March 2024

Fancy a Surf...in Dairy Flat?

Adecision about the Auckland surf park planned for Dairy Flat and championed by All Black legend and life-long surfer Sir John Kirwan, could be known by the end of April.

The application lodged late last year by Aventuur is before the Environmental Protection Agency for consideration and a decision could be known soon thanks to the COVID-19 Recovery (Fast Track Consenting) legislation.

If successful, it will yield a significant economic benefit to the area, creating up to 400 new jobs during the construction phase and leading to approximately 120 full-time roles when it's operational in the summer of 2026-2027. Aventuur estimates the Auckland Surf Park will bring in $600 million per annum to the Auckland economy.

The Dairy Flat site was chosen after a three-year search because it ticked a lot of boxes says Trevor Mckewen, New Zealand Project Partner for Aventuur. "We wanted to be within 30 minutes of the CBD, close to the motorway, public transport as well as

the east coast surfing community, like Orewa and Mangawhai," he says.

Those using the site will gain access via 1350 Dairy Flat Highway, exiting the Northern Motorway at Silverdale offramp. There is expected to be parking for 100 cars with close to 100 people able to use the pool at any one time.

The total site area of 42 hectares includes a solar farm and data centre and the heat these generate will be used to heat the 15-hectare lagoon to a comfortable temperature year round.

"The lagoon is about the size of the Melbourne Cricket Ground and holds the equivalent of 50 Olympic-sized swimming pools in terms of water and we're quite proud of this virtuous circle of energy use. It means we can heat the lagoon sustainably without passing on the cost to visitors," says McKewen.

Aventuur's patented filtration and circulation system will help to keep the algae and bacteria at bay and ensure the water stays blue so that when surfers take a mouthful of water it will taste like swimming pool water.

The wave-making technology behind

the pool is Wavegarden Cove, licensed by Aventuur from a Spanish company and regarded as next level. Their first Australian surf park using Wavegarden tech, URBNSURF Melbourne, opened in 2020 and was so successful a second, URBNSURF Sydney opens later this month.

Several New Zealand pro surfers have backed the surf pool concept, saying that training there will help them keep pace with surfers from other countries. But it's not just elite surfers who'll benefit.

"These pools democratise surfing," says McKewen. "If you surf in the sea, about 10% of the surfers get 90% of the waves, surfing is a reasonably aggressive sport. In the pool you're not challenged for waves. There are 12-15 waves per hour and the waves are mechanical, so each wave is the same. You progress much faster," he says.

The project is backed by Water Safety New Zealand, Surf Lifesaving New Zealand, Paralympics New Zealand and Surfing New Zealand. Even so, consent is not assured. However, McKewen is confident in Aventuur's submission and says there are mechanisms within the legislation that allow for further discussions. So watch this space, Dairy Flat may be a hot surf spot in just a couple of years.

The diamond-shaped 15-hectare surf lagoon at Aventuur's proposed Auckland Surf Park

Editorial

The tragic death of local teenager Brooklyn Horan last month has devastated the community.

Brooklyn's family live near Coatesville and he attended Coatesville Primary School, so he's well known in the area and loved and respected by many.

His future looked extremely exciting prior to the accident that took his life, as well as the life of co-driver Tyson Jemmett, during a rally in Northland. Brooklyn was farewelled on 1 March and deepest sympathies to his family and friends as they come to terms with this terrible loss.

As March gains momentum, Auckland Transport has been upgrading/indenting the bus stops on the Coatesville-Riverhead Highway. The stop nearest to Lewis Lane has been finished for a while but the one by Gold Flats Lane was still under construction last time I checked. The rain this week has meant those waiting for the bus at the Lewis Lane stop have had protection from the weather in the bus shelter but those catching the bus in Coatesville village are less fortunate. There seems to be a lot more passengers waiting in the village and the bus stop there is nothing like the design used at the other stops. The inconsistency is puzzling because a bus shelter in the village would benefit lots more

passengers. Let's hope we get one in the future.

That said, AT has been busy taking care of Coatesville drivers. They have repaired the damage to the first bridge on Sunnyside Road so the rails are now looking structurally sound again. And by completing the repairs to the Dairy Flat Highway on Albany Hill before Mad March traffic started, they saved Coatesville commuters from an even longer wait to get to the motorway this month.

