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Consultation about Sumner’s Tuawera Cave Rock lights opens today.

Some residents have raised concerns around the brightness, configuration and frequency of the lights, which were installed on the former signal station mast in December 2021.

The Waihoro Spreydon-Cashmere-Heathcote Community Board is now seeking public feedback on the matter.

The Board is looking to hear from the community about how the daily lighting hours should be managed and the level of support for the frequency of lighting.

Currently the lights are lit between dusk and 11pm each day, except during Matariki or when a request is made for them to be switched off temporarily. 

The mast was lit for the first time to mark the coronation of King George VI in May, 1937. More than 500 bulbs were lit, including those along the foreshore and pier.

History of the Cave Rock mast

The mast was erected in 1864 to signal the state of the bar to coastal ships entering or leaving the Ihutai Avon Heathcote Estuary. Black, ball-shaped markers were used to indicate the conditions.

It was lit for the first time in May 1937 to mark the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth in 1953, and later as a community tradition for Easter, Anzac Day, Christmas and other significant national events such as VE Day.

In 1961 the Sumner Lifeboat Institute took over the signal station as a lifeboat control tower and operated the lights intermittently for more than 30 years.

After the signal house was damaged in the Christchurch earthquakes and repaired in 2016, a new deed was established in 2020 with Breakfree Foundation, allowing them to install, own and operate the lights. Funds were raised by the community and the solar powered lights were installed in 2021.

Have your say on the Tuawera Cave Rock mast lights. Consultation closes on Wednesday 28 May 2025.