12 April 2019 Rangitoto Observer

Takapuna, Milford, Castor Bay, Forrest Hill and Sunnynook DELIVERED DELIVERED FORTNIGHTLY FORTNIGHTLY

Tim Bray’s children’s theatre company... p3

Issue 2019 Issue 113–––15 12March April 2019 Issue 15 March 2019

Esmonde Rd church sells for $40m... p5

AN AN INDEPENDENT INDEPENDENT VOICE VOICE

Library manager’s ‘jazzy’ career... p8

Tourism Auckland snubs the Shore Funding for the Shore Coast Tourism Strategy is in doubt, with Auckland Council’s tourism arm indicating it will only be putting money into its first year.

The strategy is a joint intiative between the Devonport, Takapuna and Milford Business Associations, to enhance tourism in the area.

It has also emerged that the $30,000 Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (ATEED) was already supposed to put into the tourism To page 2

Social butterflies emerge for schools’ fun run

Runners wing way to Milford... more than 4500 students and families took part in the Harcourts Cooper & Co Shore to Shore Fun Run on 31 March, including Leah Grey. More pictures p10–11.

The Rangitoto Observer Page 2

April 12, 2019

From page 1

Shore short-changed on tourism funds strategy is far from secure.

In its first year, the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board put $30,000 into the strategy, which was matched by ATEED – in part to offset money which was to fund a visitor information centre in Devonport, often referred to as the gateway to the Shore.

But a number of ATEED staff who negotiated the $30,000 deal had left the organisation, and a search was on to find the records needed to pay out the money, ATEED senior strategic advisor Chris Lock told a Devonport-Takapuna Local Board workshop earlier this month.

It seems the money will be paid at some point, but Lock said it was a one-off, and in future, business improvement districts (local business associations) would have to fund it themselves.

ATEED has moved completely away from funding visitor information centres.

The Devonport visitor centre – staffed by volunteers – has now shifted from council premises and is paid for by the Devonport Business Association, with some help from local-board grants.

Board member Grant Gillon was concerned about the movement of ATEED away from the North Shore, both in the number of events promoted and the support given to businesses.

ATEED support would only reduce with Auckland Mayor Phil Goff’s directive that

INAUGURAL ISSUE DELIVERED FORTNIGHTLY

New Takapuna-Milford paper hits the streets... p2

Issue 1 – 15 March 2019

‘Sacred’ pohutukawa trees turn into a menace... p4

AN INDEPENDENT VOICE

Fears locals short-changed by new town square... p7

Preserving coastal track no walk in the park The future of a hugely popular coastal People have been walking through Paul track between Takapuna and Milford is set to Firth’s garden since 2011, when a wooden be secured as Auckland Council negotiates bridge was washed away in a storm. with a property owner over purchasing his At that time, the council found it had never historic bach. been an official bridge and rebuilding would

money and emphasis be moved to South and West Auckland, Gillon said.

Millions of council dollars were being spent enhancing and promoting the Wynyard Quarter, which effectively dragged customers away from Devonport and Takapuna, Gillon said.

ATEED was no longer funding Young Enterprise schemes and there had been a massive reduction in support for businesses compared to the days of Enterprise North

Editorial: Cuts show lack of vision Auckland Tourism will say it is not totally abandoning Devonport and Takapuna, but the reduction in emphasis, services and money to support the area is short-sighted.

Businesses in Devonport, Takapuna and Milford have been increasingly aware of the growing emphasis on the promotion of cityside events by Auckland Council, and a focus on Waiheke Island and Wynyard Quarter as well.

This at a time when thousands of cruise ship passengers, many older people, flood into Devonport each year to find an underfunded volunteer information centre, tucked away off the main street.

Now there appears to be a hassle over handing over the comparatively trivial amount of $30,000 to support the Shore

Wood hammers officials over tardy Cup planning

require a coastal consent, which required approval from all affected landowners.

Firth, now 74, withheld his consent because To page 3

Oarsome costumes make waves at Beach Series finale

In the pink… Jason Herriman was among entrants who got into the spirit of a retro-themed final night of the Beach Series summer races at Takapuna Beach last Tuesday. More pictures p12-14

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Shore, run by North Shore City Council, Gillon said.

Board chair George Wood said it was unrealistic to expect local boards and business associations to fund all the costs of tourist promotion themselves.

Lock said ATEED was still highly involved in helping innovative Shore businesses which could generate export dollars, but conceded its primary focus was attracting overseas and national visitors to Auckland.

