Foodstuffs plans to build a Pak’nSave supermarket of more than 6000sqm on land opposite the Lake House arts centre in Takapuna.
The company lodged a consent application to develop the corner site at 6 Fred Thomas Dr with Auckland Council late last year. Planners are yet to make a decision.
The application includes a request to attach sizeable signage, including two 12m by 6m digital advertising screens on the west and south sides of the proposed yellow-and-black box-style building.
Around 900 vehicle movements an hour
are predicted during weekdays and peak periods of Saturdays, which the application said could be absorbed by the road network.
The supermarket is expected to create 150 jobs.
It will have 197 under-cover, ground-level
To page 2
Chocks away! WWII fighter pilot flies again at 100
Air time... Former Royal Air Force and commercial pilot David Barnston enjoyed his first stint at the controls in 45 years during a celebration flight – including a flyover of his home in Milford – ahead of his 101st birthday next month. Story, page 5.
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Foodstuffs proposes raising ground level on floodplain site of old landfill
From page 1
car parks accessed from two entrances on Fred Thomas Dr and one on Des Swann Dr. A drive-in click and collect area would be included.
The building’s total floor area would amount to 6093sqm, with a lobby leading to an upper level providing 4626sqm of retail space, along with back-of-house storage, plus a plant room on a mezzanine level. Earthworks would be over the total 9826sqm land area and to a volume of 4495sqm – all amounts that require a restricted discretionary activity consent.
Setting up the supermarket itself is a discretionary activity under the Auckland Unitary Plan in the Business - Mixed Use Zone.
opment’s impacts would be less than minor.
The application noted the proposed supermarket was on a floodplain and with overland flow paths. The plan was to raise ground levels by more than 300mm, it said.
The mostly flat site was once part of the Barrys Pt landfill, which closed in the 1970s, but is still monitored for seepage. To the south is a Mercedes-Benz dealership, and to the east a mix of light industrial and commercial activities, off Barrys Pt Rd.
Permission was sought to infringe construction noise standards, stockpile soil, and to drop the required seven accessible car parking spaces down to five.
The application noted Fred Thomas Dr was a recently upgraded arterial road. A roundabout had been made safer for pedestrians with the addition of refuge islands.
Foodstuffs North Island wants the build to proceed as a non-notified application. Its consultants, Bentley and Co, who submitted the application, said the devel-
A thin strip at the road-side of the Pak’nSave block is owned by Auckland Council, due to its use for a sewer line. This would be vested as road reserve.
Big reach but low impact – report
The trade impact on local businesses of a new Pak’nSave in Takapuna is downplayed in the Foodstuffs planning application.
Competitor Woolworths has a large supermarket close by on Barrys Pt Rd, another in the Milford mall and a small Countdown supermarket in Hauraki. It is also setting up a pick-up-only facility in Devonport.
Foodstuffs has large New World stores in Milford and Devonport and a small New World Metro in Shore City mall, Takapuna.
The nearest Pak’nSave is in Wairau Rd.
An economic assessment by Formative consultants identified a “main trade area” for Takapuna Pak’nSave from Milford to Devonport, taking in Northcote, Birkenhead and Herne Bay.
This wider area has 16 supermarkets. It said supermarkets in town centres, including those in the “large, relatively wealthy market” of Milford and in Takapuna, benefited from serving strong community catchments drawn to activities in those centres. Hauraki Woolworths also had a strategic position and although a relatively low reduction in sales was forecast, it was unlikely to close. Even if it did, the local shopping centre would still draw customers, it said.
“The proposed supermarket is just a supermarket with no other retail or service activities proposed, meaning that the Pak’nSave store has limited ability to draw away other types of retail spending,” the assessment said.
Authorised by Hon Simon Watts, Parliament Buildings, Wgtn.
Westlake singers perform at choir-movie premiere
Students from a North Shore school choir that helped inspire a New Zealand film delighted the audience at its recent red-carpet première, with performances before and during the event.
Members of award-winning Choralation – the combined choir of Westlake Boys and Girls high schools – also appear in the film, Tinā, which opens in cinemas, including in Takapuna, from next Thursday, 27 February.
The film tells the fictional story of a grief-stricken teacher who leads a secondary-school choir to the Big Sing Finale, the culmination of a nationwide schools choral festival at which, in real-life, Choralation has been a repeat gold medallist.
The choir director and Head of Music at Westlake Girls, Fiona Wilson, says it was a thrill to be involved in the première at the Civic Theatre. Parents of choir members, WGHS principal Jane Stanley and associate principal David Burton were among those in attendance.
Choralation first assembled on a theatre balcony, serenading those entering and mingling in the theatre lobby. They later joined other singers on stage for a rendition of Dave Dobbyn’s “Slice of Heaven” before the screening to an audience of 2300 began.
Westlake singers also feature on the film’s soundtrack, after Wilson was contacted by director Miki Magasiva in late 2023, seeking Choralation’s participation.
