38 minute read
Domain-lease row high on new board agenda
Sorting out the stalemate over use of Devonport Domain land is in the sights of the leader of A Fresh Approach, the group that will hold sway on the new Devonport-Takapuna Local Board.
“That has to happen pretty promptly,” said Toni van Tonder (pictured), when asked if the Devonport Museum’s lease of a storage shed on part of the old bowling club site would be reviewed.
“The rugby and cricket clubs have had a partial lease for a year already and have been unable to progress their plans because of this situation. This whole process has not been good and we need to resolve it with urgency,” van Tonder said.
The North Shore clubs want to renovate and set up women’s changing rooms in the former bowling clubrooms on council land. They then intend a staged development of the rest of the site for sports and gym facilities.
The clubs maintain design, access and ultimately their funding options are constrained by what was a surprise decision to them by the former board’s Heart of the Shore members, who by then chair Ruth Jackson’s casting vote extended the museum’s temporary lease on a shed to the rear of the site.
Council officers had advised that community sports facilities were well suited for the site.
At a meeting last year, from which the clubs expected a sign-off on a lease, the museum submitted a letter from a Queen’s Counsel contending storage was permitted on reserve land.
Heart of the Shore members said both groups, which did good work in the area, should be able to be accommodated.
Prior to the local-body election, the sports clubs again voiced their frustration about the decision. The issue is believed to be one of those that created a mood for change.
All three Heart of the Shore members failed in their bids to be re-elected.
As the only experienced local-board member on A Fresh Approach, van Tonder is expected to chair the new board, which will be sworn in from mid-November. The ticket won four of six seats, though the poll was topped by veteran politician George Wood, standing under the Communities and Residents banner, which also brought in Gavin Busch.
The Flagstaff also asked van Tonder if board workshops will remain open to the media. She said she could not comment until the question was discussed by the local board and staff advice considered. “I’ve experienced both open and closed workshops and I see both the benefits and the limitations. You’ll have to wait and see what the outcome is of those discussions,” she said.
Election outcome, pages 18-19
Developers given time to revise reclamation-land plans
From page 1
Its lawyers said these would also include: revising the street layout; creating a larger manoeuvring area around the boat ramp; incorporating car and boat trailer queuing on Sir Peter Blake Pde; and adjusting the width and angles of car and boat-trailer parking.
BMHL confirmed at the hearing that it is in discussion with Auckland Transport (AT) on the interface between the development and AT-managed land at Bayswater.
The adjournment would also “assist by providing time to conclude those discussions and incorporate any design-revision outcomes in BMHL’s final plans,” BMHL lawyer Kit Littlejohn said in a memo to commissioners.
The commissioners accepted the adjournment and agreed to BMHL’s wish to engage with council experts who wrote reports on the proposal.
“In addition to this, we encourage the applicant to meet with the Bayswater Community Committee and the Bayswater Marina Berth-holders Association to inform those groups of the changes being proposed,” commissioners chair Greg Hill said.
DevonportPublishingLtd First Floor,9Wynyard St Telephone: 09 445 0060 Email: sales@devonportflagstaff.co.nz news@devonportflagstaff.co.nz Website: www.devonportflagstaff.co.nz NZ COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER AWARDS Best Community Involvement: 2021, 2016, 2014, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2008, 2005 Best Special Project/Supplement: 2016, 2020 VOYAGER/CANON MEDIA AWARDS CommunityCommunity Reporter of Newspaper the Year: Winner 2018 of theYear: Finalist 2017 MANAGING EDITOR: Rob Drent PUBLISHER: Peter Wilson CHIEF REPORTER: Janetta Mackay DESIGN: Brendon De Suza COPY EDITOR: Jo Hammer
Up to 70 homes planned for Bayswater cul de sac
A mix of terrace housing and apartments is being planned for iwi-owned land in Portsmouth St, Bayswater. Around 60 to 70 dwellings will be built on the cul de sac off Roberts Ave.