As autumn's chill is in the air, let's hope we get fine weather for the CRRA's community family picnic and BBQ on 16 March. Cross your fingers for sunshine!

In a few short weeks it's Easter. Take care on the roads and of each other, and enjoy the lovely four-day break.

Diary Dates

∞ 9-10 March, Saturday & Sunday The Kumeu Show is on at the Kumeu Showgrounds.

∞ 15 March, Friday, The CRRA is hosting the Community BBQ at the Coatesville Hall and Reserve. BBQ food will be provided by the CRRA but BYO beverages. All welcome from 4pm. Check out their FB page for updates and cancellations.

∞ 27 March,Wednesday, 6pm, The Coatesville Residents and Ratepayers' Association Committee meets at the Settlers Hall. All welcome.

∞ 28 March Thursday, The deadline for feedback to Auckland Council's proposed 10-year budget ends today. Make sure to have your say. Read Louise Johnston's column on page 4 for more information.

∞ 29 March Good Friday

∞ 31 March Easter Sunday

Your editor, Vanessa Johnson

Email: coatesvillechronicle@gmail.com, Phone: 021 724 001

∞ 1 April, Monday Easter Monday and April Fool's Day.

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♥ Laser treatments

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♥ Injectables

∞ 7 April Sunday, 2am Daylight saving comes to an end. Put your clocks back an hour when you go to bed because we get an extra hour's sleep. It's also a great time to check and replace batteries in the smoke alarms in your home before winter sets in.

∞ 7 April Sunday, Coatesville Market 10am till 2pm

∞ 12 April Friday, last day of term one at Coatesville School.

Injectables

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The Coatesville Chronicle is distributed free to homes in the RD3 postal area. Deadline for content is 20th of the month prior to publication. The opinions published herein are not necessarily those of the publisher, Cradle Publications Limited. © 2024 All rights reserved.

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MARCH NEWS & EVENTS

Delivering for Good Programme

NZ Post is proud to again be supporting charitable organisations and social enterprises around Aotearoa New Zealand by giving away free courier services.

NZ Post’s Delivering for Good programme aims to foster stronger, healthier communities around the country by offering up to 34,000 free domestic courier services across a selected number of organisations for one year – with two organisations winning an extra year of free courier services.

Applications for this year’s programme open on Monday 4 March (and close on Sunday 24 March). Delivering for Good is part of NZ Post’s social sustainability programme and is in its fourth year.

NZ Post Group Sustainability Manager Dawn Baggaley says by providing free courier services it allows organisations to channel funds otherwise spent on

couriers into expanding their services for the communities they support.

“For us, delivering for New Zealand also means supporting the neighbourhoods and communities where we live and work,” Baggaley said “We are so proud to be able to facilitate free courier services for deserving local organisations.” Baggaley encouraged all charitable organisations “no matter how big or small” to apply.

"We’re looking for a range of deserving programmes which help people connect and feel included; whether that be delivering goods to people without access or sending products for companies who employ people from marginalised groups.”

To date, over 83,000 parcels have been sent from the start of the programme in 2021.

To apply, go to: deliveringforgood.nzpost.co.nz

Helpful Hints From the CRRA

Civil Defence

Make every drop of water count so you don’t run before the rains come.

Clean & Green

Birds and bees appreciate water during dry spells. No birdbath? A shallow container will do, just remember to include a few pebbles near one edge to the bees don’t drown.

Family BBQ and Picnic

The Coatesville Residents and Ratepayers Association invites the whole Coatesville community to the family BBQ and picnic Friday, 15 March from 4pm at the Coatesville Settlers Hall and Reserve. Everyone is welcome and the CRRA will provide the BBQ food while refreshments are BYO.

Reflexology

By stimulating the nerve endings in the feet, hands or ears, Reflexology helps with deep relaxation, bringing balance to the body and its systems, encouraging the body to heal itself by clearing pathways within the body to prevent the build-up of toxins. Some of the benefits can include:

∞ Stress reduction

∞ Improved sleep/circulation

∞ Balancing of hormones

∞ Enhanced feeling of well-being

∞ Enhanced energy levels

Our therapists hold NZ Diplomas and are Reflexology NZ Certified. To make your booking, please visit our website:

www.karensreflexology.co.nz or alternately call

Toni on 021 1523884 or Maria on 021 628747

Local Board News

This month, you will be inundated with requests from elected members to provide feedback on the Council’s 10-year budget. Unfortunately, it is difficult to get people enthusiastic about this process, but we need to!

