31 July 2026 Devonport Flagstaff

Plan unveiled for new $500K Domain playground... p4

July 31, 2026

Women’s sports hub will have premium facilities... p5

Interview: Folk fan and hospo face Chris Priestley... p22-23

Depot reviewing operations after funding slashed

Creative New Zealand, a major and long-standing funder of the Depot arts hub, has unexpectedly declined funding to the Devonport organisation.

“We were very surprised and disappointed by the decision,” says Depot director Amy Saunders.

“Depot has consistently met Creative New Zealand’s funding criteria and delivered the outcomes expected of us over many years.”

In 2024/25, the Depot received $180,000 from Creative New Zealand “towards programme delivery for two years”.

Depot board co-chair Wayne Dyer says the organisation will need to carefully review how it delivers some programmes and services within available resources. “Increasingly, our future will rely on support from patrons, businesses, philanthropic partners and members of our community who believe

creativity is an essential part of a thriving place to live,” he says.

The Depot, which did not respond to a Flagstaff query about how much it sought in the most recent funding round, believes it is one of many arts groups across the country affected by funding cuts.

In its annual return as a charity for the year to June 2025, it said it had eight full-time and 10 part-time employees.

MP’s silence on Peninsula plan prompts protest

Feelings clear... Opponents of Peninsula Capital’s plans for Devonport visited the office of North Shore MP Simon Watts last Saturday: (from left) Lindsay Mackie, Avril Cowie, Chrissie and Max Thomson, Margot McRae, Pauline Baker, Gayle Morris, Bernice Beachman and Richard Jones. Stories on proposed development, pages 2, 8 and 9; editorial on Watts’ stance, page 14.

Maunga authority fears impact of Peninsula Capital plan

The height of the Peninsula Capital buildings planned for Devonport has been firmly opposed by the Tūpuna Maunga Authority, according to confidential feedback on the application.

The authority opposed infringements on the 13m Height Sensitive Area Overlay applying to Devonport village, with planned buildings of up to eight storeys, set back from the street frontages.

“As a result of historic failures to protect Tūpuna Maunga from being obstructed by buildings, it is of utmost importance to protect what remains,” authority manager of co-governance Dominic Wilson says in feedback on the proposal.

“The Maunga Authority acknowledges that the development has been designed to

mitigate impact on Takarunga within the proposed height.

“However, the Maunga Authority is concerned about the following aspects of the project:

• The extent of adverse impact from the sea and wharf as you arrive in Devonport. The magnitude of this effect is difficult to assess without clear heights (reduced levels not just storeys), visualisations and materiality.

• The lack of photomontages of the proposed development with accurate heights ... to provide clarity around the impact from the coastal edge and water, and from Takarunga to the coastal edge.

• The extent of adverse impact on understanding the overall unique form of Takarunga from the lower end of the eastern

side of Victoria Rd, up to and including the Devonport Library.

• The cumulative effect of such an infringement/height of buildings if the scale of the buildings were to form part of the existing environment.

“This may result in an erosion of the purpose and objective of the Height Sensitive Area around the Devonport Town Centre and adjacent area.”

If the project is accepted for fast-tracking, it will then proceed to detailed design and drawings.

Under the fast track law, Peninsula Capital initially must consult only Auckland Council, the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board and iwi. Affected neighbours would need to be consulted later in the process.

Business group member unhappy at stance on village plans

The way the Devonport Business Association has supported Peninsula Capital’s plans for Devonport village “from a business perspective” has drawn criticism from pne member.

Trevor Lawson of Dreven Investments Limited, which owns a commercial property in Victoria Rd, said the DBA statement was not neutral.

“The board’s statement opens by declaring that the DBA ‘sees clear potential business benefits’” in the proposal. It then acknowledges that the proposal ‘raises real questions… including around height, heritage, village character, timing, access, disruption and affected tenancies’ – but attaches no weight to any of them, and offers no association view on whether they are acceptable,” says Lawson in a letter to the board.

“The result is a statement that endorses the upside in the board’s own voice while

relegating every material concern to a list of things other people are worried about.

“That is not neutrality. It is a supportive position with a disclaimer attached, and members and the public will read it as such,” he said.

Lawson’s principal concern is scale. The proposal seeks building height 14 metres above the applicable limit.

“It is the single question that determines whether Devonport remains a low-rise heritage village or becomes something else,” he says.

“The board’s statement does not tell members what the proposed heights actually are, how they compare with the Unitary Plan standard, or what the board thinks of the difference.”

Moreover, the board’s own constitution and strategic plan point the other way

Lawson says the association’s constitution states a purpose of capitalising on “the

unique heritage assets and profile of the Devonport Business District” and using that as the means of establishing an identity and position for the area.

Other rules oblige the association to “advocate with Auckland Council and the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board for the improvement of amenity and streetscapes for the benefit of the District”.

Lawson says: “Heritage character is not an incidental interest of this association. It is written into our purposes as the foundation of Devonport’s commercial identity.”

Additionally, the board should have polled members or held a members’ meeting for their opinions, or held a special meeting.

Lawson says he holds no objection to investment in Devonport.

“Sympathetic development that restores heritage fabric and brings people into the village is precisely what this association exists to encourage.”

What the DBA sent to members last week

Devonport Publishing Ltd First Floor, 9 Wynyard St

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“The Devonport Business Association sees clear potential business benefits in the Devonport Lanes proposal, particularly its potential to bring further investment, employment, commercial activity and more people into Devonport’s business district.

“Those outcomes are consistent with the association’s role in supporting local businesses, encouraging economic growth and helping Devonport remain a successful and vibrant destination.

“At the same time, Devonport Lanes is a significant proposal, and we recognise it raises real questions for businesses and the wider community, including around height, heritage, village character, timing, access, disruption and affected tenancies.

“The DBA’s principal role remains to support its members through communications, marketing, networking, collaboration and economic-development activity. While the wider planning process runs its course, our focus will remain on the practical business impacts of the proposal, helping keep members informed and providing a channel for members to raise questions, share concerns and connect with the relevant parties where appropriate.

“We will continue to facilitate constructive dialogue and support our members as the proposal develops.

“Peninsula Capital has directed us to the Devonport Lanes website for further project information: devonportlanes.nz.”

US college success earns thrower ticket to U20 worlds

Stanley Bay’s Kate Hallie is is “pretty chuffed” to be representing New Zealand in both shot put and discus at the World Under-20 Athletics Championships in Oregon, USA, next week.

Her selection followed an impressive freshman year at Miami University, where she was named Women’s Freshman Field Athlete of the Year.

The former Takapuna Grammar School student claimed the award by scoring the most points for the university in the Mid American Conference competition, winning both discus and shot put events.

That achievement, supported by a successful season, bumped the 19-year-old’s partial university scholarship up to a full scholarship.

Along with the financial help, Hallie says the scholarship motivates her to “be the best I can”.

After a break in Devonport, she flew back to the US on Sunday for a pre-camp in Eugene, venue for the world champs.

That allows a week and a half for athletes to adjust to the timezone and climate before the competition from 5 to 9 August.

“I’m excited to go to Eugene, it’s one of the best tracks in the world,” she says.

The track, Track Town USA, hosts the USA Olympic Trials and holds the annual NCAA Nationals.

Making her event finals is her goal. “This is one of the biggest championships I can do for my age. It’s a big step up but I’m excited for it, and I’m excited to get a World Under-20s under my belt.”

She said qualifying was a “tough battle”. She was notified of her selection only last month. “But I was already training and planning like I was going.”

The young athlete has plenty of local support, with a proud family behind her, along

with the Takapuna Athletics Club, where she was introduced to the sport and which has contributed to her flights.

