15 September 2023 Rangitoto Observer

Summer of dredging looms for Rangitoto channel

Beachgoers will be in for a less picturesque view of Rangitoto this summer, while the channel is dredged to allow bigger freight ships into the country.

The Rangitoto Channel is being deepened from a minimum depth of 12.5 metres at low tide to 14 metres.

Work is scheduled to begin before the end of the year and is tide and weather dependent. It could take up to 12 months.

Ports of Auckland head of communications Julie Wagener told the Observer ships using the channel can today carry 5000 20-foot containers, but shipping lines want to start

bringing in vessels with 6000 to 7000 containers in the next two to three years.

In the future, Auckland will have to accommodate new ‘Panamax’ ships – a description related to size limits for ships travelling through the Panama Canal – that can carry around 12,000

Young organisers hammer a Thor point

To page 3

Likely lads... Nathan Montgomery dressed as Elmo and Theo Powell as Thor at Sunnynook Park before the start of the month-long Sunnynook “marathon” the local schoolboys have volunteered to keep going for the community. Story, page 7.

Cost of living

We’ve extended 20 hours free Early Childhood Education to two-year-olds, helping families with the cost of childcare. Reducing power bills by making homes more energy efficient with the Warmer Kiwi Homes programme, as well as helping over a million people through the Winter Energy Payment.

Safety

We’re keeping our communities safe, delivering an additional 16% more Police officers in Auckland since 2017, and expanding community policing teams across the Shore.

We’re supporting North Shore retailers via the recently expanded Fog Cannon Subsidy Scheme, and through the Retail Crime Prevention Programme which we’ve more than doubled our investment into. We’ve also expanded a circuit breaker programme targeting recidivist child offenders into Auckland City.

A new voice for the shore

Authorised by Rob Salmond, 187 Featherston Street, Wellington.

George Hampton

Transport

The Additional Waitematā Harbour Connections project will start in 2029, this is a crucial link in our community and will create up to 97,000 new jobs.

We’re permanently cutting public transport costs for young Kiwis, making public transport free for children under13s, and half price for under 25s.

Health

We’ve invested in mental health locally, through opening E Tū Tanekaha, Waitematā DHB’s new 15-bed specialist mental health unit at the Mason Clinic, and helping Shore Junction support local youth aged 13–24 through the Youth Mental Wellbeing Fund.

The North Shore Hospital upgrade in 2018 saw the Government invest $200 million into a new elective surgery unit comprising of 120 hospital beds and four operating theatres.

Get

in touch:

/georgehamptonnz

Development supersizing to 16 storeys approved

An expansion of the Amaia apartment development on Esmonde Rd – with extra blocks of up to 16 storeys – has been approved by an independent hearings panel.

The decision, following a hearing in May, is despite an Auckland Council planner recommending the site height should not exceed 12 storeys.

It allows greatly expanded coverage of the old Harbourside Church site, with developer KBS Capital planning extra blocks in addition to those already under construction, which range up to seven storeys. Heights

will peak at the centre of the site.

The scale of the development drew multiple objections, with traffic and environmental concerns among issues raised.

Hauraki residents, the Takapuna Residents Association (TRA), the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board and Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society were among 58 submitters after the plans were notified last year.

The developer sought a new precinct to allow the expansion. It was approved by the panel, chaired by Peter Reaburn, with a few modifications.

Digger on barge will be dredging for up to a year

From page 1

containers, she said. Another stage of dredging will be required to accommodate them.

Wagener said a digger on a barge will be used to deepen the channel. The seabed was mostly soft material, such as mud, mudstone, sandstone and gritstone which do not require blasting to dredge.

Dredgings will be disposed of at a deep-water site near Cuvier Island in the Coromandel.

The Hauraki Gulf Forum chief executive, Alex Rogers, said the dredging would have a large impact on the environment in the channel, but worse outcomes were risked if it didn’t go ahead.

Leaving the channel as it is could result in a bigger ship running aground and spilling oil.

“That wouldn’t be good for us or anyone.”

The channel has been dredged multiple times before, making it one of the most degraded areas of the Hauraki Gulf, Rogers said. While the impact wouldn’t be as bad as dredging a coral reef, it would still be significant, he said.

The dredging caught the attention of Devonport-Takapuna Local Board member George Wood, who alerted his fellow board members to the impending work.

The board has sought a presentation from Auckland Council marine-protection staff and the Auckland Harbourmaster on the likely impact to people using the area, the impact on marine life, plans in place for unexpected incidents and the ability of residents to report concerns.

A boardwalk around the coastal edge of the site has been amended to provide a clifftop path instead. The panel considered public access around the coast and to non-residential activities on site were provided for.

The “island-like” nature of the site, proximity to Takapuna, access to public transport and the plan giving effect to a government intensification push all made it appropriate for greater intensification, the panel said.

Stepped design and separation from other homes would “offset potential adverse effects of building height and mass”. New

Clearing the way..... A map shows where dredging is planned to allow larger ships a clear passage to enter the Waitematā through the channel between the North Shore and Rangitoto

Petition launched in alarm at coastal path threat

A petition urging Auckland Council and Mayor Wayne Brown to safeguard the Takapuna to Milford coastal track has been launched by the Takapuna Residents Association (TRA).

Prompted by concern in the wider community, the association wants access to the full length of the track guaranteed.

This follows a threat by a lawyer acting for beneficiaries of the Firth estate to close a section of the track, where it crosses their land at Black Rock, from 29 September unless council deals with matters first raised years ago.

The threat stood, lawyer Alex Witten-Hannah said last week. He is dismayed at receiving no substantive council response, despite beneficiaries offering to gift a 1.5-metre strip of coastal land to the council.

