18 August 2023 Rangitoto Observer

Renewed threat of closure hangs over walkway

A section of the popular coastal Takapuna-Milford walkway is again under threat, with access across a private property to be blocked if a deal on the site’s future can’t be reached with Auckland Council.

Following the collapse of a bridge on the walkway in 2011, the public has had informal

access through a coastal property at Black Rock. This was allowed by owner Paul Firth, who died in 2021.

Negotiations with Auckland Council over the walkway and the heritage-listed cottage on the site have dragged on for more than 12 years.

The multiple beneficiaries who have inherited the property have now offered to gift Auckland Council a 1.5m strip on the seaward side of the site in exchange for the removal of the heritage listing of the house, ahead of the site’s sale.

Mum’s green vision opens Pupuke view

School project... Milford School enviro-club members Kenzy Zaki (left) and Reid Frost-Macky with local mother Kelly Meikle, whose voluntary weed-clearing work has revealed a

view of Lake Pupuke. Story, page 6.

Proposal on target Milford netballer

Marie Hansen’s World Netball Cup campaign for Tonga ended on a personal high, with a courtside marriage proposal from her partner at the tournament in Cape Town, South Africa. The Tongan Tala team finished a creditable eighth, in their first World Cup appearance, with the side and their singing supporters proving crowd favourites. Hansen put in massive minutes on court across the 10 days, playing mostly at goal attack. After the final game, when surrounded by her teammates, the presentation of a ring from her partner, Brandon Payn, made the event extra memorable for the 26-year-old. Her journey to the cup, from playing at Milford Primary School to North Harbour representative duties and being named Harbour’s 2022 club player of the year was featured in the Observer (21 July). She said yes to the proposal.

Tree inquiry ongoing

Auckland Council says it has no update yet on any action over the unauthorised felling and pruning of trees on Henderson Park next to Lake Pupuke in late July. The work was reported in the last issue of the Observer. “The investigation is ongoing and will take some time,” a council spokesperson said.

Baker wins bronze

A local baker has received a Bakels bronze award for her chicken-andspinach pie at this year’s New Zealand Supreme Pie Awards. Kimhuong Lor, who has owned Forrest Hill Bakery on Raines Ave for 25 years, also came fifth in the bacon-and-egg category. Tina Yi from Mairangi Bay Bakery collected a full set of medals among her entries, winning gold in the mince-and-gravy, silver in the chicken-and-vegetable and bronze in the vegetarian categories. The overall winner was from Tauranga – a duck, mushroom and onion pie.

Theft spurs donations

The theft of new plantings from the Sunnynook Community Centre’s garden beds last week has had a heartening sequel of donations from the public of fresh plants and herbs. Grow Forrest Hill’s community garden trust also gave strawberry plants to regular volunteer gardener Sandra Stretton to sell to raise more money for replacements.

Firth estate ‘can’t afford to retain property and keep donating access’

From page 1

The owners’ lawyer, Alex Witten-Hannah, said in a letter to council last week: “I have firm and unequivocal instructions that if the deadline of 29 September 2023 is not met, my clients will close the walkway along the property and it will not be available for community use.”

Witten-Hannah said nothing of substance had happened since he previously wrote to council in August 2022. “A year on and we are absolutely no further forward. This cannot continue,” he said.

Council had said a year ago that it did not intend to seek a right-of-way easement across the property. “However, that statement received a great deal of negative publicity in the media which should have caused Auckland Council to rethink its position by now,” he said.

The walkway between Takapuna and Milford was used by tens of thousands of people each year and its closure, especially before the summer, would be controversial.

“For the sake of everyone concerned, let us hope that this does not become necessary.”

The walkway is also part of the Te Araroa length-of-New Zealand walking route.

The deal proposed to the council includes:

• A commitment to gift the cottage to council should it wish to preserve the building and relocate it at council expense.

• A requirement that council waives all rates arrears, given that the owners having permitted the community to have access for many years. “This is not unreasonable, especially given that the walkway land will be gifted rather than the sold to Auckland Council.”

Council is being accused of inaction and poor communication over the property’s future.

The owners say Firth and his late sister’s estate had offered to sell the property to council for half its capital value (CV), with an assurance it would be kept for public use.

At the same time, council gave it a heritage listing, without consulting the owners.

Council then made an offer reduced by a further 20 per cent, due to the heritage listing having reduced the property value.

In listing the property, council said it had significance as the home of photographer Clifton Firth and was comparable with writer Frank Sargeson’s Esmonde Rd bach in its simplicity and association with the North Shore’s artistic community.

Firth’s estate said Paul Firth had wanted the heritage listing removed.

“The property is set to go on the open market and the path will be closed,” it said. “With growing lawyers’ fees and an exorbitant rates bill that continues to climb, there is no way the estate can afford to keep the property and continue donating the land for public use.”