Club coaches Walter and Neryda Gill have been training her since she was 10. She says Walter Gill and her university coach

Ryan Smith still collaborate on her training between New Zealand and Miami.

She has also found support in the United States, where she says her friends and university classmates are quick to celebrate her success.

Stepping up... former TGS student Kate Hallie’s US form has bumped up her Miami University scholarship and won her a place at the U20 world champs in Oregon next week

$500K playground plan inspired by former topography

Inspired by historic landforms and flora and fauna… a council image of what the

Plans for a new playground at Devonport Domain estimated to cost over half a million dollars are to be considered by the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board).

The existing playground was assessed to be in “poor condition”, according to a council report by senior project manager for parks and community facilities Steph Westmore.

The original pre-reclamation topography of the Devonport Peninsula has influenced a design for a new playground, which would feature a play rock platform, exploration zones, a “soft-fall” zone, social zones and

gardens. The proposed concept art includes two swing sets for different ages.

The design also proposes integrating a speaker into timber posts to “replicate the sounds of hauling waka” through what was once a portage to Takararo (Mt Cambria).

The report says the playground renewal was approved as part of the local board’s 2026/27 work programme, with an allocated renewal funding budget of $512,562.98.

Spending on the project to date, including surveying and mana whenua involvement, is $44,759. Construction, subject to approval

and consenting, could start in 2027/28.

The report says 11 iwi were contacted to seek their interest in the project. The only response was from Te Ākitai Waiohua, which partnered with council in developing the concept design.

The iwi nominated a landscape designer it had worked with previously which delivered “appropriate iwi outcomes and well considered cultural design approaches”.

The plans will be reviewed by the local board before an online consultation seeks community feedback.

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Vision of new women’s sports facility takes shape

Plans have finally been drawn up for a women’s sports changing facility in the former Devonport Bowling Club building and grounds at the Devonport Domain.

A project six years in the making will create facilities for the use of players from both the North Shore Rugby and North Shore Cricket clubs. Fundraising is now the focus, with $150,000 raised so far towards the projected $600,000 cost.

Hurdles included Covid delays and political setbacks, before the two clubs took on the lease of the former bowling club in 2023.

A new entity, Devonport Domain Sports Hub Charitable Trust (DDSHC), has been created to sit between the two clubs and manage the new facility project and funds.

In addition to funding from the clubs, the project has already attracted community backers including the Resource Recovery Devonport Trust. DDSHC is applying for grants but will also rely on support from the local community.

Cricket club chair Mark Davies says the clubs are now ready to talk with people interested in the project about how they can support it. An open invitation stands to “pop into the clubs for a chat”.

North Shore Rugby Club committee member and DDSHC trustee Ben Browne said that outwardly there would be little change to the main bowls building, with improved accessibility the only noticeable difference.

Work inside will be more comprehensive. “We’re going premium on the changing facilities,” says Browne. International standards on best practice for women’s changing facilities have been followed to ensure privacy and accessibility. Four changing rooms are provided for players and one for referees. The shower area can be divided in two, should males need to share the space.

A large administration space will be used by both clubs.

Combined effort… an artist’s impression of how the new facility will look. Right: Sports hub trustees Johanna Melhuish and Ben Browne flank North Shore Cricket Club chair Mark Davies outside the former bowls clubrooms.

North Shore Cricket board member and DDSHC trustee Johanna Melhuish said the new facilities would be a game-changer for girls and women of both clubs. Women’s games could take place at the same time as men’s, and movement between the new changing facility and playing fields would be enhanced by removal of the old bowling club block wall.

Both clubs were committed to growing the numbers of female players, Melhuish said. “We’re investing in this. We want it to be a hub to attract more girls and continue to grow both clubs in that area.”

It is hoped construction can start towards the end of this year, with completion expected to take two to three months.

Davies reflects on the amount of work and hundreds of volunteer hours across both clubs contributed to the project so far. “That’s what people don’t see, but it’s pretty exciting to be where we’re at.”

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Developer seeks consent for 12 homes on one Hauraki site

Twelve new dwellings are planned for a Hauraki site which is zoned for three or four.

Sentinel Planning has lodged a resource consent with Auckland Council for the project on a 1386sqm site at 19 Francis St, on the corner of Charles St.

The 12 planned two-storey dwellings would be both detached and non-detached. Most have three bedrooms, and each has a single carpark.

Only 72 vehicle movements per day from the site are envisaged after the 12-unit development is completed, the Sentinel Planning report says.

Stormwater retention is planned to stop runoff affecting infrastructure.

The site is zoned as Mixed Housing Suburban (MHS), which allows three two-storey homes as of right, with a fourth requiring resource consent.

Eight

The 12-dwelling development meets the MHS zone goal of increasing housing, and as the homes are two-storey, they are said to fit in with the surrounding area, which is mainly single to two-storey detached and attached developments.

A few examples of more intensive development nearby include:

• 46A-46F Hart Rd – six three-level terraced dwellings.

• 1/44-9/44 Hart Rd – nine two-level terraced dwellings.

• 66A-66F Jutland Rd – five two-storey detached and attached dwellings.

• 71A-71D Jutland Rd – four two-storey detached dwellings

Auckland Council is yet to decide whether the plan should be approved, or notified for public submissions.

Intense…12 new dwellings are planned for the corner of Charles and Francis Sts in Hauraki

homes could replace sole Bayswater Ave bungalow

Eight two- to three-storey dwellings are planned on a Bayswater site zoned for three or four homes.

Seven attached homes on the 806sqm site at 186 Bayswater Ave will be of three storeys, while another at the rear of the block will be two storeys.

An existing bungalow on the property opposite Bayswater Primary School will be removed as part of the development.

“The development will result in a total of eight dwellings which is five more than that permitted to be undertaken on the site,”says the developer’s application.

The Auckland Unitary Plan’s intent to increase housing capacity is met by the proposed development, the application says, while “ensuring that it does not unreasonably diminish the residential amenity values of the surrounding residential environment in terms of scale and on site activity”.

VISUAL CHORUS

The resulting effects are considered to be less than minor “in nature on the wider environment”, the resource consent application said.

Auckland Council is evaluating the application and has yet to decide whether it will be notified for public submissions.

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Getting four hours changed everything

Getting four hours changed

Jenny chose work that asks everything of her.

As a Māori arts and crafts tutor at an urban creative space for mental health support, her days are spent face-to-face with people who need patience and calm.

But it also means standing on concrete floors, demonstrating techniques, and most importantly being present.

It’s the kind of job you do because it matters, not because it’s easy.

But it’s hard to be present when your knees won’t let you forget they exist.

Her knees just wouldn’t stop. All day. All night. Like a strand that wouldn’t stay woven, always pulling loose, always pulling at her patience.

“You’re just kind of like, when is this going to stop?” Jenny recalls. “But it doesn’t. It just kept on going.”

Both knees had been making themselves more disruptive as the years went on. First, standing became difficult. Then the cold started creeping up through the concrete floor. Before long, the nights had become the real problem.

Sleep had turned into a guessing game. Two hours was normal. Three if she was lucky. Then she’d lie there, wide awake, knees buzzing, knowing she had to be on her feet again in a few hours.

“It would make me so grumpy,” Jenny admits. “When you’re in constant discomfort and you haven’t slept, you’re not always nice to be around. You tell people to do things, instead of asking them.”

For someone whose job is guiding others with patience and care, that was the real cost.

She’d tried what was available. Nothing made a real difference. Jenny was starting to accept that this was just how things were going to be.

Then a friend’s mother handed her something new to try.

“She had been using this cream for her back and her knees. She lent me hers to try.”

Jenny wasn’t convinced. But she trusted her friend’s mum and had nothing to lose.

The natural cream was called Koru FX and was made in New Zealand.