The budget is proposing a massive change for Auckland. Key highlights include the proposal to set up a diversified investment fund for Auckland with the transfer of the Airport shares to this new fund and possibly leasing out of the Port for 35 years, with the lease proceeds being invested into this new fund.

Other big questions on this budget include the fate of the North Harbour Stadium. Given that many locals were involved in the fundraising for the stadium and have fond memories of this being a vibrant, well-used stadium, it is important that your view is represented in the feedback.

There are three different options of proposed rate rises over three years and none of them are pretty but expected.

Lastly, at a local board level, we are proposing in the budget to complete the pathways at our park at Green Road, so please let us know what you think of this and other projects on the list. This is where you need to advocate for what you want to see in the next 10 years.

This budget is quick to complete online; it is in plain English with no ‘council speak’, and I strongly encourage you to have your say! We will be out and about the Kumeu and Helensville Show but please get in touch if you need any further information etc.

Feedback closes on 28 March, link for feedback https://akhaveyoursay. aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/

On the transport front, the proposed raised pedestrian crossing on the Coatesville-Riverhead Highway by the dairy that had gone through detailed design and was ready for construction

By Louise Johnston

has become a political hot potato and is now under review, which is frustrating. There were also several speed limit reductions proposed, which now seem uncertain. This includes roads such as Glenmore Road down to 60km and Coatesville Village down to 50 km/hr. This uncertainty is all part of the job, but I will be pushing for these projects.

On a more positive note, design work is continuing on the new Mill Flat Road bridge, which is shaping up to be a two-lane bridge with a number of safety improvements on CRH. This includes a righthand turning bay. Many locals have expressed concern about the location of the new bridge being closer to the blind corner on CRH but some of the existing footprint of the bailey bridge will be used for the new bridge and the additional lane will be upstream.

At all times during construction a bridge will be operating to Mill Flat Road. Once final funding approval for the safety improvements is received, AT will organise a drop-in session to discuss the design etc. This will be held sometime in March at the hall.

For Sunnyside Road, AT is working on an advanced flood warning system that can send out automated alerts when the stream is rising and trigger

electronic messaging at both ends of Sunnyside Road alerting vehicles of flood risk/closing road when necessary. This is the first of its kind in NZ and is a pilot project for the rest of the country. Residents who have been involved in the dramatic rescue of vehicles during the flooding on Sunnyside Road over the years will provide valuable early input into this project. More information will be available over the coming months, but AT hopes to schedule implementation before winter.

The project to indent the CRH bus stops at Gold Flat, and Lewis Lane is still scheduled to be completed at the end of March, as is the new right-hand turning bay on CRH into Barrett Road.

Finally, it is great to see so many horse riders, joggers and walkers out on our rural roads. Sorry to sound like your mum, but if you wear fluoro or bright colours, you are more visible to motorists and many of our roads have 80km/hr. speed limits and limited visibility around corners.Please contact me at Louise.Johnston@ aucklandcouncil. govt.nz for further information

North Harbour Stadium

Our recent camping trip to Whangateau has been the highlight of the year so far. We had nine families, some first-time campers, with 17 kids between us enjoying the tidal beach at the campsite, a potluck dinner, beach day at Omaha, and floundering by torchlight. Our kids roamed free and made new connections with each other, not to mention memories that will last a lifetime. We had such a great time we are already making plans for our next destination! Since term one started we've had a steady flow of visitors through our gates and have welcomed three new families already. At the end of February we were also visited by several professors and the CEO of Playcentre Japan (the only other country in the world that has Playcentre!) to learn about our philosophy and teaching practices.

We're always looking for new families to join us so if you're interested in learning more about Playcentre please message our Facebook page or email coatesville@playcentre.org.nz

Sarah Craig

Action-Packed School Year Kicks Off

By Richard Johnson, Coatesville School Principal

The start of the year at Coatesville School is a magnificent thing! We have very exciting plans for our school this year, aiming for a highly successful four terms for our students, staff and whanau. Bring on 2024!