Youths arrested after Takapuna raid

Three youths were taken into custody following a ram raid on a Takapuna dairy last week.

The offenders used a stolen vehicle to break into the Hurstmere Rd Superette around 11pm on Tuesday, 8 August.

The burglars fled the scene in another stolen car. Three youths found around 11.45pm near the Tecoma St exit on the southern

motorway were taken into custody. The trio face charges relating to the burglary and stolen vehicles and will appear in the North Shore Youth Court this month.

Meanwhile, the superette is back trading from behind its boarded up frontage. No arrests have been made in relation to a ram raid on a nearby Lake Rd vape store on 15 July.

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Water boy... Westlake Boys High School student Lucas Forbes celebrates on his board (left) and with a Hawaiian friend after winning Under-19 gold at the recent world paddleboard championships

Shore paddler wins Under-19 world title at epic event

A Westlake Boys High School paddleboarder has achieved a dream, three years in the making, after winning the Under-19 division of the World Championship race in Hawaii late last month.

Sixteen-year-old Lucas Forbes “practically broke down” crossing the finish line after the 52km crossing from Molokai to Oahu.

Due to Covid restrictions over the previous three years, Lucas has competed in the race remotely by paddling on a local body of water and having the time compared with other competitors doing the same around the world.

Actually getting to Hawaii and racing was incredible, he says. “It was really special to see those orange buoys... I don’t think I’ll ever feel that same way again unless a pandemic or something happens again.”

As well as winning the U-19 competition,

Lucas placed 16th overall.

The crossing between the two islands is known as the “channel of bones” because of its large swells, wind and dangerous marine life.

Lucas said “the name holds true” as he had a close encounter with a marlin and was challenged by the conditions throughout the race.

“The Hawaiians call it the mana, the spirituality out there, and you just felt it the whole way.

“We were really lucky to have a support boat. I could see how someone could die out there. It was so treacherous. The swells were huge, currents were really strong.”

Lucas competed alongside clubmates from Mairangi Bay Surf Lifesaving Club.

They trained together ahead of the event, tailoring their regime by paddling from

Waiheke Island to Mairangi Bay and Long Bay beaches.

On their last paddle to Long Bay they experienced “headwinds, monster downwinds and side chop” which helped Lucas realise he could do the race in tough conditions. They also took multiple saunas to acclimatise to prepare for humid Hawaiian conditions.

The furthest Lucas had paddled before the event was 34km. He said paddling nearly 20 more felt “pretty epic”.

Lucas’s father Marcus, rode in the support boat. “He put the idea in my head to chase this dream and to have him by my side for 52km was something I’ll cherish and remember for the rest of my life.”

Lucas said he hopes to return to Hawaii to compete next year and long term wants to be overall champion.

Takapuna square’s path from controversy

The soon-to-open public space on the old central car park provides a welcome visual and cultural connection from the town centre to the sea. But, says Janetta Mackay, aspects of the development continue to raise questions.

The fences around Takapuna’s town square will come down for a dawn blessing next Friday, 25 August, before the public space opens after 19 months of construction.

Waiwharariki Anzac Square creates a welcome connection from Lake Rd to Hurstmere Rd, with glimpses to the sea, and features public seating, planting, a water feature, and arched lighting pou with carved detailing.

The final cost of the project is expected to be $15.5 million, says Auckland Council property arm Eke Panuku. The original budget was $14.6 million, but the build coincided with Covid restrictions, bad weather and supply-chain issues.

Eke Panuku hopes the square’s open spaces will function as the heart of the metropolitan centre.

But due to the sale by Eke Panuku of more than half the original prime site of nearly a hectare for private development, the loss of public car parks on land originally bought by local businesses for shoppers and a downsizing of the space for the Takapuna Sunday market, scepticism continues about whether the community has been given a good deal.

The Takapuna Residents Association (TRA) has moved on from lamenting the

Home grown... Shore-dwelling quantity surveyor Ryan Smith has enjoyed working on a large construction project with interesting technical challenges, in a location not requiring a commute to the city

The square should be appreciated by thoseqwho enjoy what is a well-designed, subtly sloped area that does away with steps.

“Activations” to draw more people are planned by the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board, including a likely sculpture project and entertainment. The board has set aside $50,000 for square-based activities, having been told “place-maker” Eke Panuku had no budget to organise anything.

Board chair Toni van Tonder said the funding was for one year only and designed to launch the space to the community.

Eke Panuku has since come to the party, saying it will kick in items it has on hand to encourage the square’s use, such as table-

tennis tables and a pump track.

Its northern priority location director, Kate Cumberpatch, said the 3700sqm square was the first big project Eke Panuku had developed beyond the CBD and Wynyard Quarter.