Jenny remembers the night she applied the cream for the first time. What happened next, she almost didn’t trust.

She woke up hours later. Not two hours. Not three. She lay there, waiting

for her knees to wake up and make themselves known. But they were quieter. Not gone, but quieter.

“I can get four hours of sleep now,” she says. “Sometimes five. For me, that’s amazing.”

Four hours doesn’t sound like much. But when you’ve been waking every two, four feels like luxury.

The grumpiness started to lift. And Jenny noticed something had shifted in how she was around people.

“I’m a lot nicer to be around,” she says. “I ask people to do things instead of telling them. The little things matter when you’re face-to-face with people all day.”

“Koru FX has been a stop button for me,” Jenny says. “That’s what I call it. A stop button.”

Her knees still pull for attention at times, but she’s learned now to sleep through.

“I can sleep. I can work. I’m nicer to the people around me.”

“For me, that’s everything.”

Barrage of helium balloons among ideas

Giant red helium balloons floating 27 metres above Devonport village – the same eight-storey height as some of the controversial new buildings planned by Peninsula Capital – are among protests mooted to oppose the proposal.

Sit-ins and street marches were other Devonport Heritage protest suggestions made at a packed public meeting at Harmony Hall, called to urgently address the possible fast-tracking of the proposals.

More than 200 people attended the meeting, with many having to stand at the back of the hall and in the entrance. A petition launched at the meeting has so far gathered around 700 signatures.

The fast-tracking became public knowledge after the Devonport Flagstaff obtained a master plan of the proposed development.

The fast-tracking process and concern over the the lack of community input and the proposed building heights and bulk were explained at the meeting by heritage experts, architects, planners and Devonport-Takapuna Local Board chair Trish Deans.

Devonport Heritage chair Margot McRae said the group was “not against apartments”, but six- to eight-storey blocks in the commercial heart of Devonport were “just plain wrong”.

McRae approached Peninsula Capital director Graham Turley to speak at the meeting but said he declined, saying that in regards to the fast-tracking process it was not appropriate to do so.

Heritage architect Jackie Gillies said the existing Devonport village buildings “had outstanding heritage value”.

Peninsula Capital was to be commended for committing to repairing and restoring the existing buildings as part of the project.

The replacement of the former ASB building with a courtyard and accessway

to Wynyard St, and the former Westpac building on the corner of Clarence St and Victoria Rd both had merit. However, “the biggest concern relates to scale,” Gillies said. The new buildings would dominate, leaving the heritage buildings “shivering at their feet”.

Lindsay Mackie of architecture firm Archimedia, who had been involved in redeveloping the Auckland Art Gallery, was introduced by McRae as being prepared “to lie down in front of the bulldozers” to stop the project. However, once he began speaking, Mackie – who was born at the Devonport maternity hospital Pentlands –was more circumspect. He supported the project in broad terms but said the scale was out of proportion with the existing buildings.

Mackie said he had met Berridge Spencer, one of the Peninsula Capital directors, and had respect for the projects he had complet

ed, including at Man O’ War Bay on Waiheke Island and at Stanley Point. “He does not want to be known as the man who ruined Devonport,” Mackie said.

“This place is special by any standard... it’s the best preserved village in Auckland.”

The architects for the project, Cheshire, had been involved in major heritage projects such as Britomart.

He knew practice founder Pip Cheshire, who died in February 2026. “I cannot believe he would obscure Takarunga by these buildings.”

“Beautiful things” were included in the project, such as the laneways and the thoroughfare through the ASB building, Mackie said. But – although “I do not think there has

Packed… Devonport Heritage chair Margot McRae addresses the crowd gathered at Harmony Hall in response to Peninsula Capital’s plans for multistorey buildings in the village

for campaign against plan

ings, the addition on the corner of Clarence St and Victoria Rd broke the structural flow line of the heritage buildings.

By comparison, the Devonport Library across the road from the historic buildings didn’t compete, “but closed the boundary”.

The Peninsula buildings would overwhelm the village “and should not be allowed to happen”, Mackie said.

Landscape architect Richard Reid said Takarunga was a regionally significant landmark. The mountain and village were “symbiotic” to each other. The maunga was at the top, the town centre flowed down Victoria Rd to Windsor Reserve and the sea at its feet.

Much work had been done by heritage experts, included renowned architect Jeremy Salmond, to have maximum height limits for Devonport’s commercial area included in the Auckland Unitary Plan. They set a 9-metre height limit at the front of heritage buildings, and a 13m limit to the rear.

“The height limits were set so above that the maunga has its own space,” Reid said. “Future development should be done so that views are protected.”

The Peninsula Capital plan “pushes the mountain into the background when it is meant to be a pre-eminent feature”.

The current plan would destroy the “intimate relationship” between the maunga and the town centre. “We would never be able to get that back.”

Devonport-Takapuna Local Board chair Trish Deans said she was in a difficult position: she wanted the board to represent the community in an “open and transparent manner” but the whole fast-track process was conducted confidentially, including board feedback. “I am very restricted in what I can say about the fast track.”

If the plans were considered under the Resource Management Act, they would be subject to a notified hearing, Deans said. It was unlikely the 80-90 apartments in the plan would be affordable housing, often something that was part of fast-tracking approvals.

McRae said Devonport had a history of protesting to preserve its identity. An action group would be formed and she encouraged meeting attendees to write to Chris Bishop, the minister in charge of fast-tracking.

In an election year the issue had the potential to become “very sensitive”, she said.

From the floor, Geoff Chapple, writer and founder of the Te Araroa pathway, said the “voice of the Maunga Authority was very important in this situation”.

The authority should be approached directly to express a greater degree of opposition to the plans. “The mana of the maunga” was under extreme threat, he said.

Retired landscape architect Bryan McDonald was concerned about the effect the high buildings would have on bird flight paths.

Action group formed as Watts lies low

Devonport Heritage has formed an action group of around 60 people to look at ways of bringing attention to Peninsula Capital’s “over-height plan”.

The group said many people had emailed local MP Simon Watts to ask for an appointment but had been “fobbed off with a standard reply – ‘your email should go to Chris Bishop’”.

Heritage chair Margot McRae said she had not even received a reply. Last Saturday members of the group protested outside Watts’ office, “which was locked up”.

Hon Simon Watts

Authorised by Hon Simon Watts, Parliament Buildings, Wgtn.

Not for the chop: Why some locals treasure their trees

Plans for the formation of a tree protection action group in Devonport have drawn around 16 expressions of interest to local eco-restoration group Restoring Takarunga Hauraki. The initiative was prompted by a 3 July Flagstaff story about the felling of a large pōhutukawa in Bayswater Ave. Now, a selection of locals from around the Devonport peninsula who are passionate about the trees on their properties have come forward to share their stories through the paper:

Bridget and Peter Thrussell have lived at their Hauraki Corner property for 24 years.

The property, which runs down to Shoal Bay, has two pōhutukawa over 100 years old that are considered coastal fringe and are therefore protected.

The backyard is a veritable forest, including kauri, rimu and kōwhai. The couple have planted karamū, but most other trees were already established before they took over the property.

They like to let nature take its course, so if a branch falls, it is left in place. “It attracts the bugs which feed the birds,” says Bridget. The couple’s aim was to develop a sanctuary for the birds and themselves.

Chris and Marilee Lucas went out of their way to find a like-minded family to buy their Cautley St property, where they had nurtured an area of native bush over 46 years.

New owner Sarah Badju Tollestrup feels very fortunate to be the current custodian of the property. “The trees were a big part of what attracted us to the property. They provide an incredible sense of privacy and create a beautiful, peaceful setting.”

Tollestrup says the birdlife the trees attract is one of her favourite things about the property and she plans to seek professional advice to help maintain them.