The general manager of property for Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, Neil Donnelly, told the Flagstaff it was “working up plans” for the land, meaning it would likely be a couple of years before construction was finished.
The 1ha site was handed back by the Navy as part of a Treaty settlement. The site has since been cleared of housing.
Quality housing was planned, an iwi spokesperson said. It would not be a Kainga Ora or similar development, but rather a build-to-rent complex, similar to the type of housing at the Oneoneroa subdivision off Eversleigh Rd, Belmont. “It’s not state housing.”
• Updates on Kainga Ora and Belmont housing, page 26, 27
Happy crew... (from left) TGS coach Matt Mason, with teacher in charge of yachting, Melita Tu’isila, and their charges: Mischa Grotrian, Jamie Kwong, Finn Brown, Vivien Webster Chung, Dylan Forsyth (team captain), William Mason, Caleb Newton, Abigail Goosen and Sienna Hawkes, and on-water support crew Kent Forsyth
The Takapuna Grammar School (TGS) sailing team aren’t just national secondary school champions, but have also claimed trans-Tasman bragging rights.
The double success in 420s this month followed victory by a bigger group of young TGS sailors in the Auckland fleet racing regatta at the end of last term.
Seven sailors went on to compete against 28 other schools over five days of racing in the Secondary Schools Team Sailing National Championships at Algies Bay, where TGS came out as the top school in both the national and open trans-Tasman competition.
New Zealand was declared winner of the Secondary Schools Interdominion Team Sailing Championships, giving the school a share of a third trophy.
It was the first time TGS has won any of the events or even competed at the national event.
Captained by year 13 student Dylan Forsyth, the 420 team also comprised Vivien Webster Chung, William Mason, Jamie Kwong, Mischa Grotrian, Caleb Newton and Finn Brown.
Three two-person boats from each school were pitted against rival teams over 350 short races sailed in the week.
TGS competed in nearly 30 races, losing only three, and was undefeated on the first day, with six wins from six races.
It dropped two races in the second round, but retained retained first place, ahead of Napier Boys High School and Glendowie College, who joined it in racing against the best from Australia.
The school’s head of sailing, Melita Tu’isila, said while several Year 13 sailors would not be around next year to defend the titles, the young talent coming through – including some sailors from Belmont Intermediate – made for a bright future.
Year 9 William Mason skippered one boat, with departing Year 13s Dylan Forsyth and Vivien Webster Chung helming the others.
Captain’s call... Dylan Forsyth (at rear) expertly manoeuvres his craft in one of the many tight tussles of the week
Mischa Grotrian and Finn Brown rotated in and out on one boat depending on light or heavy conditions, with the other places fixed to meet weight requirements. Abigail Goosen and Sienna Hawkes also attended for some of the competition to gain experience for the future, but did not sail. The team is coached by Matt Mason, a former Team New Zealand and international match-racer, who is also William’s father. Tu’isila said TGS was lucky to have him. She said the team next year had a lot to live up to, but with so many juniors involved in the sailing programme it meant TGS had a good longer-term cycle to look forward to. Training included leaving school early on Wednesdays for sailing sessions out of the Akarana Yacht Club at Westhaven and with other schools. Racing would resume in March or April, with the 420 nationals expected to revert to being held in their normal slot during the first term break, after Covid pushed it back this year. Tu’isila said Dylan had done particularly well coming in first or second in nearly all the races he was involved in, but it was the combined team effort on points that took TGS to the top. The team won nine of its 10 interdominion races. Normally the New Zealand championships and the interdoms are held separately, but this year they were combined. Next year, it is expected the nationals will be held earlier, with a trip to Brisbane to defend the interdominion title to follow in October. Dylan said the victory was a great way to round out his school sailing career. “We hadn’t competed at nationals before so we didn’t really know what to expect, but it was really cool to pull it off,” he told Yachting New Zealand. “We worked really well together because, with team racing, you need everyone on the same page. I think our communication separated us from the rest of the teams.”