It had been completed on target, with the same contractor as used on the recent Hurstmere Rd Upgrade.

Design by Isthmus Group was in partnership with mana whenua representatives.

“Each entrance acts as a wananga/gallery and references its closest water body: Waitemata Harbour, Lake Pupuke and Hauraki Gulf,” she said.

Design elements referenced the under-

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to gateway

ground springs flowing from Lake Pupuke to Takapuna Beach.

It will be years before the entire central site is finished. (See map.)

Wellington-based developer Willis Bond will start by erecting high-rise apartments on the largest of the five blocks, at the Anzac St end of the site, bordering Potters Park. The Takapuna Central Apartments will be around 12 storeys high. Registrations of interest are open, but details on pricing and layout and marketing are not expected until early 2024.

Until construction work begins, parking will continue on this block.

A purchase price for the site is yet to be made public, with Eke Panuku on several occasions telling the Observer that the deal has yet to be finalised, so is commercially sensitive. The agreement was announced in early 2022, when Panuku said it would be up to a year before a price was made public.

Four other blocks around the square’s fringe will be progressively developed by Willis Bond, which has previously developed apartments in Wynyard Quarter. The aim is to create a cohesive look in buildings that will include apartments and office and retail space.

The TRA has taken its shading concerns to the local board to ask for its advocacy to ensure development in the square and a rapidly intensifying town centre will be resident-friendly and high quality. It has also told the board it is against a targeted rate to provide a combined library and community hub in the square. The board is considering this idea.

Cumberpatch said staggered building heights should ensure shading was not an issue – the reason building heights between the Takapuna Central Apartments and the square had been capped at 20m.

This equates to 3 to 5 storeys. It is the building that would house the community hub should it proceed.

Five-stage plan: The Willis Bond staged development (shown in blue) has five blocks of varying heights. Block A, the Takapuna Central Apartments, will be built first, to around 12 storeys high, with frontage to Anzac St and a service lane to the east leading into the square. Block B, in front of it, will be between three and five storeys, to a maximum of 20m high. Should a community services hub and library proceed, it would be on this block. Until construction starts, 125 car parks will remain across the two sites. In the meantime, the smallest development site, Block E, has been temporarily grassed, and the sealed area set aside for Block D will be used for activities such as a temporary pump track.

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Lake views revealed by mum-led restoration

WILLIAM SANDERS RETIREMENT VILLAGE

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Inspirational... Kelly Meikle says her voluntary work prompted a career change

The bank of Lake Pupuke next to Milford School has been restored by weeding and native plantings, thanks to a local mother, who has found a new career path as a result.

Kelly Meikle first discovered the overgrown bank in 2020, when she was volunteering for the school’s garden-to-table programme, in which students grow, cook and eat food at school.

Working on the garden by the bank, she eventually became frustrated at not being able to see the lake through a four-metre “wall of elaeagnus, woolly nightshade and moth plant” so decided to do something about it. “It wasn’t a planned thing, it just kind of started,” she says. “I think Lake Pupuke is such a special piece of water that we need to look after.”

After putting in a few hours of weeding and planting every week and with the help of students and other volunteers the bank is now mostly weed-free and full of native plants.

“Once you get a certain canopy or a certain growth the weeds don’t get light so they can’t grow,” Meikle says.

Pupuke Birdsong Project environmental coordinator Tabitha Becroft helped out with expertise on the best way to remove weeds and keep them from returning. “She’s been awesome, really supportive.”

After the weeds were removed, Meikle began planting, buying or sourcing many of the plants herself.

“I tried to make paths in the area down there so the kids can walk through and be part of it, not just look at it – to dig in the dirt, dig holes, to poke at things with sticks.”

The 45-year-old’s three children have all attended Milford School school, with the youngest still there.

Until a couple of months ago, Meikle did GIS mapping for Wildlands Consultants, but has recently changed jobs, taking a role with Restore Hibiscus and Bays, helping other environmental groups on the coast do conservation and restoration work.

Meikle says the switch was due to her love of ecological work that she discovered while volunteering at the school.

“I’m just a big believer that it’s really healthy for people mentally to get out into nature and connect with their space.

“People think volunteering is something you do when you retire, but I do believe that there’s plenty of time in people’s schedules if they make it.”

Although she has a postgraduate degree in environmental science, Meikle says her passion for hands-on conservation work didn’t begin until she started volunteering.

Milford School principal Lucy Naylor said: “A school should be the heart of the community, and we are lucky to have such committed volunteers, like Kelly, in the Milford Community who give their time, expertise and energy to improve outcomes for our tamariki.”

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Neighbours gone as village deals with fallout

When floods struck Sunnynook in January, Parklane retirement village resident Peter McNee waded through thigh-deep water across the road from his villa to help neighbours not sitting as high and dry.

