment Court has rejected a plan to build up to 500 dwellings and a hotel behind Omaha Beach, north of Auckland.
The developers pf the proposed Omaha Park wanted to rezone 650 hectares at the southern end of the beach, but residents and holiday- home owners at the popular resort banded together with the council to oppose it.
The chairman of the council's regional strategy and planning committee, Paul Walbran, says the court's decision confirms the land is not appropriate for such a development.
Mr Walbran says the Tawharanui peninsula has high cultural and ecological importance that would have been compromised if the development had gone ahead.