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A way with the fairies: artist creates fantasy world
Tucked away in the trees of Clarence St, a fairy wonderland is emerging to enchant the children of Devonport.
Local artist Judy Rogers is adding her magic touch to three oaks that provide shade outside the Depot Artspace and the Devonport Community House. She has crafted ceramic fairy cottages and carefully fixed doors and windows to the trees, using recycled and sustainable materials. “I have always thought there was potential to do something here,” says Rogers, who volunteers one day a week at the Depot.
The two organisations agreed, and Rogers has spent many hours on the project, with the aim of having around a dozen small structures in place. Before Christmas, there are hopes to light the trees.
Depot manager Amy Saunders says Rogers has given her time freely, with the gallery and community house helping out with material costs. She sees the potential to enhance the bed under the trees, perhaps with paving stones or planting, and would welcome offers of help with the lighting or landscaping.
Rogers says her love affair with fairies dates back to childhood. “I’ve never grown up. As a child I was always interested in that realm.”
Her fairy fascination can also be seen at her home of nine years, on the corner of Oxford Tce and Eton Ave. “When we bought our house, the first thing I saw was the tree on the corner and the swing there. I fell in love with house, but it was the tree that really beckoned me.” She first had the idea of creating a fairy door and, from there, her imagination took over.
This has become a favourite stopping-off point for local children, who stare up in delight at a decorated pohutukawa. “We wake up to squeals and giggles,” she says.
Rogers does not use plastics and takes care with tree health in her additions, which she points out are considerably smaller than the tree houses that many people hammer up.
For the project in Clarence St, Rogers has had advice on her wooden tree platforms from Devonport Timber. She covers metal fixtures with ceramic plates, made to look like windows.
Decorative touches include shells from Torpedo Bay. She also fossicks for broken glass and driftwood.
Australian-born Rogers has lived in New Zealand for 16 years, moving over with her Kiwi husband, first to Hamilton and then to Devonport. She describes herself a steam-punk artist, but says “Iike most creatives I dabble in different things.”
Fantasy – and the fairy world – is something she feels everyone can enjoy.
Open homes... Judy Rogers with the ceramic fairy cottages she has crafted
Refix or refinance?
We see more and more people facing higher interest rates when rolling their fixed mortgage rates –some are more than doubling from 2.50% to over 5.50%. Quite a shock and it will require a cutback in spending and/or increasing income for many to cope. Some may request interest-only repayments for a period – although that increases principal and interest repayments in the future – or extend the loan term or even have to sell at some stage. One thing that may help in the short term is to look at the possibility of refinancing your mortgage at the refix time. We note that some banks have been offering up to 1% cashback to incentivise borrowers to use that bank, such is the drop-off in demand for new money. So if someone has an $800k mortgage, they could get $8k to refinance the loan, which is quite a benefit in the short term (less legal fees of course) – just something to consider.
Mortgage advice. Check with us first.
Contact Mike Simpson on 021 283 8040 or mike.simpson@mortgagesupply.co.nz or contact Richard Trounson on 027 580 1004 or richard.trounson@mortgagesupply.co.nz
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BAYLEYS REAL ESTATE LTD, DEVONPORT, LICENSED UNDER THE REA ACT 2008
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By Rob Drent
The late-great Kiwi journalist Warwick Roger was always a fan of conducting interviews in subject’s homes, to glean further insights into their lives. So, last week, I headed out to chat to Willy de Wit in his Devon Park apartment in Stanley Point, and can report it was immaculately clean and uncluttered (“I’m a bit OCD,” de Wit volunteered).
On his office wall, among his awards and other memorabilia, was a framed Flagstaff front page from 1998, which featured a picture of him behind a lime leather couch, with a Funny Business record. The caption pointed to a full interview inside. De Wit said the piece captured him at his peak – and also made him feel accepted in a community he still loves.
