The water is regularly tested as requested by council. Results prove excellent quality, perfectly safe for swimming and shellfish gathering. However, there is NO swimming inside the boat lock (located between the marina/stage 1 and stage 2) as this is a hazardous area only accessible to boats and authorized people.

The lock is used for raising or lowering boats and other watercraft onto different levels of water on the canal from stage 1 to the locked stages, and vice versa. Section owners with waterfront properties on the inland side of the lock and weir have remote control access. This operates in a similar way to a garage door opener with 24/7 access.

20 metres long x 5.5 metres wide

There is no Body Corp as such but we do have a Canal Management Company which administrates the Waterways within the development, if you are a canal owner or have exclusive access to the canal you are liable to pay an annual levy. The levy amount depends on the size of the waterfront envelope for each site. The sections that have access through a shared private boat ramp are also levied.

The cost of maintaining and managing the Waterways falls with the property owner/beneficiaries of the canal network. A management deed has been drawn between the Regional District Council, Marsden Cove, and Marsden Cove Canal Management Company Ltd to provide management functions such as canal repairs, maintenance, monitoring and maintenance of water quality, health and safety matters, and canal surface water activities.

The Marsden Cove Canals Management Company is a charitable entity and therefore does not make a profit. It takes the budgeted expenditure for the year ahead and divides the costs across all canal users. This includes selected Waterways residents, the public boat ramp, and Marina berth holders.

Building covenants do apply and have been put in place to ensure the quality of building is maintained at a high standard throughout the development. This helps provide certainty for those who invest in our community. Property owners and their architects must become familiar with the details before submitting house plans. If you would like assistance, our team are available to help where possible.

We make every effort to help property owners when it comes to smoothing out the building process. Staff are on hand to help with home and jetty design or any other queries.

As part of the covenants, we require the grass to be kept to less than 100mm high, and because of this we offer a section mowing service. Please contact the sales office for the cost.