Now he looks across to where their empty yellow-stickered homes are only just being repaired, knowing some will never return to enjoy their well-tended gardens.

Nine villas at the village will not be reoccupied at all, with owner-operator Arvida deciding retreat is the best option from a small portion of its site. Of 99 villas, 39 sustained damage, with 30 being repaired. Fourteen apartments on the ground floor of a three-storey block were also flooded.

Repairs on the main administration and communal dining and facilities block are also progressing slowly, with a container outside housing the complex’s temporary kitchen, where staff make meals for residents who do not self-cater.

Down the road, the Sunnynook Community Centre is providing space for exercise classes that were once held in the main block.

The heated indoor swimming pool has remained closed since the floods.

McNee, the chair of the Sunnynook Community Association and a former manager of World Vision New Zealand, has lived happily at Parklane for 11 years with wife Elizabeth. He speaks highly of the way Arvida manages the complex and the assistance it has provided flood-hit residents, including moving some to other parts of the village or other retirement homes it owns. Fees for services have been halved.

He is less complimentary about Auckland Council’s handling of infrastructure provision amid intensification in the suburb.

Having driven local projects, including having a toilet and drinking fountain installed at the Triton Dr playground and helping lobby for skatepark facilities that are still in the pipeline, he knows council

High water... At the height of the floods in January, the lower level of a Parklane apartment block was inundated and about 15 cars in the car-port (above right) were written off, after water reached its roof

wheels turn slowly. But when it comes to Sunnynook’s flood risk, this polite community activist is direct.

“We’re going to be flooded again. What do we do? We need a plan,” he tells the Observer.

He feels the village itself is safe, now the homes nearest the creek are to remain empty, but worries for the wider community.

The empty homes over the road from the McNees’ villa are a sad reminder of the dislocation that can strike.

One couple have been moved from their two-bedroom villa to a smaller home elsewhere in the village. A single woman was shifted to an apartment and a widower has moved out to be with family.

Another couple who were neighbours, who McNee has known for 58 years, are renting in Milford.

Empty homes... Parklane retirement village resident Peter McNee looks over a villa awaiting renovations. His was undamaged, but some neighbours to the rear of the site were not so lucky.

Flood frustration flows months down track

Locals are being asked for feedback on Auckland Council’s flood protection strategy, but without detail or timelines for what work is planned in badly hit parts of Sunnynook and Milford.

Residents’ frustrations were evident at the Sunnynook Community Association’s annual meeting this month, when the continuing toll of dealing with damage – more than six months down the track from last summer’s floods – was highlighted.

Sunnynook Community Centre co-ordinator Bronwyn Bound said residents needed to realise how badly impacted others were.

“I’ve had people turn up in our office ready to end it all,” she said.

Residents wanted to know more about how council’s Healthy Waters department intended to improve stormwater resilience in the Wairau catchment, including managing the flow from neighbouring suburb Totaravale.

Healthy Waters touched on this in a workshop briefing to Devonport-Takapuna Local Board members last week, at which it said the board area was one of the most flood-affected catchments in Auckland.

Maps shown to members from a ‘Making Space for Water’ strategy highlighted areas being considered for attention. But uncertainty continues, because precise retreat plans are yet to come and a deal is yet to be struck between the government and Auckland Council on any property buyouts.

Auckland Emergency Managment’s response is also causing concern, with both the Milford and Takapuna residents associations saying its document out for public consultation is big on strategy and short on detail to help communities.

Bound said some 27 January flood victims were only now having carpet replaced and moving home from motels.

“The trauma they experienced and the trauma Parklane [retirement village] residents experienced was severe.” (See story, opposite page). Association chair Peter McNee, himself a resident at Parklane, said nine of the village’s villas were not being reoccupied, while repairs on the rest had only just been cleared to proceed.

Areas

Village owner-operator Arvida told the Observer it had decided on engineering advice to abandon the nine villas to the rear of its site, nearest to Wairau Creek and another waterway.

“The position of those nine villas has a higher risk of future flooding,” said Arvida general manager of village services Kay Marshall.

Land-use options were being reviewed, she said, adding: “Our priority is our residents and getting them settled, with options for relocation.”

Work under way on restoring Parklane’s administration and communal main block was making “good progress”, she said. Arvida did not say when this and the villa restoration were expected to be completed.

In Milford it is a similar story of slow progress for some residents of Nile Rd, with one homeowner telling the Observer that despite now having his insurance payout confirmed, the company had offered little

MP recognises coordinator’s flood work

Sunnynook Community Centre coordinator Brownyn Bound has been awarded a Certificate of Appreciation by North Shore MP Simon Watts.

“It is formal recognition of the services you led,” Watts said at the Sunnynook Community Association’s annual meeting at the centre.