TRA chair Steven Salt said the depth of the feeling in the community had prompted the petition on change.org.

The TRA recently met with the Milford and

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Castor Bay residents groups, both of whom shared concerns about coastal access and maintenance generally.

Milford Residents Association co-chair Debbie Dunsford, a keen local historian, said people had been walking the coastal track between the suburbs for at least 100 years. “There’s been an informal track there for forever,” she said. “I just cannot believe we are sitting here with the option on the table of closing that.”

The Observer has previously revealed the track crosses 73 private properties, which opens a can of worms in regard to ongoing public access and maintenance.

The council manager for northern area operations for parks and community facilities, Sarah Jones, said: “Auckland Council is responsible for maintaining limited sections of this informal walkway – the concrete path near Milford and the hoggin [limestone] path at Takapuna.”

Repairs to damage in these sections was being investigated, she said. “If major work is required, it will be included in the next paths and walkways renewals project.”

But the Firth land and other areas do not fit into this category. Maintenance along the track has previously been raised by property owners, who in some cases have land boundaries stretching to or beyond the tide line – some with fences separating the bulk of their properties from the shoreline path.

Dunsford said losing public access to the track would fly in the face of council goals. “The politicians are just going to have to wake up and get behind this.”

Witten-Hannah wants a heritage listing on the property removed, so the beneficiaries can sell it. If genuine talks began then action on the fence might be staved off, but the ball was in council’s court, he said. “Because there has been no approach from council, planning is under way to create a robust fence.”

Officials reminded of local flood pain

The plight of flood-hit North Shore residents awaiting information on buy-outs and remediation has been hammered home to Auckland Council’s Recovery Office.

“A lot of people are in limbo and in really, really bad spaces,” Devonport-Takapuna Local Board member Peter Allen said at a workshop this month. “Everyone feels like it’s a vacuum,” said member Gavin Busch.

They were responding to an update by council stakeholder specialist Caroline Tauevihi on the Recovery Office’s work, including a two-week consultation now under way on flood remediation plans. “I was conscious that Milford perhaps hasn’t had as much love as some other areas [of the city],” she said at the start of the presentation.

Sunnynook was in the same boat, said board member Mel Powell. “We have 80-year-olds in our community still trying

to dig stuff out of their drains.”

Residents felt they were not being listened to and were frustrated they could not get the information they needed, she said.

Allen said homeowners wanted buy-out timelines, not a consultation, he said. Some families were in their third rental property.

Board chair Toni van Tonder said board members needed to be in a position to answer the public’s questions. “We need more than a flyaway email with a few headings. We need detail.”

Two recent Healthy Waters events to update the public had not been well advertised, van Tonder said. Powell described this as a “real missed opportunity”.

Member George Wood said issues in Castor Bay, where cliffs had slipped and a man had been washed into a culvert, seemed to have “left out a bit” in the council response.

Church plans $4-million upgrade of local landmark

A prominent Takapuna building, St Peter’s Anglican Church, is in line for a $4-million upgrade to meet earthquake-strengthening standards, fix leaks and make it more functional for the parish and wider community.

The parish is raising money for the preservation and renovation of the 60-year-old heritage-listed Killarney St building, with its distinctive bell tower overlooking Lake Pupuke and central Takapuna.

The tower, which is visible from many other parts of the North Shore, is said to have had the church affectionately regarded as ‘the Cathedral of the North Shore’.

Auckland Council rates it a Category B heritage building, and a significant example of mid-20th century modern ecclesiastical design, demonstrating “both Dutch Modernist and Romanesque influences”.

Many Takapuna people have family links to the church, which these days has a congregation of about 150. It is also highly valued for its acoustics, having provided a venue for the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, among many other classical-music ensembles and choirs.

However, a seismic assessment in 2020 found the church earthquake prone, rating it at only 20 per cent of new building standards. At the same time, the building is showing its age, with a leaking roof and rusty window frames among issues in need of attention.

“The church is tired,” says the parish treasurer and project coordinator Willie Townend.

The bell tower – from which the bell sounds across Takapuna every Sunday morning – is one of the areas suffering worst from leaks.

Phase 1 of the project, costing some $3 million, will focus on structural reinforcement, replacing the roof to make the building watertight, drainage and electrical work. For around another $1 million, phase 2 will create a mezzanine meeting area at the north-eastern end of the church, and add offices, a lift, hospitality area, kitchen and toilets.

The effect will be to bring all church activities within the footprint of the church itself, which Townend says offers “strategic flexibility” for the future.

The church, its hall and a vicarage occupy an Anglican Diocese-owned site that was

part of a three-acre property donated to the church by the family of Sir Henry and Lady Brett in 1928.

Townend said the church has considered but decided against selling off part of the

Canoe club wins $800k for Pupuke clubrooms project

The North Shore Canoe Club has picked up $800,000 of council funding for its $1.2 million clubrooms-extension project on the shores of Lake Pupuke.

Under the project, the club building will be extended at both levels, with bathroom and changing spaces upgraded and remodelled for gender balance, roofing and joinery maintenance undertaken and asbestos cladding removed.

The council money was included in $13 million allocated to 17 projects across Auckland from a sport-and-recreation facilities investment fund.

The canoe club was the only beneficiary in the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board area, and one of only three on the North Shore.

site to fund the project. It has close to $2 million set aside, he says, but needs to raise the remainder.

“We’re not going to push the button until we have got the money in the bank.”