As has now become customary, at the start of term we formally welcomed all new families and new staff with a powhiri. With the support of the wonderful Whaea Trish, we have taken a number of very positive steps embracing tikanga Māori practices within our ‘Coatesville School’ ways and traditions. We are all learning and enhancing the ways of our school in the process.

In the same week as our powhiri we had a

with a fantastic new structure which will provide another compelling reason to utilise our picturesque setting and tremendous facilities. Our ‘waka’ design, complemented by a variety of other playground apparatus, will be spectacular as a fresh feature of our school. It will become a key focal point of our school and will provide unlimited hours of play for children for many years! The project is scheduled for completion in April/May.

Our community swimming pool is a tremendous community asset. A pool to be extremely proud of! For those who have utilised it in the past (or would like to use it in the future), I am signaling now that we do need a significant repaint of the pool later this year. It is a massively costly exercise and if anyone has any contacts or ideas to make that process easier on the school we would love to hear from you!

We hope all of the Coatesville community have a brilliant year - we will give you updates of our journey across 2024. Enjoy!

unique opportunity to be part of the filming of a ‘KidsCan’ promotion for their upcoming fundraising event - a 24hour 'handballathon'. The video promotion features Jono & Ben and Jordan Watson (of 'How to Dad' fame). Some of our children got to play handball with the guys, while others cheered them all on - while being filmed by the crew. Heaps of fun!

In 2024 we have committed to building a very exciting new playground for our school and our community to enjoy. The ‘yellow slide’ playground (next to the Playcentre) has provided many, many years of fun and activity for the children of Coatesville and thousands of visitors. However, the time is now right to replace the aging playground

Coatesville School's Kapa Haka group led by Whaea Trish Ripi, welcomed staff, students and their families back to school at the start of term.

Jono, Ben and Jordan attracted a crowd when they arrived.

Keen quizzers forgot the camera and competed for cool prizes.

You all deserve a medal!

The annual Coatesville Half Marathon organised by Running Events is a seasonal fixture in plenty of people's diaries.

The 2024 event was another huge success with hundreds of runners and walkers signing up to take on the 21km circuit, on foot. Whether it was the half-marathon (blue bibs), the 8km run or walk (green bibs), the 4km(orange bibs) or the kids' 2km, after they crossed the line and received their medals, pretty much everyone looked overjoyed.

There were plenty of Coatesville faces in the line-up. Steve Williams (1) and the Simmons family (2) all felt the buzz of crossing the finish

line. Although some people were hoping to achieve a good time, the guys from the Hybrid Crossfit gym (3) in Manukau stood out when they crossed the line together even though three had run the half marathon and two had run the 8km. It turned out that this was their first organised run of any distance and they wanted to cross the line as a team.

For those interested in the half marathon results, the first runner home arrived in a little over 1.14 mins, second was 1.16mins and third was 1.17mins. The first three runners home in the 8K Classic finished between 30 mins 16 secs for first place and 30 mins 36 secs for third.

Gardeners'

March To Do List

∞ March is the time to get out your pruning tools and dead-head any flowering plants and cut back the plants and shrubs.

∞ Remember to get your gardening tools sharpened before you start pruning. Secateurs, loppers, hedge clippers, spades and axes all need a new edge from time to time, and it makes the far job easier. (See Mister Sharp's classified ad on page 11 for a mobile service that comes to you.)

∞ The soil is warm enough to plant and the weather is cooler with more rain to nurture any new plants, so it's a good time to visit the plant shop and see what's in season.

∞ It's time to harvest the last fruit and veg from the summer garden and do any preserving.

∞ Once that's done, it's time to plant winter crops like cabbage, brocoli, cauliflower and brussel sprouts, leeks and silverbeet.

∞ For those thinking further ahead, you can plant spring bulbs like daffodils between now and the end of May.

∞ It's a good time to show your lawn some love by feeding it with a lawn fertiliser. This will help it through the winter.

∞ Once the restricted fire season comes to an end, you can light your burn pile and get rid of the garden waste you've accumulated over summer. Got to checkitsalright.nz to check before you light it.