Auckland Tourism has been taken to task for a lack of America’s Cup planning.

Devonport-Takapuna Local Board chair George Wood said the 2021 event was going to come around quickly.

Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (ATEED) needed to “step up their game in relation to the America’s Cup,” Wood told a board workshop earlier this month.

Traditionally, Devonport and Takapuna became extremely busy during America’s Cup events, Wood said.

“I have a concern that if ATEED does not step up to the plate in the future it’s going to be left to the board.”

Coast Tourism initiative. Ongoing support

by Auckland Council’s tourism arm won’t be forthcoming, it seems, either.

This at a time when Devonport, Takapuna and Milford are set for another leap in tourist numbers.

The development of the SkyPath will allow visitors to cycle across the harbour bridge for lunch and a swim at Takapuna, then pedal south for an afternoon exploring historic Devonport and a quick drink before a ferry ride back to the city. This would surely rate as one of the better one-day tourist attractions in the world, comparable to San Francisco’s Golden Gate crossing to Sausalito experience.

Add in the trams that could ply the Lake Rd to Takapuna route in a couple of decades and the experience is further enhanced.

A major review of how tourist destinations are promoted and funded around Auckland is needed – with some blue-sky thinking of what is possible alongside some commonsense about what is needed on the ground.

Rob Drent Managing Editor The Rangitoto Observer

Film productions choose Shore locations Thirty filming permits were issued in the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board area from July to December 2018.

In the Auckland region 312 permits were issued for the same period.

Some of the key screen productions issued permits in Devonport-Takapuna were: Power Rangers, The Gulf, Shortland Street and Runaway Millionaires.

Auckland Tourism had negotiated an agreement for the filming of Power Rangers on the shore of Lake Pupuke, it said in a report to the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board last week.

April 12, 2019

Catching up with ...

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Tim Bray juggles funding behind the scenes

Hanging out at the theatre... Tim Bray’s children’s productions attract 20,000 to 25,000 people a year from all over Auckland to Takapuna’s Pumphouse Theatre Keeping a hugely popular children’s theatre company going means founder and artistic director Tim Bray has many balls in the air at any one time.

Bray’s company is administered from the Lake House Arts Centre, offers after-school drama classes at St George’s Church in Takapuna and the Auckland Performing Arts Centre (TAPAC) at Western Springs, and since 2004 has put on its Auckland productions at the PumpHouse Theatre, which is an ideal venue.

“It’s well known and much loved. The staff are helpful. When people come, they don’t even know there’s a lake here. It’s a beautiful place to work and it is suburban, so has parking for families, which is key.”

With 192 seats, it is an ideal size, too, Bray found, after the success of his company meant it outgrew the Basement Theatre, in Auckland city, where it started in 1991, and subsequent suburban theatre venues.

“The venue is ideal, because it’s intimate and the stage is close enough for the children to feel involved.”

It is this audience involvement that has held Bray’s interest in children’s theatre.

Typically in a Tim Bray Theatre Company Production, children are calling out, dressing up, cheering, laughing, entranced and fully imaginatively engaged.

At the time of talking to the Observer, Bray was leading the final stages of preparation for the current stage show of Margaret Mahy’s The Man Whose Mother was a Pirate.

But, dress rehearsals and an all-day runthrough of lighting to ensure every scene

creates the right mood are not all Bray is working on.

One of his other motivations is bringing children’s literature to life and inspiring reading.

While his productions frequently spring from Kiwi writing, the next production is based on We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury. Bray has just heard back from Rosen in England that he is happy to approve Bray’s script without any changes – to Bray’s relief, as it’s one less job to do.

“The venue is ideal, because it’s intimate and the stage is close enough for the children to feel involved.”

Beside his bed is a pile of children’s books to read, in order to start planning productions for 2020.

Bray’s team is working towards more sustainable funding, which would enable them to plan further out.

Each year, the company starts with zero funding and has to raise $350,000 by the year through applying for grants, funding and sponsorship. Many adult companies have funding for several years at a time and a greater portion of their income is from grants and funding.

One more project Bray’s team is trying to get under way is relaxing performances for children with autism or special needs.

This would build on the company’s current shows, partly funded through its “gift a seat” scheme, where individuals and companies sponsor seats, for deaf, blind and visually impaired children, as well as children from low-decile schools and those coming to shows through charity Make a Wish.