Described as the “heartbeat of the community” by a resident at the meeting this month, Bound anchored the core team of volunteers who led flood response from a base at the centre.

The team helped people from inundated homes and, in the clean-up, arranged food, clothes and other support, working long hours, when the area was left with little official help for days after the 27 January floods.

One of the local volunteers, Reilly Brown, said emotional support was still needed.

Bound said the community effort during floods, including by local Scouts and Glenfield Greyhounds League Club, was outstanding. “The whole community stood up.” Appreciated... MP Simon Watts with Bronwyn Bound

hope of repairs being made before the end of the year.

Sunnynook resident John Godfrey said: “I would have thought that after the flooding here, there would have been a blanket moratorium on any development, but there wasn’t and I’m very disappointed.”

North Shore councillor Richard Hills warned colleagues last month that the lack of detail in the Healthy Waters strategy would frustrate people being asked for feedback.

Local Board member Mel Powell, who was at both the workshop and the community meeting two days later, has urged people to give their views and ask questions face-toface of Healthy Waters staff at the two local public-consultation sessions next week.

The drop-in sessions will be held at Milford Mall on Monday 21 August, from 3pm to 5pm, and the next day, Tuesday, in Wairau, at Aristotle’s Motel, 20c Link Dr from 7pm to 9pm.

of interest... A Healthy Waters map highlights parts of Sunnynook and Totaravale, on either side of the motorway in the problematic Wairau catchment, where remediation plans are being made. (Dots denote manholes and lines other infrastructure).

Bodyline by Guy Body

Local trio off to Worlds

Three of the 19-member New Zealand team picked for the World Athletics Championships in Budapest are Takapuna Athletics Club members and former Takapuna Grammar School students. Imogen Ayris will join Olympic medallist Eliza McCartney in pole-vault competition, having reached a personal best height of 4.53m in Germany this month. McCartney, who in late July cleared 4.85m – her best vault in more than four years and the second-best height of anyone in the world this year – is on the comeback trail after years of injuries. Like the pole-vaulters, shotputter Jacko Gill has been competing well in Europe. He joins them in competition in the Hungarian capital from 18-27 August.

Marathon shelved

Local-board plan consultation closes

Consultation on the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board Plan – which includes a question about whether a targeted rate should be considered – closed last Monday, but a tally of the number of responses is not yet available.

An Auckland Council spokesperson said feedback forms, including those that had been dropped to libraries or mailed in would likely be counted by the end of this week. By last Friday, 11 August, 106 online submissions had been received.

A flurry of online postings and comment

Retail spending up in Takapuna

Consumer activity in Takapuna is well up on a year ago, with data showing retail spending in June was 5.5 per cent higher than in the same month in 2022.

Total transactions grew 11.9 per cent.

The biggest category increases shown in Marketview electronic transaction figures were for cafes, restaurants, bars and takeaways, with spend up 11.5 per cent. Next was apparel and personal purchases up 4.6 per cent.

One of the drivers of overall town centre growth was much-improved foot traffic at Shore City Shopping Centre, where a 30 per cent rise in spending was recorded.

Takapuna Beach Business Association (TBBA) chief executive Terence Harpur said the area was showing exceptional resilience and support for local businesses despite the surge in cost of living.

Shore City’s bounce back after upgrades at the centre showed attractive bricks-and-mortar retail still appealed to shoppers, he said.

Harpur also credited street improvements and the retail mix with revitalising Takapuna, along with town centre investment.

over the weekend and on Monday before the 4pm close-off is likely to have boosted the numbers offering their views on the local board’s three-year statement of priorities.

The most controversial item sought opinions on whether a targeted rate should be explored for a combined Takapuna community services and library hub in the town-square development.

In 2020, for the last plan, 289 responses were received, 60 via the online survey tool, 226 on paper and three through social media.

The plan will be finalised by October.

Sunnynook’s community marathon will not be run this September after volunteer Sunnynook Community Association organisers reluctantly pushed pause, due to lack of time and resources to manage it. They hope it can be resurrected. The popular event ran for two years, first during Covid lockdown, when it helped get around 180 people out for socially distanced exercising, and again last year to encourage community connection and fitness. It challenged entrants to run the marathon distance of 42km in cumulative laps of Sunnynook Park over a month.

Labour candidate in the running from list

Labour’s North Shore candidate, George Hampton, has secured 41st position on the party list, which on some recent polls puts him on the cusp of entering Parliament.

The ranking, ahead of some sitting government MPs, suggests the first-time candidate is seen as a good prospect by the party.

But if Labour’s vote is below the 32.3 per cent it recorded in this month’s Newshub-Reid Research poll, Hampton won’t make it in from the list.

Even at that level, Labour would likely be

headed for the Opposition benches.

National’s poll support was up to 36.6 which, with support from Act, would put it into power. Its North Shore MP, Simon Watts, holds the seat with a hefty 3734 majority.