It seems he still has a penchant for leather furniture, though his white lounge suite of today perhaps reflects a greater maturity. I’m also happy to report that de Wit – despite his trials and tribulations – retains all the warmth and humour that shone in our previous interviews.
He says he’s open to meeting a new woman: “A Flagstaff reader, of course.” Funny Business guaranteed.
Pride of place... Willy de Wit with the Flagstaff front page on which he appeared in 1998
The A Fresh Approach ticket took four of the six seats on the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board in the recent elections – the first time such a ticket has swept to power.
On the plus side, this should stop the endless bickering and, at times, points-scoring that plagued the last two divided boards, and lead to more streamlined decision-making.
The muddled decision on the future of the Devonport Bowling Club will be rescinded.
On the negative side, ticket leader and likely board chair Toni van Tonder has been a strong advocate for taking the board workshops back behind closed doors, away from public and media scrutiny.
The theory is council officers can talk freely with board members, to thrash out the pros and cons of projects before logical plans are made.
In practice though, poor or ill-conceived ideas from city hall can rapidly gain legs, when they would easily be snuffed out by early exposure and public debate. Budget blowouts, council inefficiencies and profligacy are also more easily concealed.
As former board chair Ruth Jackson pointed out in the election campaign, the workshops are the “meat and potatoes” of the board process, where the real business is done, while the board meetings often rubber-stamp workshop plans.
I’ve always believed transparency and scrutiny of council officials and local-board members is a fundamental part of democracy.
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This should happen from the earliest stage: the board workshops.
Another tricky issue is that newly elected A Fresh Approach member Terence Harpur intends to keep his job as chief executive of the Takapuna Beach Business Association.
In theory, he can declare an interest in board matters affecting the association. But it is a bit more complicated than that. For example, if potential funding for events in Devonport or Milford town centres are being debated, a yay or nay could affect how much money Takapuna may receive.
Harpur will no doubt bend over backwards to be fair, but how this is policed may pose a few difficult questions for board officials.
The power of the internet never ceases to amaze. I was recently on the Auckland Council website looking for some documents and came across an Auckland Libraries search function. As I’m working on a family history, I keyed in ‘Drent’, and was amazed at what turned up: six photos of my father as a teenager, and his two younger siblings, taken in 1949 at the Papatoetoe Orphan Home, where they were placed in care during WWII. The photos don’t turn up in a general Google search.
Anyone interested in their family history in Sports Briefs Auckland should try the libraries site to see what might be revealed there. The library archives are another ratepayer-funded service I’m highly appreciative of.
Creative Sounds
Bunkers at Fort Takapuna will play host to a sound installation next week by local spatial artist Sarah Burrell and sonic practitioner Tony Woods. From 24-30 October, playing from noon to 6pm each day, the interactive work will transform the public spaces into “acoustic devices” in which sound is progressively recorded and replayed, building up an ambient looping composition. Called Sounding Publicis, the project aims to explore public space with temporary creative interventions.
Bayswater’s Kate Williams, a top rugby player since her schooldays, is competing in a second international rugby competition underway at the moment in Auckland – for Defence Force personnel.
Navy Sub-Lieutenant Williams, is co-captain of the New Zealand combined-forces team, the Defence Ferns, which will play against teams from seven other nations in the women’s International Defence Rugby Competition.
The event, a first, is timed to run in parallel with the Women’s Rugby World Cup hosted in New Zealand.
“This feels like a pinnacle for our women in rugby,” Williams said. “We’ve always talked about something like this, so it’s cool that it is finally happening.”
After missing play for North Harbour this season – “with the Navy I was away during the Farah Palmer Cup” – flanker Williams is relishing the opportunity to get back into competitive rugby.
The Defence event began the day before the Rugby World Cup, with New Zealand beating France, 22-10. All the service personnel were invited to attend the opening cup games at Eden Park, before resuming their own three-weeklong competition.
Twenty-two-year-old Williams said the Defence competition is a welcome chance to build relationships with personnel from elsewhere, particularly the Pacific.