When Brooke and Yvonne Mackley arrived at their Bayswater property 53 years ago, a solitary camellia tree stood on the back section of what was then a quarter-acre site.

All other trees have been planted by the Mackleys, forming a “compact bush” that provides good protection from southerly winds. “I wanted to beautify the property,” says Brooke, who gets great enjoyment watching the trees change through the seasons.

Flowers and berries produced by the trees attract birds and there are regularly a dozen tūī on the property. Trees include kauri, kahikatea, pōhutukawa, rimu, kānuka and matai, with some large specimens around 18 metres tall.

Tree people... Bridget and Peter Thrussell (above) have nurtured a veritable forest in their Hauraki backyard. Right: Damien Hughes, with 9-year-old son Rafferty Hughes, outside the Cautley St property they are renting for the next 12 months. Having recently arrived from the UK to live permanently in New Zealand, Damien said the many trees had been a factor in choosing the property as their home for the next year.

Belmont local Danny De Varga bought his property with his late wife Louise in 1996. The large backyard had three fruit trees, a silky oak, two camellias and lots of weeds and domestic rubbish.

Louise’s love for the environment led to their plan to develop an urban environment for birds. They planted out the lower portion of the section first and when it was established, progressed to eventually planting the entire backyard in natives.

Louise ran a composting business called Composting For Shore and taught composting and worm farm courses from their home for several years.

Rich 100-year history to go on display

Names that helped shape the peninsula over the past century will feature in a special exhibition celebrating Takapuna Grammar School's upcoming 100th anniversary.

Staff are transforming the historic Tower Room into an exhibition space showcasing stories, photographs and memorabilia from generations of students whose contributions extended far beyond the school gates.

With its stained-glass window and vaulted ceilings, the Tower Room is being filled with treasures from the school's archives and donations from former students and families.

Among the discoveries are photographs and badges belonging to Meg Everton, one of the school's most distinguished alumni. A standout student and accomplished sportswoman in the 1930s, Everton went on to become a Fulbright Scholar and highly respected educator. When she died in 2010, she left generous bequests, including $600,000 to establish a library at a decile-one school and funding for a Fulbright award supporting New Zealand educators.

Another 1930s student whose story will feature is Sylvia May Billett, whose family name is linked to many houses in Takapuna and Devonport. Her father, Percy Billett, was a prominent local builder and property developer. A gifted swimmer and sportswoman, Sylvia later served as a gunner in the New Zealand Army during World War II and was stationed at the Narrowneck barracks (Service Number: 810363). She was then at Raventhorpe military hospital in Papakura nursing prisoners of war who had returned from the Pacific. Like many of her generation, she experienced tragedy when her fiancé, Flying Officer Ronald Garland Blamires, a fellow Takapuna Grammar alumnus, was killed in action in France in 1942.

Uncovering stories like those of Everton and Billett, alongside other well-known local names, has been a highlight for organisers.

As preparations continue for the 2027 Easter centenary celebrations, former students and families are encouraged to contribute photographs, uniforms, trophies, badges and other memorabilia. Anyone with items to share can contact alumni@tgs.school.nz.

International students get a taste of Kiwi life

Sixty-two international students from 15 countries were welcomed into the Takapuna Grammar School whānau with a special pōwhiri, experiencing the school haka and sharing kai with students and staff.

Now settling into life on the North Shore, the students will spend the next six months living with local host families, making new friends and experiencing Kiwi culture firsthand. From swimming at Takapuna Beach to trying new sports and exploring the area, many are looking forward to life beyond the classroom.

Among them is Pauline Trage from northern Germany, who chose New Zealand for its natural environment and sense of adventure.

"The welcome was amazing. Everyone has been so welcoming," she said.

The International Programme, led by Grant Simpkins and his team, helps students feel connected to both the school and New Zealand. Simpkins recently received a SIEBA Impact Award for his work. He was commended for growing the programme and strengthening students' engagement with Te Ao Māori.

1930s TGS Alumni - Gunner

Sylvia Billett and Flying Officer

Ron Blamires

Pictured, from left: Alessia Achilli (Italy), Alessandro Canino (Italy), Pauline Trage (Germany), Nil Blanch (Spain) and Nina Mammarella (Italy). Above: Meg Everton's badges and books on display

Shore under-21s crush Massey to take Harbour title

North Shore Rugby Club under 21s beat Massey 40-0 at Vauxhall Rd last Saturday to win the North Harbour grade championship. Shore (pictured celebrating, right) scored six tries – three in each half – with prop Apai Ma’u Hinkes grabbing a double.

The win marked a threepeat in Harbour championship wins for Shore’s under-21s –which augurs well for the future of the club. Many of this year’s side will step up next season into the premiers and reserves squads.

Though one-sided on the scoreboard, the final was hard-fought. Shore spent long periods of both halves defending. The final-winning team: Brody Savage (C), Patrick Tousoon, Apai Ma’u Hinkes, Faithinmiracle Taiese, Mac Williams, Lisiate Akolo, Quinlan Te Tamaki, Neumi Tapueluelu, Ben O’Connor, Liam Campbell-Mauafu (C), Riley Scott, Antony Lamipeti, Amalani Taiala, Luke Potter, Harrison Tu’isila, George Lendich, Jake Rabarts, Ted Inch, Lucah Morresey, Lagi Sharma, Nate Tofilau and Scott Tuitupou. Coaches: Shaun Morresey and Brad Tingle.

• Eight North Shore Rugby Club premiers players made the North Harbour squad announced last week: Hunter Rice, Cam

Rory Taylor, Tima Fainga’anuku, Oscar Koller, Taeo Pomale-Time, James Fiebig and James Fairbairn.

The North Shore senior prize giving was held last Sunday: Under-21 player of the year: Liam Campbell-Mauafu; premier 2 player of the year: Sione Kanatea-Ofa; premier 1 player of the year, Naryan Strickland; under-85s player of the year, Max Graham; outstanding commitment to the club, Raymond Yeung; premier 1 “players’ player

of the year”, Liam Sturm; most promising player, Lisiate Akolo; most improved under-21 player,Jake Rabarts; best under-21 player in the club, JD van Der Westhuizen; under-85s “players’ player”, Liam Hill; team of the year, premier 2; coaches of the year, Shaun Morresey and Brad Tingle; under-21 most improved player, Apai Ma’u Hinkes; most successful goalkicker, Nate Tofilau; premier 2 team spirit and training, Charlie Fethney; front rower with greatest potential, Apai Ma’u Hinkes; manager of the year, Andrew Holloway; supporter of the year, Jo Pettifer.

Golf club launches native planting plan, bunker upgrade

A three-year tree-planting partnership has been set up between Waitemata Golf Club and environmental group Restoring Takarunga Hauraki.

“They’ve been involved with us quite heavily the last couple of years and we’re going to be planting just under 1000 native trees on underutilised parts of the course,” says golf club general manager Jamie Palmer.

At the club’s recent AGM, members approved a major project to upgrade the course bunkers.

The bunkers have deteriorated over time, with some no longer in play.

The club worked with a course specialist and developed a five-year plan to bring them up to standard.

Other projects include upgrading the greenkeepers’ shed, drainage of the greens and levelling the 16th fairway.

Some work cannot start until spring when the ground is dry enough for trucks to be used on areas that could be damaged by their tyres.

Palmer has been involved in golf for five

years, but comes come from a background in football clubs.

An interest in youth development in the football world has led to a similar focus at Waitemata, where junior numbers have grown by 184 members since Covid.

Junior Waitemata Golf Club members range in age from six to 19. Most take part in coaching classes with club pro Brad Shilton.

“It gets them on the right path, starting in a group setting with other kids around the same age,” Palmer says.