Hampton, aged 41, a former diplomat at the United Nations and the co-owner of the Mr Whippy franchise, lives in Devonport, and says he is in politics for the long haul. He plans to open an election office in Takapuna this month.

Food trucker seeks easier access

Food trucks should be allowed to park up in local reserves without so much rigmarole, says an operator.

Bonny Faulkner-Hollis is keen to use parking space at the likes of Sunnynook Park, Kennedy Park and Milford Beach Reserve for her new business, a small self-contained cart. She called on Devonport-Takapuna Local Board members at their last community forum to back less onerous rules, which she said were robbing the public of an affordable outing, compared

with paying cafe costs. “It’s another reason to go to the park,” she said.

Board members said food trucks at events added vibrancy and permits could be applied for at designated times, but they also had a duty to support local businesses in town centres who paid rates and had higher operating costs.

Taking up further public space was not supported. People enjoyed being outdoors with their kids in nature, not being pestered for treats, said board chair Toni van Tonder.

Local area the big loser in funding equity push

The Devonport-Takapuna Local Board area stands to lose millions of dollars of council funding under a financial redistribution taking effect from as early as 2025.

The area is expected to be among the worst hit by an accelerated shift to “equity funding” across Auckland’s 21 local boards.

Briefings about the impact have begun, after Mayor Wayne Brown moved to bring forward changes previously expected to take 10 or more years. He wants the new regime in operation within three years.

Local representatives are alarmed that North Shore facilities will be neglected and that local ratepayers will be left paying more for less. “This is just a socialist-imposed system that is going to screw this board over more than any other in Auckland,” Devonport-Takapuna Local Board member George Wood warned at the first of two workshop presentations by council staff this month.

Board member Gavin Busch predicted community anger would lead to calls to separate from Auckland Council. “All you’re doing is punishing people for living in an area and for being rich, but they’re not,” he said.

Existing funding allocations are based on the number of assets each local board has, ahead of population and weightings according to deprivation. The proposed new model would have an 80/15/5 percentage split, according to population, deprivation and land area, respectively.

Board members, including Wood, said they were not against moves towards greater equity, but not at the cost of running down public assets built up over decades on the North Shore. These include costly-to-maintain coastal and heritage assets, along with existing and ageing community facilities.

Board chair Toni van Tonder said: “The hard part for our community is we will be paying a lot more into this [through rates] but getting less out. That’s an incredibly difficult thing for people to stomach.”

The board is framing what van Tonder told the Observer was a “strong response” to the equity changes.

Equity funding would leave the board facing some “pretty grim prospects”, she said. “We’ll see our facilities start to fall into disrepair or we’ll be forced to sell assets that we can no longer afford to maintain.”

Busch said high property values did not mean people had high incomes, with many struggling to pay rates. And people were not seeing infrastructure spend in the area, he said, citing flooding issues in the Wairau catchment and the lack of a proper stormwater system in intensifying Bayswater.

With a little over 3.3 per cent of the city’s population, the board area sits well above council’s equity baseline.

For the three years starting from 20242025, its current funding is 20 per cent above baseline for projected operating expenses

and 60 per cent above for capital expenses. Around half of Auckland’s boards are well below the baseline.

Redistribution would see limited or no future funding rises for Devonport-Takapuna.

Three-year funding models that board members were shown include one where the area would receive only an extra $2 million above the current $22.7 million in operating expenses, the second-lowest lift of all boards. The budgets of eight other boards would be boosted between $10 and $21 million. Other models showed slight drops in funding for Devonport-Takapuna.

In another indicative model, Upper Harbour received a capital spending boost of $13.5 million to $18.2m, while Devonport-Takapuna’s existing $13m only rose by $1.8 to $14.8m.

The council officer leading the equity project, Jestine Joseph, earlier told board members equity funding might be expanded in future to cover what council organisations such as Auckland Transport had to spend locally.

The equity working party’s recommendation will be subject to a vote by Auckland councillors. With around half of them from areas set to benefit from changes, it seems unlikely to be overturned.

At a second equity-funding workshop last week, the board talked about working with North Shore councillors to lobby for the area.

Devonport 09 446 2030

2/39 Eversleigh Road

Auction

Thursday 24th August at 1.00pm

In Rooms (Unless Sold Prior)

View Sat/Sun 10.30 - 11.00am harcourts.co.nz/DP24596

Deceased Estate - Executors want a sale!

- Spacious unit including internal access garage, in Belmont's desirable Eversleigh Road.

- Large bedrooms providing ample space for comfortable living.

- Steps to Daily Bread, your go-to spot for delicious coffee.

- Located near great schools, zoned for Hauraki Primary and Takapuna Grammar.