In 2017, Bray was awarded a QSM for services to children and theatre, in recognition of his leadership in the area of accessible performances.

In the past week, he’s been busy hosting children at PumpHouse showings where a sign language interpreter virtually performs the show, as he or she changes from character to character.

In “audio described” performances for blind and visually impaired children, the audience goes onto the stage before the show and can feel the set and costumes and learn about the actors, then they wear headphones and get additional descriptions to the dialogue, throughout songs and quiet times in the plays.

Bray is especially passionate about bringing children from low-decile schools to shows, because they are “absolutely fizzing” after the bus trip and the shows.

“Sometimes they have never seen the Sky Tower, they have never crossed the harbour bridge and they have never been to a professional show.”

In the past, Bray has worked as a clown, an actor, an MC and stand-up comedian.

At the moment though, the ongoing battle for funding, alongside a busy year producing children’s theatre, is testing his juggling skills.

The Rangitoto Observer Page 4

April 12, 2019

Top month for Westlake girls sports teams National tennis title The Westlake Girls High School Premier Tennis team has won the New Zealand Secondary Schools Championship for the 5th year in a row.

The final was a closely fought match against St Kentigern College. It ended 3-3 but Westlake had won more games in the final so were the eventual New Zealand title winners. Elys Ventura also won the Senior Girls Champion of Champions Singles Trophy.

Volleyballers unbeaten for season

The tennis team (managed by Linda Clouston, far left): Amily The WGHS Premier Volleyball team has Suga (Year 12), Deshma Weerapperuma, Elys Ventura, Sadheera completed an exceptional season, - remainWeerapperuma and Vivian Yang. ing unbeaten.

It was the North Harbour Super League Champions, the Auckland Premier League Champions, gold medallists at the Auckland Champs tournament, and then won Gold in Palmerston North at the New Zealand secondary schools Indoor Volleyball National tournament.

A total of 98 girls teams entered. WGHS won the quarter final against Aorere College 3-1, the semi-final against Trident High School 3-0, and the Final against Otumoetai College 3-1.

Rachael Webster-Vidiri, Emme Shearer, Tamara Otene and Kaila Ru-Tearoiti were named in the tournament team. Emme was the team captain and was also named MVP for the Tournament

Maadi Cup U17 first Westlake Girls High School U17 girls rowers won gold at the New Zealand Secondary School Rowing Championship (Maadi Cup) held on Lake Karapiro from 25 - 30 March. It was time the school’s U17 Girls won their first ever title in the event, comfortably defeating the field and finishing a full three seconds ahead of nearest rivals Timaru Girls High School.

Rowing: Gold medal winners in the Girls U17 squad, from left: Nyla Bunyan, Devon Thorpe, Jamie Whitaker (cox), Olivia Anderson and Sylvia Leadley.

Photo: Conrad Blind – Picture Show.

Has your school team won a sports and cultural title?

Email: news@rangitoto-observer.co.nz Website: www.rangitoto-observer.co.nz

Champion volleyballers... (from left) Rachael Webster-Vindiri, Kaila Ru-Tearoiti, Elizabeth Howard, Tamara Otene, Emme Shearer, Juliette Vukets and Kaia Pola Julie Maree Photography.

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April 12, 2019

$40 million for church sale The Harbourside Church in Takapuna has sold for more than $40 million, the Observer understands.

Buyers are planning a housing and townhouse development on the prominent Esmonde rd property.

The congretation itself is relocating to a new location.

For many years the church car-parking lot has been used for paid-for parking.

The 2 ha Harbourside site is next to the Waitemata Harbour and has a current valuation of $11.2 million. The land is valued at $6.05 million and improvements at $5.15 million.

Harbourside church manager Mac An-

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April 12, 2019

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April 12, 2019

Board demands safety plan for Lake Pupuke event A Waterworld inflatable park event planned for Lake Pupuke over Easter has raised safety concerns, after initial approval was given without provision for lifeguards and other measures.

The increased commercialisation of Lake Pupuke is also concerning locals and Devonport-Takapuna Local Board members.

Inflatable structures will be placed on Lake Pupuke off Sylvan Park as part of Waterworld.

The event is planned for 17 April to 22 April, from 9am-6pm. Entry is $16.

It appears the event was approved in principle by Auckland Council staff without consultation with the local board, as is required by the Lake Pupuke Management Plan.