“I feel really proud and humbled by it. It’s so cool to co-captain with my friend [Corporal Hayley Hatana].
Games begin with the Defence Force haka and the team has a great work ethic, Williams said.
After getting through what was probably the toughest game in their pool, the Defence Ferns hope to make the final, with the teams from the United Kingdom and Australia looming as their biggest challenge.
Fiji, Tonga, and a combined team from Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu are also included.
Sports Briefs Since her days at Takapuna Grammar
Catching a lift... Kate Williams and teammates prepare for a lineout in training ahead of the Defence Ferns’ first match in the International Defence Rugby Competition
School, Williams has been a regional rugby representative. She was named the school’s Sportswoman of the Year in 2017, the same year she first made the Harbour Hibiscus side, which she captained in 2020 and 2021.
“I just love playing,” she said. “I still have aspirations to go further with my rugby.”
For now, she is happy to juggle the sport with her Navy career. She signed up in 2018 and serves as a warfare officer.
“My job is to drive the ship under the direction of the navigator and captain,” she explained. She also gets to launch helicopters. Next year, she hopes to be back in the Harbour team and longer-term she might try her luck playing overseas. Williams said Navy fitness training keeps her in trim for rugby, even if she is at sea and can’t play. “When I’m ashore and alongside, I take as much opportunity as I can to get involved with friends going to the gym and with Harbour.” Home is in Navy housing in Bayswater with her partner, near where she grew up.
TGS runner snares US scholarship
Takapuna Grammar School runner Samantha Korck has won an American sports scholarship. In mid-2023, she will take up the fouryear athletic and academic opportunity at St Joseph’s, a private university in Philadelphia, where she will study towards a Bachelor of Science in exercise physiology. This month, Samantha was in the Auckland City Athletics Club women’s under-20 team which placed second at the national Road Relay Championships in Christchurch. The versatile athlete has competed in sprints, middle-distance and cross-country events with distinction.
Local throwers in early season form
Personal-best (PB) throws were recorded by two young peninsula athletes as the athletics season cranks into gear.
Junior titleholders Kate Hallie, aged 15, from Devonport, and Connor Brady, aged 11, from Bayswater, recently competed in both discus and shot put for Takapuna Athletics Club in the Throws Spring Series at AUT Millennium.
Kate’s PB came with a 3kg shot, recording 15.4m. Connor threw a 4kg shot 11.2m and the 1kg discuss 35.12m. He threw a third PB in javelin, reaching 38.97m with a 500g spear.
Front-rower steps up
Promising North Shore Rugby Club prop Sam Davies (pictured) made big inroads into the provincial rugby scene this season making the North Harbour match-day squad for its final games. The Hauraki 20-year-old, who went to Rosmini College, came off the bench in the last few matches, including in North Harbour’s 21-18 loss to Auckland in the National Provincial Championship.
Table-tennis wins gives teen’s holidays a golden glow
Takapuna Grammar School student Carrie Guo (pictured in action) was happy to give up school holiday time to play in both the senior and junior national table tennis championships – securing golds in both events.
The Year 10 student won the under-19 national singles title at the senior nationals without dropping a game through the quarter -finals and semi-finals, but was tested in the final against second seed Joanna Yang, who had also progressed to the final unchallenged.
Carrie came from two games down (7-11, 3-11) to dig deep and win the third, 11-7, before a closely contested and long fourth game which the 14-year-old showed maturity in winning against the odds, 16-14. She then won the deciding game, 11-8, taking the gold.
As the top seed in the under-15 singles at the junior championships, Carrie found her path to gold easier, not dropping a set on her way to the title.
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Darlinks! Local fashionistas ready for big night
Devonport’s glam squad has been hard at work pulling together Fashion on the Wharf.
The annual charity show and fun, dress-up evening out, on Thursday 20 October, is only made possible by the efforts of volunteers. All their hard work culminates in a runway showcase featuring clothes and accessories from 10 local businesses.