- Ideal for entry-level first-time buyers or investors seeking a lucrative opportunity.

- Current tenant loves the property and would be delighted to stay.

- Don't miss out on this fantastic chance to own or invest in a prime property!

- Disregard current rateable value.

Jackie Mark 021 458 797

jackie.mark@harcourts.co.nz

Jane Hastings 021 735 263

jane.hastings@harcourts.co.nz

Proud Sponsor Of North Shore Rugby Club

SERVICES OFFERED

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

WANTED

Pass on your wisdom to children. Teach chess! Training provided. Own transport reqd. Phone Paul at Chess Power on 021 0271 5577 or email paul@chesspower.co.nz

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

Japan the goal for augmented-reality game winners

New Zealand’s first Hado tournament was hosted at Takapuna youth hub Shore Junction last weekend, with locals taking the top prize.

Hado is an augmented-reality game similar to dodgeball. Teams of up to three players attempt to eliminate opposition players by shooting “energy balls” at them, blocking opposition efforts using virtual shields.

Eight teams battled it out at the Northcote Rd venue, with a chance to be considered for the Hado World Cup squad travelling to Japan in October.

Team “Updog”, made up of Sunnynook residents Jakob de Guzman and Richard Peng, and Lavay Arora from East Coast

Bays, won the event.

Alongside the members of second-placed “Pulpy Orange” (an all-female team), and “Peter” in third, they have earned a chance to make the team for the Hado World Cup in Japan.

The teams will form a development squad to train with Shore Junction Creative Technologist Connor Green, with one team and a reserve from another being taken to Japan.

Updog were practising “as much as we could” to prepare for the tournament, often spending whole days at Shore Junction. De Guzman said they’d continue to do so to get to the world cup.

All Updog’s members believe they have a

good chance of being selected for the Japan squad, though Peng said they’re “going to continue to work hard” to get there.

“There’s still a long way to go until then.”

Green, who organised the tournament, said he was impressed at the amount of interest considering not so long ago no one knew what Hado was.

“In six months of having the equipment, having eight teams playing in a tournament of this level, it’s incredible.”

Green said he was happy with the engagement and sportsman-like activity throughout a day that ran smoothly.

The tournament was live-streamed on Youtube, attracting 196 viewers.

Milford / Takapuna

Woof!... Updog (from left) Jakob de Guzman, Lavay Arora and Richard Peng with tournament organiser Connor Green after taking out the Hado tournament at Shore Junction

WHAT’S ON @ Takapuna Library

Poetry Day Prelude: Shore Words

Get ready for the Phantom Billstickers National Poetry Day in the best possible way. Join MC Stu Bagby plus long-time poet Piers Davies and cofacilitator of the Titirangi Poets Group, Janet Charman, author of many poetry books, Amy Marguerite who’s working on her debut poetry collection, and Jack Ross, author of numerous novels, short fiction and poetry collections. Plus, songs from poet musician Caitlin Lucy Smith. There will be a cash-only book table at the event.

When:

Tuesday 22 August, 6 pm to 7:30 pm Light refreshments served on arrival

RSVP: TakapunaEvents@aucklandcouncil. govt.nz or book tickets via Eventbrite by visiting: tinyurl.com/mubfwtm8

Gold coin koha appreciated.

Well-being and mindfulness

Saturdays 2.45pm-4.10pm

The Philosophical Academy of Auckland presents a free course for people who are looking for answers to the existential questions of life, who want to understand why things happen and live a more mindful and purposeful life or who just want to live better. Put what you learn each week into practise and see how your life improves.

Rhymetime!

Wednesday, 10am-10.30am (term time only) Bring your little ones aged 2-5 years. We’ll get our groove on with some of our favourite songs and rhymes.

Romcom returns Shore-raised actor to PumpHouse

For one of the actors preparing to perform in Tadpole Theatre’s latest heart-warming romp, Mike and Virginia, the show is proving particularly nostalgic.

Actor Jodie Rimmer says returning to rehearse at the PumpHouse Theatre in Takapuna “is like coming back home”.

The familiar face of stage and screen spent her high-school holidays on its stage, competing in North Shore Speech and Drama Society competitions, as well as appearing in North Shore Operatic productions.

This time, she is part of a top-notch cast under the inventive direction of Simon Prast, performing a fast-moving script from two of New Zealand’s busiest writers, Kathryn Burnett and Nick Ward.

Award-winning Burnett, like Rimmer, grew up on the Devonport peninsula and returns to the theatre having written Tadpole’s last sold-out PumpHouse production, 2022’s The Campervan, also directed by Prast.

The two women worked together on television series The Strip, but this is the first time Rimmer has been directed by Prast, which she says she is “buzzing” about.

Mike and Virginia tells the story of two ambitious lecturers in film studies, played by Laura Hill and Andrew Grainger. One specialises in romantic comedy and the other in monster movies, but their interaction is a romcom in itself.