Residents urged to report pest plant found near lake

The balloon vine pest plant has been discovered near Lake Pupuke, putting residents’ other plantings at risk. Pupuke Birdsong environmental coordinator Tabitha Becroft said the plant, which has white flower, poses a serious threat as it smothers all other plant species and spreads rapidly. Anyone finding it is asked to contact Auckland Council biosecurity advisor Lydia Starr (lydia.starr@ aucklandcouncil.govt.nz.

Mid-century modern... St Peter’s Church preservation and renovation project co-ordinator Willie Townend (left) and its vicar Nathan de Senna outside the heritage-protected Killarney St building

Balloon vine (Cardiospermum grandiflorum and C.halicacabum)

Schoolboys save community run Briefs

Two Sunnynook teens have stepped up to save a popular community event previously shelved for 2023.

The Sunnynook Marathon challenges participants to walk or run 42km over the course of a month. Most do this by laps of Sunnynook Park or neighbourhood streets.

The event was started by the Sunnynook Community Association in 2021 and proved popular during Auckland’s Covid lockdown, as it fitted within outdoor gathering rules.

It attracted more than 150 people of all ages in its first year and was a drawcard again last year.

But with volunteer association members not having the time to commit to it this year, only Theo Powell and Nathan Montgomery’s willingness to step forward has allowed it to go ahead.

The two Year 12 students at Westlake Boys High School – who help out at the Sunnynook Community Centre with its school holiday programme – have both done the marathon previously and experienced its benefits.

“It was kind of big for me,” said Theo, who first participated in 2021. “Because it was in lockdown, and I wasn’t really into fitness that much, and I feel like doing it helped me start that.”

It got him into long-distance running, he said. “I ran a half-marathon after that and got more into fitness.” .

Nathan said he stepped up to running regularly from September last year, encouraged by seeing what Theo – a friend from Sunnynook Primary School days – was achieving.

He hopes the event will help more people in the community get into exercising.

The event was launched at the beginning of the month, with a Friday-night community run and walk, and will end the month in the same way – with dress-up costumes optional.

In between times, people can do the dis-

Stairway to nowhere

Joining in... Forrest Hill mother Singsing Wood and son Sebastian are excited to be participating in the marathon for the first time

tance at their own time and pace, signing up online through the Sunnynook Community Centre.

Theo said it was a fantastic community event which would have been a great loss had it not gone ahead.

“When I heard it wasn’t going to be continuing I felt a bit bad about it.”

The pair plan to spice up the last night by encouraging more fancy-dress costumes, prizes and a sausage sizzle.

They said their community had lost other events, such as Movies in the Park and a carnival and had done it tough following the Auckland Anniversary floods.

Something was needed to boost spirits, with many residents only getting their flood repairs finished now.

“We just got our carpet put in after eight months,” Theo said.

“We lost our car so we’ve had to walk a lot more,” said Nathan. “I guess you could say that’s another influence on my fitness.”

The washed-out stairs at Kennedy Park in Castor Bay will not be fixed this year, even if reports recommend replacement. Auckland Council staff are assessing storm-repair options, but say detailed investigations are expected to take six months, partly due to the limited availability of geotech specialists to support the work. The northern manager for parks and community facilities, Sarah Jones, said matters being looked at were long-term geotechnical stability, coastalaction impacts and climate-change implications, along with community use, alternative-access locations, cost and consenting challenges. Once this was done, the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board would consider staff recommendations, most likely early next year. If a consent to do the work was sought and obtained, construction might be able to start in 2024, Jones said.

Gas leak halts traffic

A gas leak off Killarney St that caused traffic diversions over several blocks of Takapuna was related to nearby construction. A Vector line was hit in Ander Pl, sparking a fire and emergency callout on 29 August, with roads from Anzac St back to Lake Pupuke cordoned off. Ryman, which is building a retirement village on the old fire station site, had to shut off machinery and close its construction site early while the leak was being fixed. A Ryman spokesperson understood a Vector contractor hit the line on public land as part of work towards installing high-voltage ducting to feed a new transformer for the development. Vector did not respond to Observer queries.

Sign-envy and beard provide points of interest at

A surprisingly low-key opening to the candidates-meeting season in the North Shore electorate last week had the event moderator pleading for the audience to inject some energy into proceedings.

After giving a quiet reception to six candidates’ opening statements at the Devonport Community House, the crowd of more than 100 was told not to be afraid of making some noise.

“I don’t want to see you falling asleep,” said moderator Lynn Lawton.

The unexcited mood perhaps owed something to the nonchalance of the incumbent in the seat, National’s Simon Watts, who carried the air of a seasoned veteran – despite being a first-term opposition MP.

Watts ran breezily through his CV of business and other experience, threw in a reference to still “jumping on an ambulance” in his sideline as a paramedic, reeled off his portfolio responsibilities and ticked off his party’s campaign talking points on the economy, law and order, and health and education, in fairly perfunctory fashion.

Perhaps, given National’s strong polling, and with a role in government so tantalisingly close, he could be forgiven for not bringing fireworks to the occasion.

Nor did Labour’s George Hampton, it has to be said. The diplomatic high-flyer and Mr Whippy owner had his own packed CV to be casually showcased and party-line points to deliver. But initially, at least, his performance hardly bristled with the energy of someone expecting to make it to Wellington at his first attempt. In his case, Labour’s poor polling might have dialled down expectations.

Still, he hadn’t lost his sense of humour, drawing attention to his “very small sign”, propped on a chair, which compared so unfavourably with the full-length roll-up models brought by the Act, Green and NZ First candidates. A supporter later held the modest placard behind Hampton as he spoke,

only partly obscuring the prominent Act sign which loomed over him.