About 45 singers were involved in the audio recording for the film last year, with members of both the 2023 and 2024 choir line-ups involved. Around 15 of the students also worked as extras on the movie.
But the Westlake connection dates back more than a decade. Wilson told the Observer Magasiva first contacted her after seeing a video clip of Choralation performing a song in Samoan at the Big Sing Finale in 2013.
The spirited rendition of ‘Maunga e ole Atuolo’ went viral, with many in the Samoan community both amazed and delighted that a traditional school choir had chosen a Samoan song for its repertoire at what is effectively the national schools singing championship.
That year, there were no Samoan students in Choralation, but the choir honoured the language with correct pronunciation and an enthusiastic performance under its then director Rowan Johnston.
“They sang so beautifully,” said Wilson who was at the school at the time but yet to take up the baton with Choralation.
The performance stuck in Magasiva’s mind, and the uniting power of music is a theme of Tinā, which takes its name from the Samoan word for mother.
The film is partly set at a private school in post-earthquake Christchurch, where the lead character, Mareta, starts a choir. Filming took place at the Christchurch Arts Centre, but also in Auckland, where a mock Big Sing Finale
was staged at Victory Church.
Magasiva called on Wilson to help with the choir depicted in the film. “I was able to work behind the camera as well, to help [lead actress Anapela Polataivao] work with the choir.”
Polataivao was a quick study, having sung in choirs growing up. “She was lovely to work with – a natural.”
Wilson says Westlake Girls likes to reflect the school’s diversifying community in its choirs. “It’s important for students’ world view.”
It resonated with students and families to include a range of cultures. “With our cultural makeup in Auckland it’s important to reflect that.”
This year she has commissioned a new Samoan work from Elisha Fa’i-So’oialo. A piece in Mandarin was in the 2024 repertoire, and Indonesian and Malaysian songs have
been performed previously.
Pasifika students are to the fore in Choralation this year, including Westlake Boys head boy Constantine Mataafa and Westlake Girls’ Melesini Teulilo. “I have two beautiful choir leaders, one Samoan and one Tongan,” says Wilson.
She suggests that anyone going to see Tinā listens out for Choralation singing ‘Nearer My God to Thee’. And even putting the choir’s performances aside, she rates the film highly for its strong emotional thread. “It is everything you want in a New Zealand movie – it feels like home.”
• To help raise money to get Westlake choirs to this year’s Big Sing, a fundraising screening of Tinā will be held at Takapuna Beach Cinema on 5 March. The regional Big Sing finals are in Auckland in June, with nationals in Dunedin in August.
• More pictures, page 23
Stepping up for première... Members of Choralation with choir director Fiona Wilson and Tinā star Anapela Polataivao
Flood Recovery
Milford flood plans to be weighed in tandem
Wairau Valley residents will have to wait until April for more details of plans to lessen flood risk in the high-risk area stretching from Sunnynook to Milford.
The delay is to allow the costs and timing of two big flood mitigation projects to be considered together.
One is the use of AF Thomas Park – which includes the Takapuna Golf Course – as a detention pond and the other a programme of work further down the valley to improve water flow and safety through Milford to the sea.
Auckland Council’s Transport, Resilience and Infrastructure Committee signed off last week on proceeding with a blue-green network flood relief project in West Auckland, but held off on a decision about the AF Thomas Park work, asking staff to report on both the local projects together in April.
Devonport-Takapuna Local Board member Mel Powell welcomed this approach: “One without the other doesn’t make sense.”
Powell and board chair Toni van Tonder, along with two representatives from the neighbouring Kaipatiki Local Board, attended the meeting. But local board presentations will now wait until April, when a catchment-wide approach will be promoted.
“We can hold [floodwater] at AF Thomas, but if it breaches it’s going to continue to flood the homes lower down,” Powell said.
Healthy Waters staff have said a 30 per cent reduction in flood risk is possible by lowering the park. But they also recommended action downstream, including in Wairau Creek channels, near where homes were badly impacted in the January 2023 flood. Details of this are yet to be publicly revealed.
Council is calling for more central government funding for the city’s flood relief, after more property owners than expected qualified for jointly funded home buyouts.
In Milford more than 100 homes have
Rocky road... Geological uplift is among the reasons the Wairau catchment is so problematic. The image (above) models the pre-human catchment which once flowed south into Ngataringa Bay, before the land around Lake Pupuke was raised by significant rocky uplift (image, top right, with lifted area in red and lake in black). This formed a natural barrier, changing the water course and forcing it into a sharp turn (image, bottom right, circled), where it now flows through Wairau Creek to Milford Beach.
qualified already, with others owners yet to receive or decide on buyout offers.
Initially, around 900 so-called Category 3 buyouts were expected in Auckland, but more than 1200 are now expected. To allow for this, council will look to divert money set aside for flood mitigation work that it still wants to proceed with. This includes along the Wairau Creek where badly at risk homes will be removed.
An average Auckland buyout of $1.014 million across an expected 1215 homes has been forecast.