Both actors have an impressive list of credits to their names. Hill was a Shortland Street regular as nurse Toni Thompson, but like Grainger has popped up in The Brokenwood Mysteries, Outrageous Fortune/Westside and a host of other television shows, and in theatre roles. Grainger was in The Campervan and recently turned out in New Zealand Opera’s The Unruly Tourists

Rimmer, who plays the part of the gossipy best friend of Hill, says all the play’s characters are a little broken by life, but the story retains a “cheering sense of humanity”.

Creative Talks

Her character is a hoot, she says, being an out-of-work actor who does shifts at a fairy shop to get by. Working as a fairy is something Rimmer has had real-life experience of, so she jokes the play is triggering for her.

The young Rimmer appeared in Charlie

and the Chocolate Factory, Oliver Twist and The Sound of Music at the PumpHouse, before a screen career that includes being named best supporting actress in the 2003 New Zealand Film Awards for her performance in In My Father’s Den.

But it is the competitions she best remembers. “They’re great memories.”

She recalls staring out the window across the lake while at Carmel College and needing several prompts to get her head out of the clouds. Later, at Glenfield College, a drama teacher further prompted her love of make-believe. “I was always driven to the theatre,” she says.

Recently, she has been in new television show Friends Like Her and the Netflix series Sweet Tooth. An earlier claim to fame was acting alongside Hollywood star Ryan Gosling, in Young Hercules, in the late 1990s.

Rimmer grew up in Belmont, where her father, Bill Rimmer, owned the Fruitlands store for many years. Although she resides in Mt Albert these days, she regularly visits Bill, a former top football player and still a keen trumpeter, who lives at Narrow Neck.

He will be seeing the show and she hopes other people looking for a “feel good” outing will come along too.

• Mike and Virginia by Tadpole Theatre, the PumpHouse, 31 August to 10 September. Bookings at pumphouse.co.nz or ph (09) 489-8360.

Rehearsing... Jodie Rimmer with director Simon Prast

MILFORD

65 MILFORD ROAD

Prime Freehold Beachfront Opportunity

Discover this rare opportunity! A charming character beach house awaits you by the picturesque Milford beach, offering breathtaking views of Rangitoto and the Hauraki Gulf. With three bedrooms, a study, a modern kitchen, and convenient off-street parking, this gem is perfect for coastal living. You’ll love the short stroll to Milford’s vibrant shops and cafes. Properties of this calibre rarely come to the market.

premium.co.nz/80399

VIEW | BY APPOINTMENT PRICE | BY NEGOTIATION

ROBERT MILNE 022 011 2494

RICHARD MILNE 021 770 611 | TAKAPUNA 916 6000

TAKAPUNA

13B O’NEILLS AVENUE

Last One Left | New Nautica Home

Set on a freehold title this home offers lovely open plan kitchen, living and dining areas on the ground floor which flow seamlessly to alfresco outdoor entertaining areas complete with louvre roof. The kitchen offers a large island, scullery area, quality appliances and plenty of storage. Four generous bedrooms plus study, two stylishly tiled bathrooms (incl ensuites) plus guest wc. Double Garage with internal access and separate laundry.

premium.co.nz/80431

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ROBERT MILNE 022 011 24 94

RICHARD MILNE 021 770 611 | OFFICE 916 6000

TAKAPUNA

2004/3 NORTHCROFT STREET

Haven of Panoramic Perfection - The Sentinel

Sequestered behind a motorised gate this near new masonry home is set on a 407sqm approx freehold title, located on the ‘golden mile’s’ lakefront and is simply a stunning one of a kind property. Comprising 3 bedrooms plus study/storage room, 2 stylish bathrooms, guest powder room, double garage and off street parking. This really is the ultimate lock up and leave.

premium.co.nz/ 80427

VIEW | PLEASE CALL FOR A VIEWING TIME PRICE | BY NEGOTIATION

ALISON PARKER 021 983 533 | TAKAPUNA 916 6000

SANDSPIT 17 KANUKA ROAD

Award Winning Coastal Haven

Experience luxury living in this award-winning home with mesmerising sea views. Boasting 4 bedrooms, an office, and a games room, it provides ample space for your family and work needs. The designer kitchen and seamless indoor-outdoor flow are perfect for entertaining. Embrace nature and sophistication in this exquisite property, crafted for your utmost comfort and pleasure. Your dream home awaits!

premium.co.nz/90122

VIEW | PLEASE PHONE FOR VIEWING TIMES AUCTION | ON SITE 9 SEPT 2023 AT 5 PM UNLESS SOLD PRIOR

LINDA SMITH 021 470 175

ROB MATULICH 021 634 059 | OFFICE 422 9280