The woman depicted on that sign, Act’s North Shore candidate and Devonport resident Anna Yallop, has her own impressive track record, ranging across business and science and innovation and including a master’s degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice. She seemed to have been genuinely shocked by the lack of accountability she had encountered in dealings with the public sector. At one department on a fishing industry initiative, she had dealt with 17 different people in three years. “Not one of those people wanted to make a decision.” But the impact of that personal testimony was often lost in her reading at length from notes, something she’ll need to abandon to enjoy the success in politics she’s enjoyed elsewhere.

New Zealand First’s Michelle Warren, a former GP who retired from medicine, concerned about the centralisation of political

control over health, was another lacking political chops, often resorting to reading at length from prepared material. Still, despite being her party’s Northcote candidate (no North Shore candidate has been announced) she could boast a strong association with the eastern side of the motorway, having attended Belmont Primary, Belmont Intermediate and Takapuna Grammar School.

Warren condemned both a “tsunami of state control” following the arrival of Covid and the ideology she detected in co-governance. Later, in time-honoured New Zealand First fashion, she didn’t leave it too long before mentioning her leader and his track record as a “stabilising handbrake”.

The Opportunities Party (Top) candidate in the seat, Abe Gray, owner of the evening’s –surely the electorate’s – most luxuriant beard, was happy to wear his years campaigning for cannabis-law reform as a badge of pride. “I’ve been a tenacious battler, standing up

That’s commitment... North Shore Labour candidate George Hampton had his “very small” sign held up by a supporter at a candidates meeting last week. Below: Top candidate Abe Gray.

muted meeting

for what’s right,” he said, to a murmuring of support from like-minded members of the audience.

The US native’s often wry answers had the added advantage of brevity. He declined to use the full four minutes allocated for answering some questions, a timespan some others doggedly filled long after the audience’s attention had begun to waver.

Green Party candidate Darleen Tana, who is standing for the Māori seat Tāmaki Makaurau, on the other side of the harbour, asked us to “forgive the nerves” brought on by having her husband in the audience before displaying no nerves whatsoever. Her confidence was easily the equal of Watts’ and Hampton’s, and her deft crowd work stretched to throwing questions back at the audience for rhetorical effect. Her background is also impressive, including many years in the corporate world in Europe, and she didn’t bother with false modesty in indicating the magnitude of the projects she had been involved in or declaring that “implementation is really my thing”.

The crowd, among which grey heads predominated, eventually began to warm up, offering sporadic heckles and applause.

Overall, it may have skewed left, which could have limited the kind of anti-government outrage that tends to get these kinds of events stirred up. But it was a mixed enough audience that Yallop’s promotion of a move in support of landlords drew both boos and cheers of support.

The signs of life eventually seemed to rouse Hampton into a more combative mood. In answer to a question about local ferry services being cut, he accused Watts of inaction as the local MP. “I would absolutely be fighting for this.”

Watts wasn’t moved to respond in kind, his imperturbability suggesting he expects to soon have bigger fish to fry.

– Observer reporter

Bodyline by Guy Body

Shore rivals clash on environment

The National and Labour candidates for North Shore jousted over their parties’ environmental records at a debate in Takapuna last week.

Hosted by Forest and Bird at the Senior Citizens Hall, the event was also attended by Act list MP Simon Court, who is standing in Te Atatu, and Green Party Epsom candidate Xu-Nan.

But the North Shore rivals were prominent throughout, trading blows over a range of environmental issues.

The sniping extended to use of the term “turbo-charge”, which Hampton applied to Labour’s goal of a shift to entirely renewable energy by 2030, and Watts subsequently used in reference to National’s policy of reducing consent

times in the same sphere.

Hampton pointed out he had got to the phrase first, repeatedly raising the topic, to the crowd’s amusement.

The pair clashed more seriously over the proposed 19 new Hauraki Gulf protection areas included in legislation brought to Parliament last month, just three days before the House rose.

Watts said it had been rushed through to tick a box, and didn’t cover sedimentation, one of the main factors affecting the gulf. “While we support it, absolutely, the scope needs to be broader.”

Hampton said National had plenty of opportunity to act itself when it was in government but hadn’t done so.

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Community pitches in on art-project pom-poms

Milford community members and school students are pitching in to help the artist behind the striking silver Beacon sculpture on the beach reserve realise her latest project.

Lang Ea is looking to assemble 10,000 red pom-poms on a 100sqm mesh blanket, to wrap a gun emplacement for the upcoming Sculpture OnShore event at Fort Takapuna, near Narrow Neck Beach. The North Shore multi-media artist has until November to gather the pom-poms, but is well under way.

“It is an organic thing and all about the community getting together and doing it,” she says.

The Milford Residents Association put out a call for people to help out on Saturday, 2 September, drawing up to a dozen people at a time to help out and meet the artist.

Local resident Marijke Kanoester brought along her 11-year-old granddaughter, Zoe Waddingham, promising to later take her to see the finished artwork.

Students at Milford Primary School have also been winding wool around cardboard to tie and cut into pom-poms. Teacher Bev Boyd said it fitted in well with the school’s Art Week endeavours. Parents were also joining in.

In all, four Auckland schools involving around 1000 children are contributing to the project Ea calls Pop Bang Boom!

“It’s my biggest one yet,” she says.

She has used blood-red pom-poms previously, prettily strung as optical explosions in a pōhutukawa at Sculpture in the Gulf on Waiheke Island.

In returning to using them, Ea is continu-

ing to explore darker themes. “My work is all about war and conflict,” she says.

The word pom-pom itself is a name given to a light anti-aircraft gun used in World War 1, in reference to the sound it made.

