Enforcement of the road closure at the Battle of Gate Pa site in Cameron Road are being slammed by a local resident for making a woman and young child make a long walk in pouring rain in the dark, to her parents' house in Burns Street.

Burns Street runs parallel to Cameron Road and is accessed from St George Street, directly opposite the Gate Pa reserve.

Cameron Road, from St George Street and Munro Road, was closed yesterday for the 150 year commemoration of the Battle of Gate Pa.

'My daughter couldn't even bring our grandson to our place,” says Neville McKay.

Instead she had to drive around the road block and down to Watling Street, park the car and walk about half a kilometre up the alleyway connecting Watling Street with St George Street.

'That was at 6.45am,” says Neville.

'They would not let her through. They didn't even know where Burns Street or St George Street were. She couldn't even come into our street.”

He rang the council to complain and was put on an answer phone.

Neville's daughter works at Bayfair and drops her seven-year-old son off at her parents every morning.

Tauranga City Council say an apology has been made to Mr McKay.

'We are very sorry that Mr McKay's daughter was turned away from the cordon this morning,” says a statement released today.

'The wardens are supposed to let people through who have business or reside in the area but there seems to have been a misunderstanding with these instructions. Organisers have reiterated these instructions with wardens and they all have maps of the area.”

Maori Wardens regional office spokesperson Tina Drummond says the Maori wardens were working alonside other servies during the time of the road closures.

"Maybe she got herself a little confused about who it was that turned her away as our uniforms are very simialr.

"Our guys were very much up with the play as to where the road closures were and everything else. we knew exactly who to let through and who not to let through."