Show director Laura Foote has spent the last few months finding 32 volunteer models and organising hair and make-up teams and music for the big night, when she has the backstage job of cueing models to step out in style.
Foote has garments from her own Echo boutique in the line-up, but is doing the work as a member of the Devonport Business Association (DBA), which stages the event. The show is back for a third time – with sponsorship and a live auction arranged by Harcourts, which supports Breast Cancer Cure as its charity of choice.
Harcourts auctioneer and entertainer Shane Cortese is the master of ceremonies. Entertainment is by The Madeleines, a stylish trio of singers whose feelgood repertoire ranges from 1920s jazz through war-era classics to rock ’n’ roll.
The 300 tickets were mostly snapped up well in advance, Foote said. A sellout was expected, but people could “try their luck”, she said, for any remaining general-admission spots.
A feature of this year’s event is that all paying guests take home a goodie bag, which in previous years was a treat reserved for those seated up front in the positions around the runway set up in a transformed ferry terminal.
Models had a run-through last Monday, in preparation for the show. They ranged from Takapuna Grammar School students to mature locals, with the aim of showing clothing to suit all ages. Male models also feature, including Harcourts local branch manager Matt Hunt.
A Devonport graduate of the Cut Above Academy, Siobhan Taylor, is responsible for the make-up look – a modernised 1940s vintage glamour. The academy has provided its students to help with hair as well, working from the former Homestyle Depot store on Victoria Rd, before the models head upstairs in the ferry terminal for dressing.
Foote said as well as fashion retailers Cose Fan Tutte, Blue Illusions, Sills & Co, Echo boutique, Yarntons for Men and Women, and Annah Stretton, the Hospice Shop Devonport is back again to show how second-hand garments can be given a new lease of life. Devonport Optometrists are adding a range of eyewear to the event for the first time and Devonport Flowers is also involved. Their bouquets, floral crowns and boutonnieres, will set off a bridal-themed finale. “My February wedding dress is going on a model,” added Foote.
For anyone looking for fashion inspiration on what to wear, Foote said shop local and “dress up Devonport”.
The spring-summer fashion forecast is looking bright, she says. “Bold colour, including hot pink, and navy replaces black when it comes to summer”, are her tips for those hoping to be fashion-forward.
Upcycled... Ceyda Sarikaya, 17, and Pearl Nicholson, 16, in vintage garments from the Devonport Hospice store. The two Takapuna Grammar School students are keen opshoppers and have been volunteers at the store, which is supplying outfits for Fashion on the Wharf. Ceyda will also be modelling.
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This superb executive residence has sensational water views over Ngataringa Bay, and the magnificent Auckland City Skyline. Without a doubt this is the ‘Pick of the Crop ’ of premiumqualityBayswaterhomes.Thepropertyalsohasaccesstoalittlesecretsandy cove down on the water. With the Bayswater City Ferry Service and Marina just a few minutesdowntheroad,youhaveeasyaccesstotheCBDplusallthefabulousamenities onofferintheAucklandViaduct.DevonportVillageandTakapunashoppingcentreare equidistantfromyourhomeandtherearegreatlocalschoolsinthishighlysought-after area.Thesubstantialmainhomeisaccessedviaaprivatedrivewayandboastsexpansive open plan living leading to an outer entertaining deck, a fabulous ‘ chefs kitchen ’ with butler ’ s pantry, wine cellar, and of course, some of the best water views on Auckland’ s North Shore. High quality fixtures and fittings abound, with welcoming Otago ‘Schist Stone’pillars,designeroutdoorlighting,andcentralheatingtonamebutafew.Across thegarden,youwillfindyourveryownsaltwaterswimmingpoolandthe ‘ poolhouse’. 4+1 3+1 2+1 4
DeadlineSale
Wednesday9thNovemberat4:00pm (UnlessSoldPrior) ViewSat/Sun3.00pm-3.45pm Thu5.30pm-6.30pm harcourts.co.nz/DP24285
IanCunliffe M0272279322 ian.cunliffe@harcourts.co.nz
Devonport-Takapuna Local Board members
PETER ALLEN
TERENCE HARPUR
TONI VAN TONDER GAVIN BUSCH
MELISSA POWELL
GEORGE WOOD
Auckland councillors for North Shore ward
CHRIS DARBY RICHARD HILLS
Councillors face ‘job interviews’
North Shore’s two re-elected Auckland councillors, Richard Hills and Chris Darby, face job auditions with new Mayor Wayne Brown.