But it also refers to the tactile and visually engaging object often attached to woolly hats.

During Sculpture OnShore, which runs

from 4-19 November, returning after a five-year hiatus, attendees will be able to contribute more pom-poms to the work.

Ea plans to provide places where people can make a pom-pom and add it to the base of the blanket at the gun emplacement. The event also includes a schools show in the historic fort, with 16 participating.

• Event details, nzsculptureonshore.co.nz

Team effort... Milford Primary School Year 5 students help North Shore artist Lang Ea (third from left) make pom-poms for her Sculpture OnShore project: (from left) Latsha Achari, Hunter Dunfford, Leah Dickson, Ryder Wiltshire, Xzayah Haerewa and Belle Hanlon

Crafty outing... Zoe Waddingham’s Saturday visit from Beachaven to see her grandmother Marijke Kanoester in Milford included a trip to the Milford Senior Citizen Club hall to help make pom-poms

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Westlake footballers snare historic quadruple Sport

Westlake Boys High’s first XI has won schoolboy football’s ‘quadruple’ of top-level trophies, including the national secondary-school title.

They sealed the achievement – a historic first for the school – with a 3-1 win against Selwyn College last Friday to take the Knockout Cup.

They won the Auckland premier title and the Alex Harvey Industries Trophy late last month, before beating St Peter’s 1-0 in the prestigious premier national tournament final in Christchurch a fortnight ago.

Head coach Dave Wright said that in winning all four trophies the players had achieved a goal they set at the start of the season.

Their national title – Westlake’s fourth –was won in extra time, after the score was tied 0-0 at the end of regulation time. The game looked as though it was heading to penalties when Westlake’s Damion Kim whipped in a corner, meeting the head of Finn McKenlay, who found the back of the net in the 19th minute of extra time.

Coach Dave Wright said tournaments were “a different beast”, with many variables, making the success two weekends ago particularly satisfying. “They are worthy winners. They played really well throughout the tournament.”

Wright said his side did very well to play

positively in every match, sometimes against teams who defended in very deep blocks. “My approach is I always want to play football in a positive way. I don’t want them kicking it long or playing with any fear or anxiety.”

Westlake scored 13 goals and conceded three during the tournament, winning all but one match, a draw in their final group stage game. They beat local rivals Rosmini College 2-1 in the round of 16, St Paul’s Collegiate of Hamilton 2-0 in the quarter-final and Mt Albert Grammar 2-0 in the semi-final.

The tournament format saw the team play seven games over five days, two 60-minute matches on the first two days and one 70-minute match a day for the last three.

Because of the scheduling, a big part of Westlake’s preparation going into the tournament was process and recovery, Wright said.

He said the coaching staff planned to rotate the squad heavily early in the tournament to prevent injury, took a physio with them and made sure there was a pool at the team motel for recovery after matches.

Fortunately, no players suffered major injuries, but other sides weren’t so lucky.

Wright said the 17-player squads schools are permitted are too small. Having more players could reduce injuries and give more players an opportunity. “We had players miss out who deserved to be there.”

The triumphant Westlake squad includes six year 13 students, but Wright isn’t worried about maintaining the side’s success in 2024.

The coach, who has coached professionally at the academies of English Premier League clubs Brentford and Fulham, said when he took on his role this year a main focus was integrating the first and second XIs.

The sides train together, and some second XI players were included in the first XI’s 24man squad list, so could play when needed.

Wright said this helped build a brotherhood through the whole football programme.

Players not regularly in the first XI still know the culture and playing style. With quality year 12s in the first and second XIs, and many talented younger players coming up through the ranks, replenishing the squad isn’t a worry, Wright said. “I’m really excited for next year.”

Westlake previously won the national title in 1985, 1996 and 2004.

The winning nationals squad: Ibraheem Bassiouni, Finn Carpenter, Bill Cui, Joel Elliott, Ray Ishihara, Damion Kim, Jayden Kim, Matt Knight, James Lee, Finn McKenlay, Conall McLean, Troy Putt, William Sherriff, Nikola Stoychev, Carlos Takayama, James Taylor and Jack Young. Nick Dale was assistant coach and Logan Douglas the manager, with

Eyes on the prize... Westlake Boys High School’s James Taylor steers the ball under defensive pressure in the national final, with Jayden Kim in suppport

Georgie Carroll the physio.

PHOTO: ASH WANASINGHE

Roll of honour... Captain James Cameron (sitting with photo) and (front row, from left): Travis Findlay, Luke Matson, Lee-Hanru Greyvensteyn, Tyler Pulini, Jay Dunne, Reimana Saunderson-Rurawhe, Iggy Iversen, Isaac Murray-Macgregor, Brooklyn Pohio, Casey Good and Solomone Tuitupou. Middle row: Harry Cornelius, Arlo Leith, Alex Vaaia, Kaiva Tulimanu, Blake Lidgard, Matereti Hoyt, Jeremiah Samoa, Sam Howarth, Hamish Gowans, Jordie Burbidge, Brody Good, JD Van Der Westhuizen, Taiga Kato,

Regional champ Westlake wins Moascar Cup and

Westlake Boys first XV returned to a standing ovation at assembly after reaching the final of the national secondary schools competition.

In the Top Four final in Palmerston North two weekends ago, Westlake was up 19-10 at halftime against Southland Boys High School, before going down 32-29.

Forwards coach Robin Mildenhall told the Observer the team had mixed emotions. While losing the final stung, it was awesome to look back over a season of incredible achievements. The boys “gave everything they had”, he said.