BBQ and banter for CCGC

Alater than usual start to this year’s programme –Waitangi Day was the first Tuesday of the month so the committee opted for Tuesday, 13 February for the Coatesville Country Garden Club’s AGM and BBQ on the reserve. We know we will have a good turnout because the last coffee catch up drew a record 29 participants catching up with their friends. A sign of great networking and camaraderie. How much gardening was discussed is anyone’s guess!

The AGM sets out our driving forces for the year and the guidelines under which we will operate. The committee will be largely the same as for last year, with the exception of Jane Steele who will be replaced by Kim Horgan. Kim has been on the committee before and her work commitments had to take precedence but now she finds she has time to assist again. Welcome into our midst and we all look forward to you fully participating in all that happens.

AGM meetings are all about reports and explanations so everybody has the general idea of what the gathering is trying to achieve. The members are aging (not that they will admit it) and their gardening times are becoming limited in some cases, and it is found that keeping a functioning garden going takes longer. We also find the friends we have established are in the same position. Some have even left their large gardens for much smaller plots and garden expectations have shrunk. This is fine – the members still have knowledge, experiences and tales to share. So there are other aspects to a garden club which foster well being, friendly care and an interest in helping with communal gardens. (ie Mansion House gardens, developing Wildwood). We still appreciate gardens and love tripping around while we can to see other people’s efforts.

To add to the social fabric of the

club, food is often involved. We enjoy company and good tasting food which is part of a meeting. We have accomplished bakers, who provide sweet treats, we share plates of our food for the shared lunch and enjoy being catered for at the BBQ with sumptuous salads full of goodness.

At each meeting, special blooms are displayed and now vegetables/ produce are/is shown off too. No wonder we have over 100 members.

So the year has started with a fine day and dining on the Coatesville Reserve. Many enjoyed the fine steak and sausages with their salads (thanks to Kathy Lambert) and as it was Shrove Tuesday, pancakes with lemon juice and sugar were served for dessert.

For the next three months and in hopefully fine weather, members will be bussed to Hunua, West Auckland and Cambridge to view their spectacular gardens, comparing growing patterns and successes.

Once winter is with us, we gather at the Coatesville Hall and keep things local.

It is an exciting programme that has been assembled for the members and we know that if they can’t manage tripping around at least we will see them at coffee catchups happening every two weeks.

By Jenny Hunter

CCGC's annual BBQ

Strategic Trust And Tax Planning

Albert and Mae had owned a successful business for many years. They enjoyed a great lifestyle on the North Shore and had a holiday home in Omaha. Both their family home and their bach were in their family trust. Their accountant, who is also the independent trustee on their trust, had recommended that many years ago to protect from business risk in the early days.

Albert and Mae owned the shares in their business in their personal names. It had been quite some time since they had reviewed the trust deed, wishes for the trust, and revisited their wills. They also couldn’t remember if they had enduring powers of attorney.

They went to see their long-time lawyer who advised them that Trust Law had become very specialised over the last few years and they should go and see a specialist trust lawyer. He gave them a recommendation and they made an appointment to see her.

The trust lawyer reviewed their trust deed, wills, and enduring powers of attorney, which they did have. They discovered that the spouses and partners of their children were beneficiaries, prompting concerns about potential asset division in the

event of separation. She proposed solutions to protect their children’s inheritance.

She also questioned why the shares in the business weren’t in a trust. The value of the company had increased significantly over the years and she explained from an asset protection perspective, it was important to have all their valuable assets in a trust.

She also said that there were potential tax benefits to having the shares in the trust. Despite the negative publicity around the trust tax rate increasing to 39%, trusts still offered a very flexible vehicle to be able to provide greater tax efficiency. Albert and Mae had been paying their grandchildren’s private school fees for several years, and she said that even those could be more effectively paid through a trust. The lawyer said she would liaise with their accountant, and bring in specialist tax advice if required, to create greater efficiencies.

Albert and Mae were thrilled. They came away feeling confident, and even if they hadn’t fully understood some of the detail around the tax piece, they knew they were in good hands.

With the change in the trust tax rate to 39% from 1 April 2024, it is the

Trusts, Assets and Tax Implications.

