A Cook's Beach man's wish to create a public park in memory of his wife could soon be fully realised.

The Stella Evered Memorial Park, at the mouth of the Purangi River, is little used and in need of proper maintenance and development.

View of Cooks Beach from the Stella Evered Park, 1981.

There are calls for the park to get the attention it deserves and it's likely to be included in the new coastal walkway from the Hahei Blowhole to the Purangi.

The park was created by Eric Evered in memory of his wife, Stella after she died in 1981. The couple, who had no children, farmed in the area from the mid 1950s, with Stella doing much to beautify the property.

After her death Eric set up a trust to create the Stella Evered Memorial Park on 30.4ha at the mouth of the Purangi.

When he died in 1990, care of the park and the rest of the property passed to Rod McLaren and Susan Grierson, (pictured)who had both worked with the Evereds for many years. But management of the property passed to the sole trustee, the New Zealand Guardian Trust.

A large block of the farm was sold, with Rod and Susan living on the park land and leasing it for dry stock. Initially the couple carried on with tree planting begun by Eric but say they found it difficult to get money from the trust.

Local people became concerned about the lack of action and in 2001 a public meeting was organised. An advisory group was set up to work with the Guardian Trust and an unsealed roadway, parking space and toilets were built and signs installed at a cost of about $80,000.

Since then there's been no major improvements, despite the efforts of Rod and Susan, members of the advisory group and the Cooks Beach & Ferry Landing Reserves Management Group.

Today, the trust is worth $7.8 million, accumulating unspent funds each year.

Last year it earned $250,000 through investment and spent $82,808, with half of that going on Guardian Trust fees and $18,500 going on the park.

The balance of $167,000 in income went into accumulated funds.

Eric's will stipulates that the park is for the use and benefit of the public, with its development, maintenance and access to be funded from income from the trust fund.

Any income not needed for the park can be used to build up capital or to support other horticultural or arboreal projects around Cooks Beach and horticultural, arboreal or agricultural research.

Susan says there's a lot more they'd like to have done at the park but it's been very hard to get money out of the trust. 'We've been blocked every step of the way.”

Advisory group member and friend of Eric, Toby Morcom, would dearly like to see the park better developed, maintained and better used.

Walkway project manager John Gaukrodger says the park is a superb piece of landscape with magnificent views right across Mercury Bay.

The park has great access and would make a wonderful part of the walkway, he says. Walking through a working farm would add interest and there's a wonderful mix of native trees and other species, including fruit trees, in the park.

He's talked to Susan and Rod and last week contacted the Guardian Trust, which says it's aware of the planned walkway. It says it will be working with Rod and Susan on a feasibility report on possible extensive works in the near future.

Susan says a walkway could provide security problems but she and Rod aren't opposed to it.

'The reality is this is what the park was set up for, for people to enjoy.”