Welcome to Waiwharariki Anzac Square

TAKAPUNA

Westlake edged Tauranga Boys High School 43-40 in the semifinal, claiming the Moascar Cup, one of school rugby’s oldest trophies, in the process.

Mildenhall said the final was a fantastic match, as both teams played exciting rugby and had an answer for every question they asked of each other. All of the Top Four were “incredible sides”,with the ability to beat each other on any given day.

This is the second year in a row that Westlake has progressed to the Top Four after winning the Harbour competition and beating

Now open in the heart of Takapuna

A place to share the sun, the excitement and the energy in the heart of our seaside town centre.

Waiwharariki Anzac Square is part of the urban regeneration of Takapuna led by Eke Panuku on behalf of Auckland Council. Thank you to local residents, the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board, the Takapuna Beach Business Association and mana whenua.

Our goal is to make the most of Takapuna’s unique lake and beachside location by revitalising the town centre.

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Jared Blake, Tom Buckley, Jarlon Lesatele. Back row: Tonga Paea and Clayton Wright.

goes oh-so close in national schools rugby final

the Auckland A1 champions to be the Blues region representative.

Mildenhall said the secret to the programme’s success was good people and good talent. Led by head coach Mark Manihera, who had cultivated a strong team culture, Westlake had highly skilled people in on- and off-field roles. “If you have really good people running the

Sunday, 1st October

Beaches | Views | Heritage

fly to Thailand in December to compete in the World Rugby Schools Festival, where teams from England, South Africa, Wales, Ireland and other countries will be competing. Hamilton Boys are joining Westlake as the New Zealand representatives.

• Westlake players James Cameron and Isaac Murray-Macgre

21km Half Marathon 10km Classic

5km Fun Run & Walk 2km Kids Dash

Snappy service... Westlake first-five eight Blake Lidgard (left) and halfback Taiga Kato (right) get away passes in the final against Southland Boys and semi-final against Tauranga Boys respectively

Upgraded Patuone Walkway now open

North Shore walkers and cyclists can now experience one of the area’s most unique natural environments as they travel the newly upgraded $2.6 million Patuone Reserve Walkway funded and developed by the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board and Auckland Council.

Travelling north from Esmonde Road, the path takes users along the edge of an estuary, through mangroves then up through native treeline to emerge in central Takapuna at Auburn Reserve. Users can also exit the

path at Greydene Place behind the Takapuna Countdown.

Local Board Chair Toni van Tonder feels the walkway is a great asset for the North Shore. “This beautiful walkway shows off some unique environments that people may not be aware of in Takapuna while improving our sustainable transport options for those who need them,” she says.

Development of the walkway, which was in disrepair, began in 2018 and designs were greenlit by the board in 2021. Local mana whenua were consulted

throughout the design process. The $2.6 million project also takes in the walkway’s surrounding environment with invasive plants removed and over 1500 natives planted with help from local community groups since the walkway opened to help establish local bird life.

Design of the walkway has also been futureproofed to accommodate plans to improve nearby stormwater infrastructure, including adding pollutant traps to reduce contamination of the estuary.

CONTACT US:

aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/devonporttakapuna

FOLLOW US: Facebook.com/devonporttakapuna

AT stance rules out last hopes of funding for large local projects

Auckland Transport (AT) has put the kibosh on any last hopes of funding for bigger local projects, including a Milford estuary boardwalk or a connecting path between Esmonde Rd and Francis St in Hauraki.

While this has been signalled for some time, not only are accrued allocations from the Local Board Transport Capital Fund not being carried over, but the fund itself is being reduced by more than a third, due to wider Auckland Council budget cuts.

The cuts were confirmed in a memo sent to Devonport-Takapuna Local Board members. Across Auckland, local boards will share $7 million from the fund each year instead of $11 million, to be allocated to projects they advocate for.

AT’s head of stakeholder and elected member relations, John Gillespie, told board members in a second memo late last month that based on budget reductions, the indicative budget for Devonport-Takapuna over the next three-year term would be reduced from $1.5m to $992,000.

For several terms now, Devonport-Takapuna board member have preferred to squirrel away their allocation towards a bigger project rather than spend it all each year. The Esmonde Rd pathway was first choice for years, with the board’s money accumulating for initial design, but when AT said this year

that it had no budget for construction, the current board requested the Milford boardwalk project be bankrolled instead, only to then be told it was out of AT’s scope.

Board members were angry that having put up with having their annual allocation disappear in Covid budget cuts, they were also being told the practice of accumulating funds was not an option.

Chair Toni van Tonder said the community had been shortchanged and AT should have been clearer on its position. The board called for a definitive answer on what it could do with its money.

The latest word in Gillespie’s memo is that the board needs to quickly identify local projects. “It’s vital your confirmed programme should be reported as soon as possible so Auckland Transport has clear direction about which projects are active; and which will not be pursued.”

AT staff would visit for a workshop this month to discuss the impacts of the cuts and advise how to restructure the board’s three-year programme, with the lower-thanpredicted annual budgets.

“We recommend that you continue to plan for the three-year time horizon and be prepared to reprioritise and balance within the confirmed budget envelopes on an annual basis,” Gillespie advised.

Briefs

Bike hub set to open

The Forrest Hill community bike hub is expected to open at Greville Reserve on Friday, 29 September. Auckland Transport plans free family activities from 11am to 1pm. Thereafter, the hub will operate Thursday to Sunday, from 10am to 2pm.

Sunnynook clean-up

The Sunnynook Community Association is urging residents to pitch in during Keep New Zealand Beautiful Clean-up Week from 16-22 September. “Let’s make Sunnynook the best rubbish-free suburb on the North Shore,” says chair Peter McNee.