LEGAL ADVICE

Trusts are invaluable asset protection mechanisms, which allow a person to hold property and assets on behalf of another for the good of the beneficiaries. However, when you’re dealing with transferring assets in or out of a trust, it is important to consider the tax consequences. There needs to be careful planning and structuring, often with your accountant and lawyer working together.

To get specialty advice for your situation contact Tammy McLeod or one of the Trust Team today.

perfect time to review your affairs to ensure that you are getting the most from your structuring. Even if your income producing assets are already in a trust, there may be opportunities to re-structure for commercial reasons that will give you greater tax efficiency. It is the perfect time to be getting legal and tax advice. If you have your company shares held in a trust, talk to your accountant and lawyer about the feasibility of declaring a dividend before 31 March 2024 and whether that is the most efficient thing for you to do.

Tammy McLeod, Trust Law specialist, Managing Director, Davenports Law.

CRAFTED

FOR PEACE OF MIND.

Founders Day Returns

Coatesville Scout group is back for 2024 with Keas, Cubs and Scouts all enjoying the sunny weather for their outdoor activities. Also, for the first time in three years the Founders Day celebrations were able to be held at Browns Bay Beach.

Our Kea, Cub and Scout numbers are down at the moment, but we competed in all three section activities. Many thanks must go to our dedicated leaders and parents for getting the kids to Browns Bay for the early Sunday morning start.

Our Scouts had held several practices for the raft race, twice in the river at Riverhead and also at Browns Bay Beach, with a fish and chip dinner and so were hopefully quite well prepared. Our low scout numbers meant the final raft squad was not actually settled until raceday, but they constructed their raft very efficiently and with much more commitment and speed than shown at practices. Due to one scout with a leg injury, we were unfortunately only able to field five paddlers, so they lined up at the start a man down but in very good spirit.

The actual race started very well, and Coatesville paddled with real teamwork and were second raft around the buoys but the lack of the

sixth paddler saw them tiring on the final leg to the beach. They were just passed on exit from the water but still managed a very impressive third place across the line.

Unfortunately, the actual raft race only accounts for a small percentage of the overall score and the judges had not rated our on-shore work good enough for our team to earn a podium finish. Our leaders however, were very impressed as over half the team were new scouts this year and no scouts had actually competed in the race before due to three years of cancellations. A fantastic effort from our scouts and something for them to be very proud of.

Our five Keas teamed up for their games and races on the beach and seemed to have loads of fun racing to snatch flags, throwing ropes and crawling as fast as possible across the sand. They should be very proud of their efforts, but alas, they too did not earn the judges nod and so were also unplaced on the day.

Unfortunately, only two of our Cubs showed up on the day and one of these is due to move to scouts so had not previously practiced the activity of building a catapult. However, the two girls worked really well together and despite being the

smallest team, managed to get the catapult built and actually fired their rubber pig forward into the target zone. The judges were full of praise for the commitment and teamwork shown by our two cubs and with the positive trajectory of their pig they were awarded equal third place. It was a real thrill to have both girls go up to accept their third-place award at prize giving. A great reward for the small Cub turnout and a reminder to those who did not attend of just what can be achieved with commitment and teamwork.

Also, at the prize giving our Group Leader Phil Smith was presented with the Bronze Ticki Award from Scouts NZ for more than 15 years’ service to scouting. Something else for our small group to cheer about on the first Founders Day in three years.

Cubs and Scouts still have places available for kids keen to be part of our fantastic Scout Group, so please make contact at:

coatesville@group.scouts.nz

J McCoy (Cub Leader)

Scouts and Cubs at the start of the Founders Day raft race, Browns Bay beach.

The Cubs' pig is about to fly.

Time for a new driveway?

Broken driveways

Water tabling, side drains, culverts, french drains in gabion rock and driveway dust suppression treatments. House hard stands, car parks and horse arenas. Call for an on-site chat and a quote.