The first big flood mitigation project was approved in South Auckland late last year.
The latest council report identified the Clover Dr area of Ranui in West Auckland as the top-ranking of four more areas in which to prioritise investment in risk reduction.
The much larger Wairau area was second,
rating 3.8 out of 5 on a multi-criteria analysis, compared with 4.1 for Clover Dr. A cost-benefit analysis puts Wairau slightly ahead.
Wairau has 1323 properties in its flood plain, of which 151 have been rated as Category 3.
“Wairau is by far the largest of our focus areas,” the council report said.
The area had a mix of large commercial and dense residential land uses and had suffered extreme flooding and two deaths on 27 January 2023. Flood risk reduction would be maximised when interventions were delivered across the whole catchment.
As projects were completed, some redevelopment of vacant land would become viable, the report said.
Some property acquisition under the Public Works Act would be necessary to deliver the full benefits of some projects.
MAPS: AUCKLAND COUNCIL
Still got it: Centenarian airman takes plane for a spin
From page 1
A 100-year-old former World War II fighter pilot enjoyed his first flight at the controls in 45 years when he was taken on a scenic tour as an early 101st birthday present last week.
David Barnston flew the dual-control Tecnam light aircraft for most of the 11 February sightseeing flight, although plane owner Mel Forsyth handled take-off and landing duties at Dairy Flat’s North Shore Airport.
Former Royal Air Force (RAF) pilot Barnston, who described the flight as an “interesting experience”, steered a circuit over the Waitematā Harbour and his home in Milford.
It was his first time flying a plane since he retired as a commercial pilot in 1979, at the mandatory retirement age.
He joked that to top the early present for his March birthday, next year he would have to be taken up in a jet.
The idea for the flight came about when Barnston and Forsyth were talking at a North Shore Brevet Club lunch.
One idea had been to go up in a World War II Russian fighter, but Barnston was happy with the aircraft Forsyth made available. “It’s a very nice aeroplane,” he said.
Barnston served towards the end of the war, seeing action against the Japanese in Burma, then helping settlers safely escape the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) during the Indonesian War of Independence.
He moved to New Zealand in the late 1940s, originally to Wairau Valley and then Milford in 1962.
He flew for the Royal New Zealand Airforce territorial arm, then was a pilot with the National Airways Corporation and briefly Air New Zealand after it merged with NAC.
Barnston’s son Jack, daughter-in-law Nicole and several friends and members of the North Shore Brevet Club were in attendance to watch him take flight.
Mission accomplished... David Barnston (right) and aircraft owner Mel Forsyth back on the tarmac after their 11 February flight. Below: Barnston in his RAF days, and talking to a territorials colleague in New Zealand.
Paddlers converge on Takapuna
Kevin O’Neil (left) and Greg Traill were among 1286 paddlers competing at the Takapuna Beach Cup last weekend. O’Neil and Traill are part of the Taniwha Outrigger Canoe Club, whose members train at Lake Pupuke and Takapuna Beach. Both men competed in the 21km race, O’Neil with the club’s men’s crew and Traill with the mixed crew. The three-day event ran from Friday 14 February until Sunday. The annual waka ama competition attracts entrants from around the country and overseas, including from Australia, the Cook Islands, French Polynesia, Hawaii, the United Kingdom and the United States. Results, see webscorer.com.
Winz on the move
Work and Income’s service centre in Takapuna is moving from Lake Rd in the town centre to 41 Barrys Pt Rd. The Ministry of Social Development says the new space will offer improved privacy for clients and staff and better security. The Lake Rd office will close at 5pm on Wednesday 26 February, with the new office opening from 9.30am on 5 March. Online and phone inquiries can be made during the closure over four work days.
TAKAPUNA PRIMARY SCHOOL
Applications Invited: Out-of-Zone Enrolments for Terms 2-4, 2025
The Board has determined that limited places are available for out-of-zone students entering Years 0/1/2 ONLY starting in terms 2-4, 2025. This includes siblings of current students and those in Priority 1-6 of our enrolment scheme. To complete an application www.tps.school.nz/enrolment/ Closing date for applications Friday 21st March 2025 (3.00pm) Ballot will be drawn Monday 24th March 2025 and results emailed within 3 school days. Book a school tour with the principal (Thursday 13th March at 4.00pm) enrol@tps.school.nz
Whether it’s visiting the Eiffel Tower, or a cruise around the Mediterranean, Ryman are giving you the opportunity to tick a destination off your bucket list.
When you purchase an occupation right to an independent apartment or townhouse by 31 March 2025, we’ll give you a $15,000 House of Travel Gift Card*.
Ryman’s lock and leave lifestyle means you’re free to take off, knowing your home will be cared for. With fewer chores and more freedom, now is the perfect time to explore.
Economic growth in Takapuna outpaced Auckland and New Zealand-wide figures last year, a new report shows.
The local economy grew 3.8 per cent in 2024, with Auckland’s economy up 2.1 per cent and the national figure trailing at 1.4 per cent, said consultancy Infometrics in an annual survey it issued this month.