Howell,

By Rob Drent

The wheels of justice turn slowly, it’s said, and for one Devonport family that is tragically the case. A three-year-old boy died at a Kerr St address on New Year’s Day – seven months ago – and on 15 July his 30-year-old mother appeared in Auckland’s High Court charged with manslaughter.

She pleaded not guilty.

Justice Downs appeared on video link, apologising to family members and others in the public gallery that he could not be there in person as he was in Hamilton on circuit-judge duty.

Julie-Anne Kincade KC, counsel for the accused, asked if she could remain seated in the public gallery with her parents.

Justice Downs denied the request and said the court would follow “normal procedure”, with the accused in the dock during the hearing.

He allowed members of the press to take photographs but said any use would need to be pixelated to avoid identification while the accused had name suppression.

A case review will be held on 16 September, and a hearing on name suppression, which has been sought due to hardship, on 1 October.

The woman’s appearance took all of seven minutes. Her bail was continued.

For those involved it is only the beginning of a long court process.

The manslaughter charge hearing is due to start on 14 June, 2027, with Justice Downs estimating it will take “some three weeks”.

My son, who has a four-year-old child, was in the same school year as the accused mother and in some of her classes.

Travelling back to Devonport on the ferry after the hearing, I was thinking about her parents and what they must be feeling.

A couple of days later I was discussing plans for the upcoming summer with my grandson: first-time camping in the backyard, beginners tennis and getting on his boogie board to surf the shallows at the West Coast beaches.

Whatever happened on New Year’s day at Kerr St, a young life was lost and that little boy and his family are now denied the simple pleasure of a child growing up.

All parents have hopes and dreams for their children and grandchildren – and they are all a million miles away from Courtroom 13 at the Auckland High Court.

A reader sent in a video of a fisherman who had placed what appeared to be several dozen fishing rods along the Bayswater Marina breakwater to catch fish. “No wonder fish stocks are diminishing,” said our correspondent.

We sent the video to Fisheries New Zealand, which said it had not received any complaints about fishing in the area. “Although there is no specific limit on the number of rods for fishing, there are daily limits for taking fish.”

The official who responded said “other fishers present at the marina” could have been usihg some of the rods.

The radio silence from North Shore MP Simon Watts on Peninsula Capital’s bid to fast-track a hotel and apartment development of up to eight storeys in Devonport village won’t win him too many brownie points and will possibly cost him a few votes in the upcoming election.

He didn’t answer a Flagstaff email asking for comment, and frustration at getting any response from him led to a Devonport Hertitage protest outside his electorate office last Saturday.

While the fast-track process is supposed to be confidential, it hasn’t stopped other national MPs having opinions on proposals in their electorates. Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk, for example, wrote a letter to the fast-track panel opposing the Waimauku West development, which proposes up to 2000 homes

While the North Shore Rugby Club premiers failed to win the North Harbour premiership this year, it was one of the most successful seasons for the club’s top three sides. The premier reserves and the under-21s both won their championships, with the reserves going through the season undefeated. The premiers and under-21s only lost one game each, so the club’s top echelon went close to 40 games over the season with only two losses.

Gremlins got in the mix last issue, with Cooper Blucher being misnamed. Apologies Cooper, but I have no doubt you will feature again in the Flagstaff in years to come.

Local knowledge puts bus in Fleet St, not Queens Pde

Former Devonport panelbeater Robbie Saxon dropped in to the Flagstaff office to throw some light on this photo (right) taken in Devonport in the 1980s and included in Roadscapes – an Automotive Retrospective of Aotearoa New Zealand by Derek Smith. We ran the photo in our last issue, suggesting the bus was in Queens Pde.

Saxon says the bus, with “Rosmini” in its destination window, is parked in Fleet St, in what is now the New World carpark and that the site was a bus depot park for the Devonport Ferry Company. The two villas were later demolished.

Jane Warren also emailed in: “I think the bus photo was taken in Fleet St, as that is where the bus depot was before the New World was built. We have one of those buses as our motorhome. It was number 14.”

Retired owner of Fleet St Panelbeaters Dennis Hale also contacted us: “I believe that the old houses front onto Fleet Street, and where the bus is parked is part of the storage bays of JJ Craig Ltd, where they stored sand and roading metal.”

When Depot show helped an artist find her path

In an occasional column, we catch up with someone who featured in the Flagstaff’s 20 years ago column. This issue, artist Laurel Belworthy speaks to Maria Teape.

Twenty years ago Laurel Belworthy featured in a Flagstaff story about her art exhibition Vicissitudes at Depot Artspace. It was the start of an ongoing body of work exploring the place women hold in society.

Old floorboards sourced from “renovation piles around the place” were Belworthy’s canvases for the exhibition.

Each painting featured her “chick angels” – ethereal female figures, some with a waka body, others on hillsides going “this way and that”. “It represented the ups and downs in life,” says Belworthy, who sold about three-quarters of her Vicissitudes works at the time.

More exhibitions at Depot Artspace followed, mainly group shows where Belworthy exhibited with friends.

One of the exhibitions, Mother, paid homage to the experience of mothering. “We were all raising children in the village at the time,” she says. Another Depot exhibition was titled Haven. It came out of Belworthy’s diploma in art and creativity studies and involved creating spaces in the city for contemplation and paid homage to women in their role of nurturer along with the natural aspect of the feminine world.

A move to Huia, West Auckland, in 2015 brought a “complete change of scene”. It was a time in her life when she moved around different parts of Auckland, before eventually going to Whangārei, where she stayed for six years.

Although regular moves meant less opportunity to complete works for exhibition, art remained a thread in her life. Belworthy was able to establish a studio again in Whangārei and began participating in exhibitions once more.

The theme of women and their place in the world continued with the exhibition Āta Haere, Āta Titiro, Āta Whakarongo, held in Wellington last year, which explored matriarchal lines.

Shrine to the Everyday Woman , another recent exhibition, continued the exploration of the place of women in the world. “It was about honouring how everyday women hold the world up in a realistic way," she says.

Now having returned to Auckland, Belworthy says it’s good to be back. The grandmother of one reflected on when she first met then Depot manager, Linda Blincko. “I was pregnant with my daughter when I first met Linda and now my daughter has just had her first child.”

Blincko has remained a firm friend who Belworthy says is a very important part of her life.

“I’m thankful to the Depot who, at that time, gave space to untrained people like me to find their place and be an artist.”

20 years ago from the

• A controversial mainstreet proposal for central Devonport is back on the table for consideration.

• A further meeting to discuss a peninsula sports complex at Takapuna Grammar is planned.

• Bayswater Primary students adopt the Achilles Stream as an environmental project.

• Sophie Lauder is selected to star in a Girls’ Brigade television commercial.

• Oliver Gent is selected to play a young Ian Mune in television documentary The Life of Ian

• The sculpture exhibition at Fort Takapuna to raise money for Women’s Refuge will be held again later in the year.

• Devonport actor Geoff Allen is the Flagstaff interview subject.

• Jake MacKenzie is the Devonport

Flagstaff files

Flagstaff short story competition junior prize winner with Jack-O – The Story That Never Ends

• Devonport artist Graham Downs launches a project to save the images of Rangitoto baches by painting them on canvas.

• Photographs from the TGS parents’ ball include shots of Pauline and David Bridgeman, Michelle Atherford, Nancy and Derek Rountree, Desiree Mason, Fiona Armstrong, Pam Chapman, Gordon and Julie Gillan, Sue Gross and Molly Clarke, Tony Sandy, Sheila Stevens, Sue Gibb and Phillip Keal.

• North Shore City Council holds a workshop to work out a strategy for street parking.

• The timeline for construction of the Bayswater ferry terminal remains unclear.