Call or text

Nic 021 538 539

Gravel Drive Solutions Ltd

AUTO GATES LTD

Contact: Stephen Hudson

Tel: 0800 288 636

A1 Sure Services Tree Care All aspects of tree work, stump grinding and land clearance. Qualified arborists. Full Insurance. Free quotes. 446 1258 or 021 175 8660

Accomodation Boutique homestay in Coatesville. Self-contained peaceful private suite in our sunny north-facing country garden for up to 4 people. Perfect stay for local weddings or functions, 2 minutes to Coatesville Hall. Contact : Pat 021 316 781 pat@maddisons.nz www.maddisons. nz/homestay

Agricultural contractor mulching/ gorse clearing, mowing (& lawns), rotary hoeing/seeding, stump grinding, Graeme 027 533 3114 Clean Queen I'll have your house looking like a castle. References supplied. Ph Angela 021 0832 9352 Coatesville Mulch Mowing 1 to 50 acres, local contractor, affordable rates. Phone Warren and Brenda Mills

on 415 6503 or 021 191 4195

Connect Electrics For all your electrical solutions, Phone Kris 022 332 6663 or 412 6066

COTTAGE or similar wanted for semi-retired landscape gardener and his cat. 1 or 2 Bdrm. Long-term. References. Phone Phill 021 928 469 GET IN SHAPE Local private gym for one-on-one training or small group sessions, specialising in weight loss, general fitness and rehabilitation. Call Debbie 027 441 8769.

Haven Hair Design Need a completely new look or just a trim? Senior hair stylist and salon owner Lisa Cross will help you look and feel your best. Phone 09 415 4424 or book online www.havenhairdesign.co.nz

Local Shearer,

Kevin Abel, 021 223 5033

Mister Sharp Mobile Knife, Scissor & Garden Tool Sharpening Service. Onsite at your home or business, priced per item with no call-out charges - just a minimum spend please of $50. Ph 027 444 3348

Odd Job Company For building and landscaping projects, contact Peter 027 453 0570

Painters & Decorators Marshall

Painters can help with all your painting needs; interiors, exteriors, even waterblasting to make sure you get the top quality finish we're famous for. With over 50 years experience in the company, we have the skills you need. Call Marcus on 021 024 86516 or email marshallpainters@gmail.com.

Pilates in Coatesville Hall, Thursday @ 6pm. Special – 2 free lessons for new clients. $12 school term, $15 concession card and $20 casual class. Contact Abraham on 021 122 1530 or abrahampardo@gmail.com

Scout Marquee for hire, 6m x 8m, $250 per day. Call Garth 447 1863 The Blooming Beekeeper fully maintained beehive service. The ideal eco-friendly gift. Bee packages; beekeeping lessons; artisan bee products; swarm catching. Coatesville based. Call Val 021 755 833.

Who’s your caterer? Beautifully presented, great tasting food, at competitive prices. Phone Helen Cato 415 7771 or 021 211 8223.

Need to advertise?

Call 021 724 001

Golden Times Ahead

Autumn is just around the corner which transforms our community into a magnificent array of vibrant colours.

Coatesville supersedes all other suburbs once the trees come alive with the oranges and reds. It's the perfect time for buyers to view our properties…. and looking at the numbers of buyers attending my open home, let’s make the most of this time!

This brings to mind the maintenance required at this time of year to make sure you're presenting your property at its absolute best. The gutters need to be cleaned or fixed if leaking and leaves kept away from drains, vermin traps should also be set. If you're putting your house on the market these jobs are not always a one-off, particularly with property taking longer to sell at the moment. If you need to repeat this type of maintenance several times in a season you may prefer to get someone in to help you. The cost of a professional handyman or gutter cleaning company will quickly pay for itself because gutters and valleys in the roof that are left full of leaves can lead to costly leaks that cause cracks in ceiling plaster and around windows.

Jumping forward, once you get an offer, more than likely it will be subject to building inspection, which is a comprehensive report obtained usually by the buyer. They are carried out by a qualified inspector who visits the property and checks the home and outbuildings from the roof, gutters, roof cavity, construction, house ground levels and takes interior and exterior moisture readings. Generally, a building inspection report costs between $600–$800. I have found that if the inspector comes to the property and sees that the maintenance has been completed regularly, the building inspection runs more smoothly. I refer to these as ‘eyes wide open’ reports. They are detailed and an important part of the process. In certain circumstances I would recommend that a vendor obtain their own building inspection prior to going to market. However, this is property specific, depending on construction of the property, age and sometimes design. Call me to discuss necessary maintenance requirements at your home and whether obtaining a building inspection report is the right move for you!