Arrests after burglary

A Crown Hill service station was burgled in the early hours of Monday this week, leading to four arrests shortly afterwards. “Those involved have taken a number of items before leaving the scene in a vehicle,” police said. The vehicle was monitored by the police helicopter and spiked in Silverdale, coming to a stop at Wainui. Four occupants, aged between 14-16, were caught nearby. They were referred to the Youth Court.

Shining a light on commercial property funds

Oyster Property Group’s retail investment manager Rich Lyons reveals the qualities that attract investors to commercial property.

Kiwis have long favoured residential property as their go-to investment and a means of securing their financial future, believing it’s “as safe as houses”. But for some, owning a property, whether to live in, or as an investment, is out of bounds due to the hefty deposit or high levels of maintenance, or both.

That doesn’t mean you should rule out property as an investment option altogether. While not as widely understood as residential investment, unlisted commercial property funds also provide investors with a similar tangible, bricks and mortar investment, minus the admin and high barriers to entry.

In a nutshell, investing in an unlisted property fund allows investors to buy commercial property in “bite-sized” amounts alongside other investors.

Oyster Property Group is one of New Zealand’s leading unlisted fund managers and has been providing retail and wholesale investors with access to quality commercial property investment options and consistent returns for more than 20 years.

With $1.9 billion in assets under management, its experienced team of property experts purchase quality properties of significant scale in the office, industrial, and large format retail

sectors, which are then managed in-house by a team of dedicated property managers with deep sector knowledge.

The firm operates an active fund management strategy, and an in-house investment relations team provides a personalised service to investors.

Working to a robust buying criterion, Oyster looks for commercial properties in sought-after locations, close to amenities and transport links, where appropriately zoned land is in tight supply.

Our investment philosophy is to target quality commercial property with enduring occupier demand, that’s well located and close to

amenities, and has reputable tenants.

Stability is a big drawcard for our investors. Generally, commercial property isn’t subject to the same sentiment-based volatility investors can experience in the share market and has proved its ability to weather periods of major economic instability.

We’re proud to provide thousands of New Zealanders access to both wholesale and retail investment opportunities that offer long-term investment returns, backed by strong fundamentals and the resilience of the commercial property asset class.

Oyster property fund, Millennium Centre, Ellerslie

Live local. Work local. ShoreJobs.co.nz

Trades & Services

SERVICES OFFERED

FixIT Handyman – excellent work, practical budget, most jobs welcome, interior/exterior free quote. Josh 021 261 8322.

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Vehicles wanted Dead or Alive, cash paid 0800 333 398.

Chef

Belmont Learning Space is looking for a new chef. Monday to Friday 7:30am - 1:30 pm to provide fresh, age appropriate, and delicious meals.

We are a privately owned centre licensed for 39 children.

This role will involve you planning for and cooking a designed menu for the children each day including morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea. You’ll need to be organised, energetic, have great communication and an excellent knowledge of whole foods that promote good nutrition and healthy eating.

Previous experience cooking for large groups is advantageous and a food handling or safety certificate is preferred but not necessary.

This is a busy role, it includes dishes, so good health is necessary. Send your CV to yvonne.groot@thelearningspace.co.nz or call Yve on 0274879116

Admin Support

Work for the Rangitoto Observer!

Devonport Publishing Ltd, the publisher of the Devonport Flagstaff & Rangitoto Observer, is looking for a Admin Support staff who can support our sales & marketing efforts and daily operations. The ideal candidate will be tech savvy, well-organised and business-minded. Experience using Salesforce, Xero, WordPress, Google adwords, Facebook Business etc is an advantage.

Driver’s license and your own car is required.

If you’re interested please email your resume or linked-in profile to peter@devonportflagstaff.co.nz.

Honoured geoscientist has long view on floods

For a North Shore resident just honoured for his services to geoscience and environmental science, the devastating floods that struck early this year were much less of a surprise than they were for most locals.

Emeritus professor Paul Williams’ long career at the University of Auckland included research in 1976 into the likely impact of urbanisation on the Wairau Valley, and the probability of flooding there.

Williams, who was named an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM) in the King’s Birthday and Coronation awards, received his award at Government House last week.

His long-term perspective on recent flooding woes are just one example of the varied issues he has traversed in more than 50 years in the field of landscape studies.

In the 1970s, he says, “we were ripping the place apart with rapid development around the North Shore and no one really knew what they were doing.”

While the case against building on flood plains or clifftops has been widely understood for many years, says Williams, politics and social and economic pressure have dictated otherwise. “It’s the same problem the world over,” he notes. “But I am an optimist by nature.”

Williams first joined the university in 1972, becoming head of the Geography Department and by 1975 helping establish the teaching of environmental science.

He is internationally known for his research and knowledge of karst landscapes, the rocky terrain of limestone and chalk with caves and underground waterways common in Europe. His books on these landscapes are seen as foundational textbooks.

His work has contributed to many sites being awarded natural World Heritage status.

In New Zealand, he helped preserve the Waitomo Caves in the 1970s, leading a pro-

ject to restore the delicate life of the caves.

In 1983 he directed an important study of the upper harbour for the then Auckland Regional Authority, providing guidelines for sustainable land and water management.

British-born Williams had previously completed his PhD at Cambridge University, then taken a job in Australia. On a visit to New Zealand, he was hosted by a family in Bayswater, and was sufficiently charmed by the location that he secured a job at the University of Auckland and settled on the North Shore.

“I loved it here and adapted to New Zealand life very quickly. I liked the egalitarian way of the place.”

These days, he is retired from the uni-

versity, but still involved in a number of projects.