• Worries over heritage buildings

being demolished due to earthquake strengthening regulations are expressed by Devonport Community Board members.

• Tagbuster Willy Williams’ new car is sponsored by Devonport Signs’ Tom Smith, Derek Rountree of Devonport Cars, Boyd Thwaites of the Masonic Tavern, Devonport New World’s John Ashton and the Devonport Flagstaff.

• Stanley Bay’s Rose Twaddle is part of the New Zealand secondary schools netball team that emphatically beat Australia.

• Shore faces Takapuna in a do-ordie match in the North Harbour rugby championship, after winning one game apiece in the regular season.

• Takapuna Grammar first XV return undefeated from an eight-match Australian tour.

Fond memories of Devonport days… Laurel Belworthy

Devonport 09 445 2010

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Still going strong... Devonport Walkers (from left) Graham and Val Pettersen, Alec Hill, Tony Dunkley, Malcolm Denmead, Liz Philipp, Susan Parson, Gillie Lay, Gillian Leaney, Kate Sinclair, Kathryn Gowan,

away from the familiar surroundings of Devonport.

“We do these walks quite frequently to provide our walkers with a different view and experience,” said Sinclair.

Devonport Flagstaff & Rangitoto Observer - Half Page

“We still walk three days a week and have 68 paid-up members.”

Open Days

Make yourself at home while you explore our lifestyle and care options, tour our show homes and see the premium amenities on offer. It’s all taken care of at Ryman.

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Yellow lines or clearway suggested for Northboro Rd

Options to clear “pinch points” on Northboro Rd are under consideration by Auckland Transport (AT).

AT transportation engineer Rahul Kadam presented two safety and traffic-improvement ideas to a recent Devonport-Takapuna Local Board workshop.

The first involved staggered yellow lines along the entire length of Northboro Rd, alternating from one side to the other, and the second a 7am-7pm clearway on the southwestern side of the road on weekdays. Kadam said the street currently had

around 60-70 car parking spaces, which were often filled to 40 per cent at peak traffic periods.

The road layout with parking on both sides of the street is creating “pinch points”, which could make it difficult for large vehicles to manoeuvre, he said.

Local board deputy chair Scott Macarthur asked AT to include a third option of broken yellow lines, but only on the southwestern side of the road.

Other members suggested a seven-day 7am-7pm clearway option.

Kadam said only one option could be taken to the residents for feedback.

Board member Terence Harpur asked if additional questions could be asked to get a better understanding of the public’s view.

Kadam said he would refer the suggestion to AT’s engagement team.

Auckland Transport was also looking into adding broken yellow lines at each intersection along Northboro Rd, Kadam said.

If approved, AT will aim to complete the project within four months.

The asphalt-covered former bowling club green on Achilles Crescent Reserve is in line for a “soft landscape” solution.

Piles of rubble were left at the site after a contractor helping volunteer planters broke up the hard surface.

Now a report prepared for the DevonportTakapuna Local Board has suggested removing the asphalt and laying 500mm of topsoil and 150mm of mulch in its place.

Initially, the board looked at creating a basketball court (with an estimated cost of $431,000) or pump track ($527,000) on the site. But these options were rejected due to site stormwater and flooding issues, legacy contamination and high costs.

The board has allocated a budget of

$100,000 to the reserve project for this financial year, $79,197 of which has already been spent on professional services, resource consent and internal charges.

A further $100,000 has been allocated for the next two years, bringing the potential total project budget to $200,000.

For the revised topsoil project, additional funding of $40,000-$60,000 is required, bringing the total project cost (including amounts already paid) to an estimated maximum of $158,000.

If the plan is approved, environmental group Restoring Takuranga Hauraki has confirmed its intent to undertake planting on the site, so planting has been excluded from the project cost.

New Harbour Hospice shop “Dressed” opened in Devonport this week.

It will sell fashion (men’s, women’s and children’s) as well as shoes and accessories.

Located in the former Bayleys real estate office across the road from the existing Hospice shop on Victoria Rd, it will be open seven days a week.

Retail manager Tess McGregor, who manages the existing Devonport shop, will also manage Dressed, with the support of extra volunteers.

The existing shop will open five days a week, Wednesday to Sunday, and sell smaller pieces of furniture alongside homeware and curiosities that are a little bit different, not your average find..

High-rise Devonport could mean death for seabirds

I am a retired landscape designer and a local resident for the past 40 years. I have more than 50 years’ experience with the development of eco-sensitive landscape projects, including collaborations with architects.

I support the need for a Devonport central reset, and like many at the Harmony Hall meeting acknowledge there is plenty to like about the Peninsula project. My problem, aside from the well-covered objections to the fast-track process, is the inclusion of the eight-storey buildings. The impact has correctly been identified on the village and maunga connection.

What has so far not been mentioned is the potential impact on the surrounding streetscapes and broader unique Devonport peninsula, including our wildlife.

High-rise buildings create large shadows and wind turbulence at ground level.

Architectural software is available that can map the micro-climates created by buildings from sunrise to sunset over all months of the year. This can result in large temperature variations, including – particularly with current climate change – both hotter and colder zones depending on the seasons and location specifics.

I would suggest the high-rise proposals

could dramatically affect the entire village micro-climate, including the library and reserve.

On a broader perspective, we are a unique wildlife eco-corridor for migrating seabirds of national and international significance.

The University of Auckland, Birdcare and others have carried out extensive research identifying the flyways of many Hauraki Gulf seabirds and plotting the significant injury and death hotspots in the city, and along the waterfront, where lights are causing navigational confusion among mainly petrels and shearwaters, which migrate over us while we sleep in the autumn.

They travel on a westerly path across to the Tasman Sea and wider Pacific, where they feed for months and return in the spring for breeding on our Gulf islands – currently an estimated 25 per cent of the world’s seabird species.

The good news is that Devonport is not at present a death hotspot as we don’t have significant high-rise night lighting. If the proposed high-rise goes ahead, it is a bit like creating a big obstacle on a runway as it compromises the neutrality of our maunga, Ngataringa and low-lying townscape.

Worse, it would become potentially the

It is just so extremely sad to have to constantly witness the very obvious decay/decline of our historic and iconic Esplanade Hotel here in Devonport village.

It is also simply embarrassing to think that this is the very first image of our unique seaside village that ferry travellers look at upon arrival here.

Pauline Jago

worst death hotspot of all, as it would be the new frontier of night light pollution and attract birds even before the downtown areas.

I suggest that the answer is to restrict the buildings to a sensitive height similar to the Esplanade, which already suggests an acceptable datum for future development.

Three to four storeys offers plenty of scope for boutique-style accommodation and apartments which are hunkered down with eco-lighting and maintain our unique wildlife corridor and flyways.

Significant progress is underway with Vector and scientists to change the nature and timing of the Harbour Bridge lighting.

Our Devonport reset could be hailed as a world first and attract all sorts of visitors – including birders, artists, musicians etc drawn to a World Heritage site and of course staying in our new supercool village.

We still have the time and power to modify what otherwise is a scheme of considerable merit.

I understand that the Maunga authority has a seat at the table in the decision making. It is essential they understand their role as guardians of the Gulf and make their voice heard loud and clear.

Bryan McDonald

I have finished reading the 17 July issue of the Flagstaff and I didn’t enjoy it. Which prompts me to ask the question: “Would the developers at Peninsula Capital be prepared to live in the area they develop?” If they answer yes, I’m sceptical. If they answer no, I have another question: “Why Not?”

Pete Burnett

Navy construction will also have profound impact

While we’re justifiably focused on Devonport’s CBD and the fast-track issue, peninsula developers are likely hoping that attention is sufficiently diverted from the Naval Base developments which will also profoundly impact the community, especially in terms of traffic (along Lake Rd and Calliope Rd), the congestion, construction, the noise from traffic and articulated trucks (at peak travel hours, as below). All this is due to start in December 2026.