Takapuna Beach Business Association chair Terence Harpur said the data reaffirmed the town centre’s position as an attractive hub for retail, hospitality and high-value services. Summer in the seaside suburb was tracking well, with visitors enjoying the location and events.
Infometrics also reported that annual job growth in Takapuna was up 3.9 per cent, compared with 2.8 per cent for Auckland city. High-value service industries were the major driver of growth and jobs. This sector, taking
in industries such as IT, health, financial, and professional services, accounted for just over 55 per cent of Takapuna business, significantly higher than in the city (32 per cent).
Harpur said: “These figures confirm what many businesses and investors already know – Takapuna is one of New Zealand’s premier destinations for innovation and economic opportunity.”
The strong performance in 2024 came amid a cooling global and national economy, highlighting Takapuna’s resilience as a business centre and its attractiveness to skilled professional staff.
Harpur said it demonstrated the importance of a diversified, high-value local economy in navigating challenging times and delivering for businesses and residents alike.
Retail spending (including both shops and hospitality) was also up in Takapuna over the
Christmas period, he said.
Auckland overall experienced a drop of 2.1 per cent in December data collected by Marketview, with falls in leading shopping suburbs including Newmarket, Parnell, and Ponsonby.
In Takapuna town centre spending was up 3.1 per cent, with the number of transactions up 4.3 per cent compared with December 2023.
The hospitality sector alone grew 4 per cent, apparel and personal shopping was up 6 per cent, and the liquor category up by just over 8 per cent.
Harpur said the results positioned Takapuna well for success in 2025 and beyond. With more than 130 cafes, restaurants and bars and ample parking, it was increasingly being recognised as a hospitality drawcard, he said.
Big advertising screen planned for mall entrance
Shore City wants to install a large digital billboard over its main pedestrian entrance on the corner of Lake Rd and Como St.
It would display advertising 24 hours a day, seven days a week, promoting businesses in the mall and others unrelated to Shore City.
The proposed billboard (pictured), measuring 4.2m wide by 5m deep, would be installed on an existing parapet signage structure above the entrance.
In its application to Auckland Council, the centre said the digital signage using LED technology would meet standards imposed across the city of a typical minimum “dwell” or screening time of eight seconds and a 0.5 second dissolve transition time between images. It would also meet standards in terms of brightness by day and night.
Under planning rules the signage is a restricted discretionary activity on a street-facing building in the Business - Metropolitan Centre Zone. The applicant said such signage was typical of the zone and would not be visually intrusive in the busy commercial
environment and against the backdrop of the centre building.
The immediate area, being a transit corridor, was already lit and light from the billboard would not enter any residential windows, the application said. It was also mostly screened from Potters Park, over the road,
and would “add to the vibrancy enjoyed” in Waiwharariki Anzac Square.
The billboard would have less than minor adverse effects and should proceed as a non-notified application, the centre said. Council planners will determine if the consent is granted.
Milford businesses kick in for promotion boost
After a challenging 2024, Milford Business Association (MBA) manager Murray Hill is looking ahead to being able to better promote the town centre’s appeal in 2025.
New shops were coming soon to the redeveloped wing of the Milford Shopping Centre – in the former Warehouse space – and the MBA would have more money in the kitty, he told Devonport-Takapuna Local Board members (DTLB) at a workshop last week. MBA members had agreed at the organisation’s annual meeting to lift the area’s targeted Business Improvement District (BID) rate by 60 per cent, to $280,000 a year, Hill said. This would provide a “decent budget” for crowd-pulling events, allow a part-time staff
member to be employed and fund development of the association website.
Hill later told the Observer that because nearly 30 per cent of the BID rate was levied on mall owner New Zealand Retail Property Group (NZRPG), the remaining increase spread among 180 or so businesses was not too much on a weekly basis. Compared with other BIDs, such as in Parnell, businesses had been paying a relatively low rate
Hill, who has been in the job for 15 years, said 2024 had been a challenge. “It was the most difficult year so far, with less money to work with,” he said. This was partly due to a cut in funds for events from the DTLB and fewer dollars from sponsors. The annual
Christmas event had been scaled back.
But marketing efforts and giveaways had continued and support from NZRPG had been a help.
Trading had been fairly flat until a welcome end-of-year lift had carried into January, which he hoped would continue, with hopes of leveraging off coming sailing events.
New shops in the mall would open within a month or two and NZRPG was offering a $2000 shopping voucher for the Viva La France event in March.
Hill said longer term he expected some of Milford’s ageing main street shops would be replaced with retail-and-apartment developments.
New Temple Inspires More Ways to Give Back
Have you ever been to the Westfield Manukau Mall or to the Rainbow’s End Amusement Park in the past four years? Have you ever wondered what the large stone building tucked next to the motorway is? This building is the ‘Auckland New Zealand Temple,’ which belongs to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Some members across the globe attend their local temple to worship and perform religious ordinances.
