The sudden appearance of large rocks along a stretch of Auckland's Milford Beach has upset locals who say they are an eyesore blocking beach access at high tide.
Auckland Council says a group of property owners who had the rocks delivered have been asked to remove them because they did it without consent.
The beachfront homes in Milford are usually protected by a black rock wall, but two weeks ago without warning a delivery of 'new' rocks appeared.
The rocks were dumped by trucks which drove along the sand, they were left spilling out onto the public beach, causing concern to locals.
One local resident, David Templeman, is upset by the sudden appearance of the rocks.
"It's just not on to just carry on, drive trucks on a populated beach and dump rocks. Yes there's a need but let's do it properly. "
Another local is confused by the rocks.
"We were wondering if they're actually going to move them, so they're not an eye-sore, and we can actually walk when the tides come in."
The rocks reach about 50 metres along the sand and Milford residents say they block parts of the beach when the tide comes in.
Newshub understands the rocks came from the nearby Milford Mall development site.
Auckland Council says a group of property owners had them delivered, but they were missing consent and a permit to drive trucks along the beach.
The Council says they may not have realised they needed resource consent.
Auckland Council Regulatory Compliance Manager, Steve Pearce, says the people who dropped the rocks did not follow the rules.
"The property boundary does extend out past the existing rock wall, but there are clearly rules and requirements around what you're allowed to do on the beach and so anything below that high water line requires consent."
Auckland Council has said those responsible will not be prosecuted but have asked the owners to put through a proper application or remove the rocks by next week.