If fast track is granted for the CBD development, Devonport will be in shut-down, locals prisoners in their own community.

Although the argument is to build up a fast-transit ferry service, this doesn’t provide the transport gateway for commuters

needing cars, or wanting to catch buses.

Ministers Penk, Jones, Bishop and Brown urgently need to talk to each other.

The info below was sourced from various government sites and agencies:

The Devonport Naval Base is undergoing a generational multi-billion-dollar transformation.

The Government has committed up to $4 billion over 35 years to replace ageing infrastructure, alongside a $25 million initial package for planning and design on several immediate construction priorities.

To support service personnel, the Navy is also expanding living options in the wider Devonport area.

Construction is wrapping up on 61 new

Navy townhouses in Bayswater.

Heavy machinery use and active structural building for the first wave of priority Navy infrastructure are projected to ramp up immediately following design completion and individual business approvals from late 2026 onward.

The Devonport peninsula presents a unique geographic bottleneck, meaning large-scale construction poses noticeable challenges to local infrastructure.

Lake Rd is the sole arterial route in and out of the peninsula. The influx of construction vehicles, heavy machinery and contractors will inevitably compress traffic during morning and afternoon peak hours.

Linda Blincko

Surely Auckland Council must realise that there is an existing tourist attraction in Devonport village. To allow six- to eight-storey blocks with luxury apartments and commercial property to be built to tower over the heritage buildings and block views of the maunga of Mt Victoria is a crime.

Villages like Devonport all around the world are protected, and the people of Devonport have maintained the Victorian houses and gardens all these years, and support the local businesses. The locals, partnering with the amazing work of the Devonport Heritage group, are behind retaining the village.

Where else in Auckland or indeed the country, is there anywhere else like this?

To fast-track this project and lose what makes Devonport attractive to tourists and locals alike to make huge profits for a few developers is wrong. To add to this disaster will be trucks of all kinds blocking up Lake Road for years.

Max Thomson

I’ve just paid an extremely painful and totally over-the-top $85 parking fine for staying over the 90-minute limit in the main Devonport car park outside New World and Just Workout, with the ticket issued by the privately-owned, profit-driven Parking Enforcement Services, a division of Wilson Parking NZ.

After finding myself with a free morning from work, I parked in the car park at 9.20am, went to the gym for an hour, grabbed a coffee from Devonport Deli, picked up a script from Devonport 1st Pharmacy, had a five-minute browse in the SPCA shop (I’ll tell the kids about that vase in the window I liked for my birthday) and the flower section of Devonport Hammer Hardware (yup, I’d like some potted colour this weekend), discussed a clothing repair with the seamstress at Devonport laundry, then returned to my car to grab my shopping bags and spend a painful $390 on what for me (family of five with three large teenagers/20-somethings) was quite a small weekly shop. So, I was doing what we’re meant to be doing, supporting local.

I returned to my car at 11.40am. So nothing extreme. I wasn’t concerned as the 90-minute limit was never enforced, unless you parked there for hours (remember the days when the ferry commuters abused it?).

But then I got a ticket, from a profit-driven private company which will no doubt be

upsetting many other locals used to parking in the car park for a couple of hours so they can visit the supermarket and the other shops and businesses in Devonport.

Now that Wilson has the contract to enforce the 90-minute limit, locals, including me, will be forced to choose between the gym or the supermarket, or any other business in the local area. I’ve paid my yearly gym membership, so that will probably take priority and then as I have to get back in my car anyway, perhaps it’s best for me to drive to Pak’nSave for cheaper groceries and visit the other businesses around there, as there’s plenty to choose from, and avoid another incredibly expensive parking ticket for trying to shop local.

This is a crazy situation that won’t help anyone. So please, please, can someone get the ball rolling to change the car park to 180-minute stays, or even 120-minute stays, so locals looking to shop for a couple of hours in Devonport and support our local businesses aren’t forced to choose between which businesses to support or be hit by a very high fine for trying to support more than one at a time.

Lesley Griffiths

Editor, Rob Drent replies: we've advised Lesley to attempt to get off her fine by offering up her shopping receipt – and wished her good luck.

Folk song collection just the latest passion for serial

Musician, entrepreneur and petanque pioneer Chris Priestley has a zest for life, people and song. Helen Vause discovers it all started when a young banker was told to ‘get a haircut’.

You’d have to have a passion for your project to type the lyrics to more than a hundred songs with one finger.

For Chris Priestley that was a way to gather together the yarns, yearnings and heartfelt songwriting of New Zealand folk singers before they and their music might have faded away.

For Priestley, these days a senior in the field himself and a force for decades in New Zealand’s folk music scene, it was a job that had to be done.

He published his collection of New Zealand folk songs this year – the same year he celebrated his 70th birthday.

It was quite a party up at the Devonport Folk Club’s Bunker on Takarunga this month, and the cake was enormous.

He had has 30th and his 50th birthdays up there too, so has beaten a path up the mountainside for decades with his musical peers, some of whom feature in his song collection, as does the village and its people.

Priestley, an adopted son of Devonport, has been part of many a scene at the Bunker.

Without his guitar, most would know him in his beanie, making coffee and providing cheery customer service at front of house in local cafes for the last 20 years.

Before that he flew the flag for petanque down on the Devonport waterfront, long before most had ever heard of the sport.

Now he’s one of the “old folkies”, as he affectionately dubs his longstanding music mates – and those who’ve passed away in more recent times.

“I didn’t want the songs and voices from over the years to be lost. They’re an important part of our music history in this country,” he says.

“Back when we were all starting out together, we thought all the good stuff was overseas, but of course you realised later that the good stuff was right here, among us. Our voices and stories are part of the country’s story.”

These days folk is having a resurgence and the old folkies are making space in their venues and cosy folk clubs for young ones and their songs.

The silver beards are moving over, but the tradition is carrying on and morphing,

with fresh faces and the same fervour.

Priestley has had a hand in singing, writing or recording many of the songs in his collection. But many of the other songs of the lovelorn, the wayward, the bold and the daring are the work of other

Right at home... Chris Priestley is a familiar figure in the cafes and venues of Devonport

enthusiast

New Zealanders among his very wide connections on the folk circuit.

His own story is one of a zest for life, people, song – and bringing it all together around him, whatever the setting, the times or the towns.

But his path could have been very different. He could have been a banker, maybe, and even a champion golfer, if he hadn’t received a repugnant request.

The son of the Browns Bay postmaster, young Priestley spent his high school years in the late 1960s and early 70s at Rangitoto College. His sport was golf, at which he showed great promise. His first job was at a local bank branch in Mairangi Bay and he thought he was onto a good thing, cruising about in his company car to collect the school banking. His golf handicap was so impressive that the hierarchy was taking note. So was the bank. It all ended abruptly when one or both masters demanded of young Priestley: “Get a haircut.”

“That was it. I was off. They did me a favour.”

Another decade down... Priestley recently celebrated his 70th birthday

With the hair intact and his girlfriend beside him, he drove out of town to roam the countryside in a caravan for a year. The pair found work wherever they could, learned to play guitar and started to gig in the towns of the South Island.

This was the life: community, people and music – the coffee would come later. Once they rolled back home to Auckland, it turned out that this would be his mix to make a living with plenty of youthful entrepreneurial courage.

In 1981 he became the co-founder of Real Groovy records, selling a fancy set of wheels to do so.

Later he fell for the romance of coffee, and coffee culture. The heart of Ponsonby was the place to be and so were the places he established there – Java Jive, the Atomic Café, and later, Café One2One.