One of his studies, on sea-level rise, takes him on research trips to the Chatham Islands.

He says the Chathams are the ocean’s “dipsticks” and give scientists an important site for observations.

The long-term former Stanley Bay resident today lives at the William Sanders retirement village in Devonport, where he has established a home office and personal library that includes records and handwritten notebooks dating back to field trips and research in the late 1950s.

He is president of the local branch of U3A.

In the archives... Emeritus professor Paul Williams has handwritten records of research dating back to the 1950s

Hello yellow! Cancer-appeal daffodils bloom again for wearable-arts entry

Takapuna artist Oliver Cain (pictured) is again a finalist in the World of WearableArt (WOW) show.

A section runner-up last year, he hopes to go one better later this month in the mega event that draws international entries and big crowds to Wellington each year.

Cain’s colourful entry is sure to stand out, being crafted from daffodil flowers acquired from the Cancer Society. “The whole outfit is made out of the fabric flowers they used to sell,” he says.

The society switched to selling paper flowers in its Daffodil Day collection and was left with thousands of the synthetic version, which had seemed destined for landfill. Cain became the welcome recipient, giving the flowers a new life in a collaboration he hopes will offer the society promotional opportunities

The outfit incorporates 19,000 daffodil pins. But he is keeping design details under wraps until the entry is seen on the runway, with the first show to be held next Wednesday, 20 September. “I hope it brings joy to people and makes them smile,” he says.

Cain was drawn to using the daffodils for myriad reasons, including their familiarity, and because of their emotional resonance.

“I felt a call to use this very well-known

WHAT’S ON @ Takapuna Library

Author event

Monday 25 September, 6:30 pm to 7:30 pm

New Zealand born international bestselling author, Heather Morris is coming to Takapuna to promote her upcoming release, Sisters under the Rising Sun. This is a story of women in war: a novel of sisterhood, bravery and friendship in the darkest of circumstances, from the author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, Cilka’s Journey and Three Sisters.

Children’s Writers Festival

Saturday 23rd September

9.00am-9.45am Suzy Cato and Kath Bee – music and singing to promote their new book, I can do it!

item,” he says. “We’ve all been affected by cancer – for me it was grandparents.”

The Cancer Society donated the flower pins to him and, in turn, he intends to donate the outfit to the society.

If it is a major winner, however, it belongs to WOW, so use would be at the show’s discretion.

His entry is in competition with 120 others by designers from New Zealand and 22 other countries, all vying for a prize pool of $185,000.

A slice of that would be welcome for the 27-year-old former Takapuna Grammar Student who says: “It’s been a particularly tough year in terms of art sales.” Since art school, he has built up a line of quirky ceramics around bigger projects, including his first WOW entry last year. He supplements his art practice with work as a barber in Milford and Takapuna.

He had work in the Art in the Park show in Auckland last week and will have two sculptures of laser-cut corten-steel figures in Sculpture OnShore in November. The trip to WOW falls between the two.

Cain says having competed before gives him a better idea of the scale of the event and what the judges will be looking for.

“They want an outfit that has presence and a good back story,” he says.

10.00am-11.00am Listen to New Zealand authors John Evan Harris, Yvette Carol and Karen McMillan talk about their books.

Digital Seniors Hubs

Drop-in on Saturdays from 10am-12pm

Digital Seniors Hubs are social learning spaces for seniors run by volunteer coaches providing free one-on-one coaching and support using your own device in a positive, fun and social environment. Learn how to get online to connect with friends and whanau, send photos, pay bills, do online shopping, manage emails, use your smartphone and much more!

Westlake schools strike more singing gold

Hitting the high notes of competition success is a habit for the singers of Westlake Girls and Boys High Schools at the Big Sing Finale.

Perennial top-achievers in the secondary school event run by the Choir Federation, Westlake choirs again shone from among the 24 competing for medals at the Auckland Town Hall last month. Cantare, Choralation and Voicemale all received golds.

To get to the big stage, they came through regional qualifiers and spent months fine-tuning their repertoires in rehearsals and community performances.

The director of two of the choirs, Fiona Wilson, attributes the achievements to an experienced team behind the choral programme, supplemented by its whanau feel.

“Singers share a strong choir culture that is strengthened by combining to collaborate on smaller projects throughout the year,” she says.

Wilson directs the 40-strong treble voice choir Cantare, drawn from female students in Years 9 to 13, and mixed choir Choralation, which has 43 singers from Year 10 up. Both were accompanied by pianist Cathy Bennett.

David Squire helms Westlake Boys’ Voicemale, which was recognised as having the best festival recital programme for lower voices.

Weekly lessons extend singers’ vocal technique, says Wilson, and a varied programme keeps them interested. Attention to musical detail, tuning and presentation make them stage-ready.

As well as medals, the schools gained two of the Big Sing’s four special awards. Choralation claimed the Auahi Kore Award for best performance of an item in te reo Māori, led by Kaitātaki Bella Allan-Moetaua.

Cantare was joint winner of the Tour Time Trophy for best performance of a choral art

Waka

Milford / Takapuna

piece, with Alison Dunlop on soloist duties. Allan-Moetaua and Matilda Faamusili were also recognised in the Choir Federation’s composition competition.

A particular incentive for some students to do well this year is the hope of gaining a place for a 2024 tour overseas being planned for Cantare.

In action... Choralation (top), the mixed voices choir of the combined Westlake schools, and Cantare (above), directed by Fiona Wilson, perform at the Auckand Town Hall at the Big Sing Finale. Below: Cantare leaders Emilie Murphy (left) and Princess Peregrino with the Tour Time Trophy.

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