Local board deputy chair Grant Gillon said the board had called for a safety plan for the event, and also wanted portaloos, and restricted parking and hours to lessen impact on residents and other lake users.

Commercial use is permitted on the water, but Gillon said the new Lake Pupuke management plan needed to clarify a “proper process”

Lime back in Takapuna

Lime scooters are back in Takapuna, thanks to lobbying from the business association.

Lime rejected supplying scooters to Devonport, Takapuna and Milford after its recent suspension, because of incidents with the wheels locking while in motion. It said its fleet of 1000 was only enough for the CBD. However, pleas to Auckland Council from Takapuna Beach Business Association’s Terence Harpur has seen a small fleet return to Takapuna.Harpur believes having a variety of transport options helps businesses.

Anzac Day service

Waterworld… planned for Luke Pupuke for how applications could be dealt with.

“With the current event, they have already advertised the times so we are last cab off the rank, which is not good enough.”

If the Waterworld event does proceed it would not set a precedent for other similar commercial events, Gillon said.

The Waterworld park includes water obstacles, slides, swings, ball runs and chairs.

Board member Jan O’Connor wanted the event cancelled “due to the danger of encouraging children onto a fresh water lake which is deeper on the eastern side”.

Any event on Lake Pupuke can only be allowed at the discretion of the board, she said.

Takapuna Post services move Post Shop services have moved from the Kiwibank in Takapuna over the road to a newly opened Paper Plus concept store.

The large new Paper Plus is in the spaces that previously housed Rummages and Home Fabrics. Takapuna’s 1400 PO boxes have been relocated to an area adjacent to the Paper Plus.

Owned by Gerald and Mike Sheehy, Home Fabrics closed last year after 58 years in Takapuna.

Details of a Takapuna Anzac Day service were unclear at press time, as Auckland Council and police worked on security procedures in the wake of the Christchurch terror attack. It was likely events would be combined across the city. An announcement was expected this week.

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Lifting bridge breaks down again

Malfunction… the Milford Bridge The Milford marina lifting bridge broke down yet again to residents’ frustration.

It got stuck in the “up” position after a boatie reportedly got into difficulties getting into the marina on the evening of 5 April and remained up over the following weekend. Castor Bay Ratepayers and Residents Association lobbied Auckland Council for 30 years for the bridge and says the bridge has had numerous breakdowns since it opened in late 2015. The bridge’s performance is “infuriating”, says member Malcolm McLean, adding walkers have no way of knowing whether the bridge is broken or simply lifted to let a boat through. The council expected it to stay up for at least a week and said it would meet with boaties and locals.

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April 12, 2019

Takapuna librarian ends chapter As Takapuna community library manager Helen Woodhouse prepares to retire, she talks to Jodi Yeats about a career that put the library on the national and international stage, and the transition of the printed word into the internet age.

A life surrounded by books… but Helen Woodhouse took them off the shelves and into the communit.

From the start, Helen Woodhouse didn’t want to be a stereotypical librarian and so it proved, with the instigation of world-famous celebrity debates and other events.

Woodhouse (68) is preparing to retire after 35 years at Takapuna Library, the last 29 years as manager.

A high-point was organising celebrity debates in the 1990s. They started with an incident, involving broadcaster Paul Holmes, that made the news around the world.

The very first debate topic was “The great TV turn-off” and Woodhouse invited Holmes to take part.

“Holmes wrote that it was an insult to be invited and he used ‘the F word’,” Woodhouse says.

“I was so horrified, I posted it [the letter] up on my staff noticeboard. Somehow, the North Shore Times Advertiser noticed it and wrote a story.

“It was all over the place. It was even in Germany – everywhere.

“Then everyone wanted to go to this debate.”

And others as well: the celebrity debates at Takapuna Library, originally suggested by then newly formed Friends of the Library,

ran from 1993 to 2002, moving to the Bruce Mason Centre when they became too popular for the library.

Participants included Michele A’Court, David Lange, Michael Hurst and Gary McCormick.

When she started as deputy to Takapuna City librarian Geoffrey Chamberlain, Woodhouse, who was born in the South Island and went to school in Napier, didn’t imagine she would stay more than her usual four years.

Woodhouse had previously moved around, with jobs including driving a 1957 Bedford truck, decked out as a mobile bus, to remote corners of the country.

“That was my most romantic career. I visited prison camps, lighthouses and smalltown libraries.”