Once dedicated in April, only faithful members of the Church will be allowed to enter. However, before the dedication, the Church is hosting an Open House, where members and friends among the community are invited to tour the temple and its different rooms, learning the purpose of the progressing rooms.
Elder Russell Walters, a 23-year-old church member in Sunnynook, states how the restored gospel of Jesus Christ has helped him through life’s challenges, and how his attendance in his local temple has helped him to realise the love God has for him and the people within the community he works with. As a young adult service missionary of the Church, Elder Walters has dedicated two years to serving in his local community full-time, setting aside personal finances and desires to focus on helping members of the
church and of the community.
One of his voluntary assignments he regularly attends is in a local charity store. Charity stores throughout New Zealand assist in funding different services to help those in need, including empowering people through shelter, providing healthy housing programs, alongside many more that provide remarkable services. As a volunteer, Elder Walters describes working within, alongside other staff and volunteers who may not share the same beliefs as him, as a
lovely way to assist each other to help give their individual efforts and talents for a great cause.
For those who are considering attending the open house—Elder Walters invites those to tour with a question in mind to ask the differing talking points throughout the temple, as that may help the average person to get the most out of their walk-through.
To those who are interested in attending, please follow the qr code link below to book
AUCKLAND
NEW ZEALAND TEMPLE
OPEN HOUSE
27 FEBRUARY - 22 MARCH (EXCLUDING SUNDAYS)
EXPERIENCE THE BEAUTY AND PEACE OF THE AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND TEMPLE.
SCAN THE QR CODE TO LEARN MORE AND RESERVE YOUR VISIT.
Cup winners... Westlake Girls’ Under-18 eight: (from left) Maeve Lockett, Bella Davies, Charlotte Mawston, Hollie Fraser, Sacha van der Net, Phoebe Bird, Annabel Webber, Talia Chatfield and Delilah Clements (cox)
Westlake rowers strike form as major regattas loom
Both Westlake high schools were successful in the blue-ribbon senior eight events at the Head of Harbour Regatta on 12 February.
The dual triumphs followed wins in the same Lake Pupuke regatta last year.
And they were particularly satisfying for one family, with Phoebe Bird in the Westlake Girls High School crew, and her brother Samuel rowing for Westlake Boys.
Westlake Girls head rowing coach Ian Bright said the result reflected the extra effort the crew had put in during training since the start of the year. The crew themselves had recognised at the end of last season that their fitness wasn’t where it needed to be.
Head of Harbour featured more schools and boats this year, with 714 competitors,
compared to last year’s 653. Being able to compete against more teams was helpful, especially for the junior crews, Bright said.
He thought Westlake Girls’ stiffest competition would be from Waikato and Canterbury schools later in the season. They will test themselves against the former at the Karapiro Junior Regatta this weekend, which doubles as the College Sport Auckland championships.
The focus will then shift to the business end of the season, specifically the North Island Secondary School Championships, from 7-9 March, and the Maadi Regatta, from 24-29 March, when the crews will aim to be peaking. Both events are at Karapiro.
Westlake Boys head coach Jo Shotter
said as the Head of Harbour is around half the length of the Maadi course the Pupuke racing doesn’t give a true indication of a crew’s preparedness.
Neither of the Westlake schools would know how fast the South Island schools would be at Maadi. This was a positive, as crews needed to row their own race.
She said Westlake Boys’ senior eight aimed to be in the top three at the national regatta.
Westlake Girls’ U18 eight, U18 pair, U18 four and U17 pair all took division-one wins at Head of Harbour. Westlake Boys’ U18 eight, four and pair, and U17 eight and four crews also won their respective division-one categories.
Out in front... Westlake Boys’ Under 18 eight in action at Pupuke: (from left) Dylan Henderson, Otto Gartner, Toby Cleghorn, Adam Leece, Jack Buckley, Donovan Pivac, Sam Bird, George Langley and Flynn Wigglesworth (cox)
PICTURE: CONRAD BLIND
Families mingle at
Family time... (clockwise from top left) Year 3 pupil Nam Nguyen with his parents Hanh Nguyen and Huygen Le; Year 3 Mei and mother Saori Watanabe; Year 6 Wendy Skunca and mother Mirta Sobat
Cool treats... Left: Year 5s Joel Sladen and Oliver Stevens (back) with year 3s Hudson Sladen, Bruno Stevens and Leon Berghan enjoying their iceblocks. Above: Father and son Darren Jay and Leon Berghan.
big TPS picnic
Takapuna Primary School pupils and their parents gathered after school on 12 February for a picnic hosted to connect the school community. Games, music, a sausage sizzle, pork dumplings and ice blocks kept the crowd entertained and fed throughout the afternoon.
Fun and food... Left: Year 5s Oliver Stevens and Leon Majewski running through the hoops during the courtyard game. Above: Ellie Guerra with her father Alex.