They were popular destinations of the time. The folkies came and sang with him, new songs were heard and some dared to call themselves songwriters, encouraged by the company they were in.

At the time, the cafes served as a nursery of songwriting for the folk musicians who gathered there, creating their own community.

Looking back, the themes for Priestley haven’t changed. “I like to go to places where people are friendly and where children are welcome too.” And of course where there is sometimes live music. That is his recipe for hospitality. Sometimes there was a sandpit for kids to play out the back. And he’s proud to claim the invention of that little drink that captured the grateful

hearts of many parents and their wriggling pre-schoolers: the “fluffy”.

When it came time for a new era, Priestley crossed the harbour to Devonport, a place where he’d already laid down roots

“I didn’t want the songs and voices from over the years to be lost.”

in music and having fun.

Priestley was a petanque pioneer. It wasn’t golf, but what was there not to like about it? There was wine, laughter, you could bring the kids, gather friends and do

it all in a lovely spot like the waterfront pathway. He got so good at it that he was taking titles nationally and then he was off to France and regional competitions there.

“We called ourselves the Boules Blacks and the French loved us,” he chuckles.

With a young family and needing to make a living, he found a job at Devonport’s Stone Oven café.

He moved up the road to Corelli’s for a decade, but of late he is back down the road at the Stone Oven.

As he put together his collection of songs, Priestley, who has an extensive library of historic photos, was also able to find pictures of the songwriters he features. And he has managed to find recordings of every song to post online. The songwriters he features, and their songs, come from all over the country. One by Devonport writer and musician Geoff Chapple is featured. Local identities from the past also have a place in this colourful slice of New Zealand’s folk history.

When he’s not fronting the café, singing songs or pulling together books, Priestley is a driving force behind live music in the village and further afield.

It’s been a job, a lifestyle and a musical community he has sort of had make up as he’s gone along. He has been a pioneer of venues, opportunities and shows that he’s happy to say have given him and his mates more places to play and sing.

Some artists credit him with their early break into entertainment, whether by washing dishes in one of his venues or being pulled into the scene he has been at the centre of.

On the back cover of his book he writes: ”I have been blessed to be part of the fabulous New Zealand folk whanau. All about enjoying life, making and sharing music, new friends and old getting together at cafes, folk music clubs, and festivals sitting around camp fires where the only competition was the annual gumboot toss.”

Toddlers cook up a toy story at Stone Oven

Toys and toddlers took over the Stone Oven cafe, with a selection from the Toy Library available for test-driving on a recent Wednesday morning.

The library brought along a sample of its more than 400 toys for families to trial.

Ride-on toys proved particularly popular, with kids zooming around the cafe throughout the morning.

Toy Library committee member Emelia Lake, who ran the event, says the group is looking for new members to keep the volunteer-based organisation running.

To support this, it is offering 20 per cent off its membership fees for the whole of July.

Existing members and new faces turned out to the Stone Oven event. The Toy Library itself is open on Saturdays, 9am to 11am, at Devonport Community House, 32 Clarence Street.

Beep-beep... Isla (2) with Grandma Iva Wright. Left: August Cashmere has eyes for the camera.

Baby you can drive my car... Arabella Cambridge (2) and Maci Crick (1) take a turn at the wheel.

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Briefs

Takarunga courts reopen

The Tūpuna Maunga Authority has advised that the refurbished courts area on Takarunga would open to the public in late July, but that the upgrade will be completed in the summer. Regarding a Flagstaff question on whether tennis will be impaired by the fixed basketball goalposts, a spokesperson said “the final layout seeks to maximise opportunities for a range of recreational activities within the available space”.

Teen yachties do well

Nelsen Meacham of Wakatere Boating Club and sailing partner Oli Stone came fourth overall in the 29er World Champs held in Germany this month. The club says Meacham and Stone’s result in a stacked 276-boat fleet helped secure the 2026 29er World Nations Cup for New Zealand.

Meet the candidates

Ahead of the 2026 general election, Devonport Community House is hosting a “Meet the Candidates” meeting on Wednesday 7 October. Candidates representing all the main political parties will attend. The House will put three to four questions to them before opening the floor to questions.

Carers & Chats

A monthly networking-support session for carers is growing in popularity. Started by the Devonport Community House late last year, the number of attendees at Carers & Chats has doubled, with 15-20 people regularly attending. A talk from the hosts of TVNZ series The Restaurant That Makes Mistakes, Ben Bayly and business partner Chris Martin, drew a larger than usual group.

Crowds turn out on hunt for vintage gear

The number of people at a recent thrift clothing sale by organiser “Re.Wind” far exceeded expectations.

Held in the Community House Hall in Clarence St, the sale was pitched as “Y2K clothing fill-a-bag for $10”. Around 500 vintage clothing fans attended, with the queue for entry backed up past New World.

Info shared on heritage boathouse upgrade

Around 50 people attended an information meeting held by Takapuna Boating Club (TBC) this month, to discuss renovation plans for its heritage Bayswater clubhouse.

An investigation to establish what is required to bring the building up to standard is expected to cost $500,000, with the full refurbishment cost estimated at $5 million.

Proposed designs show the clubhouse on Sir Peter Blake Pde with a hospitality operation on its top floor, the second floor designated for community uses, and the basement floor as marine-related storage. The building started its life as a tannery in Panmure.

Stocks sold out in 20 minutes and the Flagstaff understands would-be shoppers who missed out hit Devonport’s op shops instead. Re.Wind says further similar events are planned.

Community House board member Cliff Brown plans to run a CD/DVD swap at the House this year.

River runs through local painter’s

Going with the flow… Artist Graham Downs says he’s always been interested in water

Devonport artist Graham Downs has teamed up with longtime collaborators Satellite2 gallery for his latest exhibition, River Spirit

The series of 13 works shows a more metaphysical approach to Downs’ interpretation of the river compared to his typical neo-impressionist style, says Satellite2 co-owner Linda Blincko. “It’s quite new and evocative.”

Downs says he normally paints from life, or from his sketchbook. “It’s based on reality, but this was just drawn in the studio, from thinking a thought that passed through my mind.”

In depicting water and rivers, he returned to one of his primary interests and artistic topics. “I’ve always painted water, and been interested in water since I was quite young.”

latest exhibition

Sketching his ideas on 8cm-square thumbnails allowed him to keep the paintings more simple and abstract.

He says he used some cubist perspective, and wanted to capture the feeling of watching a river.

“They are quite primal, a lot of New Zealand rivers. When you’re painting, you want to get close to the feeling you had when you saw it.”

His process is intuitive, and he can only explain why a painting works after the fact. “Sometimes a thought comes into your mind and you have to pursue it,” he says.

“The work has to be uplifting as well. I aim to make beautiful images.”

For up and coming artists, he recommends taking a sketchbook everywhere.

“I paint every day, but when I go on holiday my most important things are my sketchbook and my watercolour box.

“You’re only doing it for yourself, so you don’t need to worry about failure.”

He says revisiting a sketch can take him back to the memory, the lighting, and the place he was when he created it.

The exhibition runs until 11 August, from Wednesday to Sunday, 10am-2pm.

Downs’ exhibition as an established artist is contrasted with first-time exhibitor 24-yearold Sophie Clark’s Listen & Feel collection, which features paintings of Piha.

Growing up in Piha, then moving to Freemans Bay, inspired her art.

“I found myself missing the abundance of nature when I moved to the city. It was this huge loss of biodiversity.”

She is an architecture graduate from AUT, and hopes to use her art to inspire change in the city, brightening home and office spaces.

The collection features 11 paintings, with one triptych portraying the finding of a waterfall at Piha through the bush.

Her exhibition also runs until 11 August.

Piha product… Sophie Clark’s show reflects the place she grew up in

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