As chairs of council committees, Hills (environment and climate change) and Darby (planning) may yet fall victim to Brown’s promised shake-up as he meets councillors on the composition of what is a more divided governing body.
Top-polling Hills noted his vote had grown since 2019, which he put down to campaigning positively and being available over the last three years. He said he had offered the mayor his support and hoped to continue his efforts around water quality, environment and public transport.
Darby said public transport, plagued by staff shortages, would be a focus. Third-placed council candidate Danielle Grant was re-elected to the Kaipatiki Local Board.
New brooms... The winning A Fresh Approach team of (left to right) Melissa Powell, Terence Harpur, Toni van Tonder and Peter Allen – pictured on the jetty at Lake Pupuke – have secured four of six seats on the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board. They hail from a broad geographic spread of the area, giving northern areas more voice
Changing of the guard
Half of the previous Devonport-Takapuna Local Board have been swept from their seats, with voters delivering a mandate for change to the now dominant A Fresh Approach ticket.
Its leader and returning board member, Toni van Tonder, was the second-highest polling candidate and is set to chair the six-person board. She brings in three new faces with her: Terence Harpur, Melissa Powell and Peter Allen.
Veteran politician George Wood topped the poll, reflecting both his high profile and a citywide swing to centre-right candidates. Gavin Busch, was elected in sixth place, joining Wood under the Community and Residents (C&R) banner, with its third candidate, Mike Single, polling close behind.
The Heart of the Shore ticket, including board chair Ruth Jackson, was dumped after a tetchy term.
Van Tonder said she wanted a more collaborative approach around the board table this term and had been in touch with Wood, despite their having some policy differences.
Wood identified areas he was confident the teams could work on, such as determining the future of Takapuna community assets, and others, such as Lake Rd, which he hoped would be discussed further.
Questioning the Lake Rd design and speaking out on crime were, he believed, reasons, he had topped the poll.
Van Tonder put A Fresh Approach’s success down to its people being positive and connected to their communities, from Sunnynook to Devonport.
Both gave a shout-out to their unelected candidates: C&R’s Single (who polled seventh) and Zane Catterall of A Fresh Approach (ninth).
Asked about the allocation of board roles, van Tonder said she wanted to get together with all those elected, rather than presume anything at this stage. Each person brought professional skills to the table, with Wood also having vast council experience.
“I hope we can settle on what’s best for the community and for the board.”
The new board had the first of a series of briefings with Auckland Council staff this week. It will formalise appointments, including chair and deputy, at its first monthly business meeting to be held mid-November.
Voting in Devonport-Takapuna was above the citywide turnout of 35.5 per cent of 1,142,237 million eligible voters. Locally, 43.4 per cent of 43,567 voters returned their ballots. This was up more than two percentage points on the 2019 local turnout. The national turnout was under 40 per cent.
Wood said it was a shame the majority of people did not vote. “The whole community is really dependent on local government.”
Outgoing Jackson and long-serving Jan O’Connor, who fell from second-highest polling candidate last term, did not respond by deadline to a request to talk about the results.
But Heart of the Shore’s top-polling candidate, Trish Deans (eighth), said she had already been asked to help with community issues and would stay involved.
“I just feel we did an honest job and no regrets – we have to do things for the whole community, not just part of it,” Deans said.
Hard work had been done on submssions on intensfication and the Bayswater marina, she said. The future of Takapuna library was a live issue.