Mixing it up... Year 6 Kyle Budl playing a game on the courts; Luca Horgan, also from year 6, relaxes on the spiderweb climbing ropes
Best buddies... Year 6s (from left) Cruz McSporran-Ighani, Bailey Kent, Ryan Segar and Romeo Berghan
Car washing helps students polish up their skills
Wairau Valley Special School’s Takapuna transition centre is offering car washes and gardening services to the community to provide its students with work experience.
The transition centre is for the school’s 18-21-year-olds to prepare for working roles once they leave school.
As part of an enterprise programme the teachers wanted to show the students how they can be rewarded for work, so decided to start offering commercial gardening and car-washing services.
Teacher Izelle Toerien said the money made would go towards recreational activities for the students, such as movie tickets.
Takapuna Beach Business Association chair Terence Harpur was the first customer at the car wash, and has previously hired the students to do gardening in a Huron St garden bed.
Toerien said the activities helped the students gain experience which they can take with them when they leave.
Being out in the community has also aided the students’ social skills.
When gardening, they have been asked by members of the public about what they’re doing, which has helped them develop their communication skills, Toerien said.
The visibility of working in the public also helped raise awareness of special-needs peo-
ple and what they could contribute, she said. The transition centre does volunteer work with other community groups and schools, such as cleaning up the banks behind the Auburn Reserve and Patuone Walkway with the Pupuke Birdsong environmental group, and gardening at Milford School.
Students have also been making dog toys from pieces of old Milford School fleece jumpers, which the school donated to them. The transition centre has the capacity to wash six cars every Friday. A wash is $10 and an interior vacuum $5. Email booking requests to itoerien@wvss.school.nz.
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Elbow grease... Student Derek Walters buffs off the water marks on a car at the Wairau Valley Special School transition centre
North Shore student leaders lay out their goals
Rosmini College
Joseph Wolfkamp has been selected as Rosmini College’s head boy for the year. He’s part of the school’s Kapalle Choir, Chamber Choir, Academy of Performing Arts, Art Club and Student Volunteer Army, as well as being a student librarian and part of the Young Vinnies programme under which members serve food to the less fortunate once a month.
Joseph said he’s most excited about giving back to the Rosmini community, which had given him so many opportunities in the past.
“At Rosmini, our motto is Charity Fulfils the Law, and I hope that my actions and words will help me to lead with charity at the core of all I do.”
Westlake Girls High School
Julia Wilkins, a keen actor and writer, is Westlake Girls High School’s 2025 head girl.
She’s playing the lead, Biddy, in this year’s school production of Three Birds Alighting on a Field and has recently branched out into directing, last year taking the helm of a 15-minute piece for the Sheilah Winn Shakespeare Festival.
Wilkins has had a few short stories published and is on the committee for the school’s arts journal, Parallax. Last year, she signed up for the school’s Latin Dance troupe, which plans to continue with this year.
Julia said she’s excited about all the parts of the head-girl role – “holding weekly meetings, delivering speeches, going to events, and being able to be a trusted voice for my peers”.
Julia wants to be supportive and inspiring to her fellow students.
“Making a difference in people’s lives is really important to me.”
Westlake Boys High School
Constantine Mataafa has been selected as Westlake Boys High School’s Head Boy for 2025.
A leading singer, he’s a part of the Choralation and Voicemale school choirs.
Constantine involves himself within his culture at school by being a leader and participator both within its Pasifika community and at the Westlake Pasifika Night.
He said the most exciting part of his new role is “knowing that when I go out I am a representative of such a great school, and that I can speak to the younger generation to inspire them to maybe move into the role I have some day.
“This year I want to help create a school that supports all areas of school life, and steers away from being a school that appears to be ‘centric’ on one aspect of school life.”
Constantine Mataafa
Julia Wilkins
Joseph Wolfkamp
for 2025 – with a focus on building school spirit
Carmel College
Chelsea Brown and Lily Dwyer are Carmel College’s head girls for this year.
Chelsea said she hopes to contribute to an even stronger sense of school spirit and positivity among her peers this year. The netball coach, umpire, debating member, librarian, peer mediator and member of various other clubs said there were many exciting aspects to the role.
“I truly think my highlight will be engaging with a range of people from both within and outside my school. And of course organising our iconic school event, the Carmel Day concert.”
Lily told the Observer the position gives her and Chelsea the platform to lead the school, with the voice of students in mind.
“It is our job and responsibility to be pillars of support which they can lean on as they continue to excel in academic, sporting, and social activities.
Lily, a rower, volunteer at Vinnies op-shop and social netball player, said she hopes to be a consistent role model that other students can rely on.
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Double duty... Carmel College’s joint head girls for 2025 are Lily Dwyer (left) and Chelsea Brown
Takapuna Grammar School
Alexandre Berrux and Claudia Pearce have been selected as Takapuna Grammar School’s head boy and head girl for 2025.
Claudia, the captain of the girls premier water polo team as well as a netball and tennis player, said she’s excited to be able to have a positive and influential impact on improving things that will benefit all of the school’s students.
“Overall as head girl I want to uplift the school environment even more and continue to create a place where every student feels as though they can be their true self.”
She is an Environment Club leader, part of the UNICEF club and student peer team while also being a special education buddy.
Alexandre told Flagstaff he’s keen to connect younger and older students so that younger students feel more comfortable and excited to go to school.
The first XV hooker and flanker is part of the peer drugs and alcohol team and Tutangate senior leadership, which organises activities surrounding Maori culture and helps junior students develop their leadership skills.
TGS duo... Claudia Pearce and Alexandre Berrux
We need you!
New Zealand’s media continues to undergo massive change with job losses in all sectors.
The common reasons for the media cutbacks and closures are declining advertising revenues and rising costs. Newspapers across the country have faced print bill increases of 56 per cent over the last five years.* (Our print bill has gone up $6000 per month during this time.)
At the same time, New Zealand companies are spending millions of dollars on Google and Facebook advertising. This money goes offshore, with massive impacts on New Zealand journalism and jobs. Journalist numbers in New Zealand have dropped from 4000 to 1700 in the past 20 years.*
At Devonport Publishing, we employ nine people (full-time and part-time) across our two newspapers — The Devonport Flagstaff and the Rangitoto Observer. All live locally.
Most media are now relying on donations or subscriptions in some form to survive.
I hope you are prepared to pay something towards the production of our newspapers. Click ‘Become a supporter’ at the top of our website home page: devonportflagstaff.co.nz Every little bit helps. Please sign up for our email alerts for when the paper goes online and to get our weekly newsletter.
Finally, a massive thanks to our advertisers who continue to support us, and to those readers who have already made donations.
Rob Drent Managing Editor
The Rangitoto Observer
*Source: Koi Tū: University of Auckland Centre for Informed Futures. A position paper on New Zealand’s news media. Author: Gavin Ellis. Released May 2024.
HOW TO HELP US:
Go to devonportflagstaff.co.nz and click to ‘Become a supporter’ at the top of the page
Lady Allum nurses warn of staffing-change impact
Nurses from Milford’s Lady Allum retirement village picketed outside their workplace last week, protesting scheduling changes they say will negatively affect their patients and themselves.
The nurses said nationwide changes by village owner Oceania Healthcare, will cut their take-home pay by an average of 25 percent. The nurses will also have their shifts changed, which they say will complicate their routines, including the organisation of childcare.
Many of the nurses working 80-hour fortnights will have their hours cut to 64 or in some cases 52 hours, they say. For some nurses, that impacts their ability to retain working visas as they’ll go from full-time to part-time work, one nurse, who did not wish to be named, told the Observer. The nurses and their union, the Nurses Organisation, say the changes will lead to poorer care for the residents.
Oceania national operations manager Jodie Schorn said a recent review identified the need to adjust rosters to ensure a fair and balanced distribution of shifts. Proposed adjustments, which were still under consultation, had been “carefully considered to support resident care”.
Homeless man builds brief refuge in bus shelter
A homeless man who temporarily moved into a Sunnynook bus shelter, barricading the entrance, has been moved on.
The man moved his belongings into the shelter (pictured) on Sycamore Dr opposite Salamanca Rd, on 9 February.
After complaints from the public, Auckland Transport (AT) moved him out on 11 February. A police spokesperson told the Observer the man was believed to no longer be in the area.
Items, including multiple shopping trolleys and a weatherboard square, have been removed from the shelter, which AT arranged to be cleaned. “Bus shelters are for Auckland Transport customers who are waiting for buses, and we don’t condone people occupying bus shelters for other reasons,” an AT spokesperson said.
AT said when it was made aware of such situations it linked with police and social services as necessary to support the individual and move them on.
The Observer spoke to the man on 11 February, when was in the process of moving his belongings “out of Sunnynook” in three shopping trolleys.
He said he’d been “trespassed” from the area despite good deeds of weeding around Sunnynook Park and picking up cigarette butts.
The man said he’s played for all of the local Rugby League clubs including the Glenfield Greyhounds and Northcote Tigers. Scrap metal he had stored in the shelter had fetched $20, he said.
Auckland Council’s Community Committee recently urged the government to consider how nationwide targets for emergency housing are affecting homelessness in Auckland.
The number of people known to be sleeping in cars, streets and local parks has risen by 53 per cent in the past four months – from 426 in September 2024 to 653 in January this year. In addition, an unknown number of homeless people are transient and mobile.That increase comes as the number on Auckland’s emergency housing list has fallen from 885 people in 2023 to 39 at the end of 2024.
Taking a stand... Nurses protesting outside Lady Allum village in Brook St, Milford on 13 February
Trades & Services
Enrich and protect your valuable asset with high quality painting by Kingdom Decorators
Kingdom Decorators has been operating on and around the Devonport Peninsula for over 40 years
Owner, Ross Kingdom built an extensive team of loyal, high quality painters, most of whom have been with him for more than 20 years
Ross offers a ‘one stop shop’ service from advice with colours, paint finishes through to scaffold and building repairs including project management where necessary
Existing paintwork often requires attention after 10 years or so and deferring maintenance can incur extra costs down the line
We have been so lucky with all our staff, they are courteous, friendly, helpful guys and always have a clean and tidy site. The harmonious singing is an absolute bonus!