On its website, the team said it was naturally disappointed and thanked backers for “lifting us up in a long and bruising campaign”.
It added: “This isn’t goodbye.”
A surprisingly clear-cut result clean-bowled one team and elevated another, writes Janetta Mackay
We had an informal office sweep on the local-board election results and no one called it.
Yes, there was clearly a mood for change, but even among the candidates, few were confident of securing victory.
For years now, the local board has been divided. But last term, simmering issues flared more into the public domain.
Good work through consensus was lost in the wash, as predictable policy disagreements morphed into “line in the sand” intransigence.
Two issues stand out as capturing the public’s attention.
Heart of the Shore’s silly shilly-shallying about the siting by Panuku of temporary toilets in Potters Park, Takapuna – which are still not in place – drew widespread ridicule.
The awarding of a lease for continued storage to Devonport Museum on a section of the Devonport Domain that North Shore cricket and rugby clubs thought they had wholly secured to provide more sports facilities, particularly for women, drew the ire of the clubs. They told their memberships about it.
But the bigger paralysis has been around issues – such as the future of Takapuna community assets – which must be decided, not just resisted or relitigated, as has been a pattern with too many matters, including the in-progress Takapuna town square development.
Yes, Panuku and Auckland Transport decision-making does need scrutiny and local-board rights need to be upheld.
But this is better done by a persuasive board that comes across as credible – not just crabby.
Whether the new board proves to be capable of this, time will tell, but Heart of the Shore lost the room and ultimately the vote.
Committed community representatives depart as a result. Now it’s time for others to step up.
On the campaign trail… new Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown (left) and George Wood, the top-polling candidate in the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board race, spent an afternoon in Devonport ahead of the localbody elections – grabbing a copy of the Flagstaff’s election special on their travels
Candidate support by the numbers
MAYOR OF AUCKLAND
CANDIDATE VOTES
Wayne Brown, Fix Auckland 181,810 Efeso Collins, Independent 124,802 Craig Lord, Independent 25,021 *Twenty more candidates each returned under 10,000 votes (ranging from 460 votes to 8718).
AUCKLAND COUNCIL – NORTH SHORE (two councillors elected from seven standing)
CANDIDATE VOTES
Richard Hills, A Positive Voice for the Shore 19,269
Chris Darby, For the Shore 17,123
Danielle Grant, Community and Residents North Shore (C&R) 14,584
George Wood, C&R 12,009 Tony Bunting, Independent 4370 Raymond Tan 3857 Adrian Tyler 3270 Informal votes 55 Blank votes 1182 DEVONPORT-TAKAPUNA LOCAL BOARD (six members elected from 20 standing)
CANDIDATE
VOTES
George Wood, C&R 7564 Toni van Tonder, A Fresh Approach 7443 Terence Harpur, A Fresh Approach 6660 Melissa Powell, A Fresh Approach 6239 Peter Allen, A Fresh Approach 6072 Gavin Busch, C&R 6058 Mike Single, C&R 5665 Trish Deans, Heart of the Shore 5488 Zane Catterall, A Fresh Approach 5202 Jan O’Connor, Heart of the Shore 4948 John Maidment, Heart of the Shore 4894 Ruth Jackson, Heart of the Shore 4535 Bridget Thrussell, Heart of the Shore 3252 Kevin Brett, SOS – Save our Shore 3150 Tony Bunting, Independent 2964 Kurt Keiller, SOS – Save Our Shore 1588 Sam Welsh, SOS – Save Our Shore 1291 Michele McGregor, Independent 1285 Cherie Keiller, SOS – Save Our Shore 1250 Kent Tregonning, Independent 937 Informal votes 39 Blank votes 1484
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Spectacular Devonport apartment
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Auction (unless sold prior)
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NEW LISTING NEW LISTINGNEW LISTING
Cheltenham 29 Tainui Road Cheltenham 29 Tainui RoadCheltenham 29 Tainui R
Immaculate and easy-care near the beach
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