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Musical worlds collide in Irish Kiwi’s guitar virtuosity
Dave Flynn’s Irish upbringing is immediately obvious in his accent, but his musical journey has taken him far from home.
He plans to share the story of the many influences on his traditional tunes in his Celtic Guitar Journey show at the Vic theatre in Devonport this month.
Flynn (pictured) splits his time between Auckland, Ireland and touring. He and his Irish wife, whom he met in Takapuna 11 years ago at a wedding, have New Zealand residency and a home in Hauraki.
“Funnily enough, I’ve never done a concert in this area, on the North Shore,” he says.
The professional guitarist of 25 years has played at venues around the country for a decade, and has appeared with the New Zealand String Quartet in Auckland.
The Celtic Guitar Journey programme is a distillation of his life’s work and study, which included a PhD in composition in Irish music
Flynn is well-known in the Irish music scene, but doesn’t limit himself to purely Irish tunes. Classical influences are strong in his playing and he recently spent time in Spain to pick up some flamenco guitar and percussive techniques, all of which will be evident in his performance at the Vic.
“I’ve always been interested in all sorts of types of music,” he says. “Irish traditional folk is influenced by all sorts of other forms
of music and the show I do illustrates that.”
In two 40-minute halves, the show will traverse myriad influences, reflecting the origins and diaspora of the Celts.
He will play a set of tunes from Scotland and has also looked to Nova Scotia in Canada, where immigrants of Celtic descent fashioned their own style. Manchester Irish made their own music too, he says.
“The stuff people will not be so familiar with comes from central Europe, where the Celts started.”
His playing also takes in Polish and German influences. The mazurka dance has
become a tradition in Ireland, he says.
DNA tests have revealed people on the Irish west coast have a 7 per cent Iberian ancestry. Flynn says there is an old style of singing in Ireland, known as sean nos, which has commonality with the ornamentation and inflection of Spain’s more flamboyant music.
Culture Ireland is a backer of Celtic Guitar Journey, which he took to other parts of New Zealand last year. The repertoire has grown since then due to his Spanish stint.
Befitting his status as an Irish-Kiwi, Flynn says he has started to pick up on Aotearoan influences. Flying Nun band The Bats have made an impression and he says native birdsong resonates to his musical ear.
On top of his guitar work, he’s written a few orchestral pieces, including some with distinctly Kiwi names such as “Takapuna Beach Hop” and “Kaikoura Lobster”.
A festival in Wanaka beckons next, before he will reunite with the New Zealand String Quartet in Wellington.
Locally, he has visited the Bunker on Takarunga several times for folk performances. For his debut North Shore performance, he says he was attracted to the Vic for its historic character.
“It’s going to be great.”
• Celtic Guitar Journey,8pm Friday 28 February, at The Vic. Tickets, $20 plus booking fee, from thevic.co.nz
Lake House, former library win grants
Two Takapuna heritage buildings have been allocated Auckland Council funding for upgrades.
MOVIES & SPECIAL EVENTS
Bird (R16)
Neneh Superstar (M)
Tinā (M) 126min Advance Screenings 21-23 Feb
Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy (M) 120min
Captain America: Brave New World (M) 119min
September 5 (M) 95min
Widow Clicquot (M) 90min
Becoming Led Zeppelin (E) 121min
Touch (M) 122min
Babygirl (R16) 115min
Companion (R16) 97min
The Haka Party Incident (E)
A Complete Unknown (M)
COMING SOON
The Last Journey (M)
Mickey 17 (R16)
First Thursdays: McQueen (2018) (M) 111min Thu 6 Mar
Thanks to our partners and supporters
One is the privately owned former library at 2 The Strand, which after a recent interior strip-out is for commercial lease.
Applicant TLP 2023 Ltd, which is owned by Daren and Martina Blanchard, was granted $35,000 for seismic strengthening on the building from council’s Regional Historic Heritage Grants fund.
The old library, sold by the council in early 2024 for $3.2 million, dates to the 1950s. Its notable features include the original pinkstone-clad section at the seaward end and an interior staircase.
Money from its sale has been put towards scoping proposals to turn the current library into a combined library and community hub.
The Lake House Arts Centre building on Fred Thomas Dr received $13,100 for exterior repairs and maintenance.
The house, run by a trust, used to sit on the Takapuna foreshore and was saved after community action to be repurposed as a gallery and artist studio space, where exhibitions and classes are held. A cafe is also on site.
The council allocated a total of $3.56 million to 21 projects across the region.
Choralation choir members on the red carpet at the premiere of Tinā, at which they sang last week (see story, page 3). Below: The film’s director Miki Magasiva with David Squire, choir director for Westlake Boys High School.
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