Later, during a stint at Auckland Central Library, she prepared questions for Mastermind. She applied for the Takapuna role, needing a better-paid job to support her first partner, then a “house-husband” and son.

Woodhouse says the interviewers’ eyes lit up when she said she had an HT licence, as relief driving the mobile bus was part of the job.

However, she stayed so much longer than

she expected, partly because of interesting big projects and, later, the fun of organising a programme of events, which peaked at 36 per year.

Woodhouse’s career had always been wider than cataloguing and issuing books, which is perhaps down to the early influences that led her to go to Wellington’s library school in 1972, after graduating from Victoria University with an arts degree.

As a student, she had envisaged becoming a teacher. But working at Napier Public Library in school and university holidays, under author and then city librarian Maurice Gee, changed that.

“On Friday, before I went home, he would ask about university and what I was going to do … I hadn’t considered library school.

Everyone needs a mentor.”

Gee, who went on to become one of New Zealand’s most celebrated authors, wasn’t happy there, as Woodhouse later found from reading his stories. But he helped her along nonetheless.

The other inspiration was a “jazzy librarian” Woodhouse met while at university and working at the Victoria University library.

“I thought you can be a librarian and be

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April 12, 2019 trendy. Some of the librarians looked like the stereotype you didn’t want to become.”

Woodhouse is known for her sense of style and a career that has seen her often in the public eye, rather than behind the shelves.

When the Observer met her she was wearing striking jewellery and stylish blue suede shoes that didn’t look overly comfortable for her upcoming stint at the desk.

Woodhouse never dreamed she would work at the library for more than three decades, but says both the work, and the community, have held her interest.

“I have loved developing staff and loved the day-to-day interaction with customers, knowing the community and the connection with writers.

“I’m lucky to have had an enriching career.

I hope I have given out as much as I have received.”

Several large projects have engaged Woodhouse, too. She was on the team that digitised circulation and indexing across the North Shore libraries, in the years from 1984 to 1989 when she was deputy to Chamberlain.

When Woodhouse started, the library didn’t open until 10am – to allow time for filing the cards in wooden cabinets.

Woodhouse was also in the team which moved the library from a pink-stoned, 1955 heritage building, across the road, to its current site.

Another factor which contributed to Woodhouse’s passion was getting involved with writers and learning of Takapuna’s rich literary history.

It started in the mid-1990s, with John Cranna, from the New Zealand Society of Authors, suggesting the library offer more support to writers, which made sense to Woodhouse.

“We wouldn’t have books in the library if we didn’t acknowledge the creative efforts that go into the books.”

That led to hosting more author events and the creation of a literary history brochure for the area.

A series of author events on racing history, aimed at encouraging boys to read, had driver Possum Bourne as a guest speaker.

This period was also marked by community action with Woodhouse responding to an invitation for the library to support a push to save the Lake House Arts Centre, which was then at the north end of Takapuna Beach.

The biggest single library change Woodhouse has seen is the advent of the internet.

Woodhouse was an early adopter of the technology, taking it up in 1993 and attending web training.

“We still didn’t know what would happen then.”

She knows now, of course, the internet brought in major changes that are still playing out, as libraries seek to adapt.

“It has been huge. People can now access the library from home.”

Another change is there are now fewer library staff working with customers, but

more working behind the scenes.

Woodhouse is full of ideas about the future of libraries, saying books are undergoing a resurgence in popularity.

She points to posts of books on Instagram and social media, as people share their love of print.

Students often say it is easier to comprehend and retain information from books, Woodhouse says.

In the future, Woodhouse sees libraries becoming “sharing communities” – places where people meet to share the learning process, a gap that has been left vacant by the demise of night classes.

As artificial intelligence replaces some jobs, libraries will play an important social role: as meeting places for the lonely, single and rising number of apartment dwellers.

“Miss Pat Alexander [an early Takapuna librarian for many years] used to say ‘libraries are the lounges of the city’ and we love that saying,” Woodhouse says.

Woodhouse is contemplating a future with more time for family, and on a lifestyle block in Albany, owned with her nurseryman partner, where she enjoys gardening and preserving.

As she files away several decades’ worth of correspondence and papers, ahead of her final day on 31 May, Woodhouse is ready to turn the page on a rip-roaring career.

Librarians check out Two long-serving Takapuna librarians have also retired recently.

Colleen Christie started at Birkenhead Library in 1976 and retired 43 years later at the end of March 2019.

Christie was the Angela Morton Art Librarian at Takapuna from 1990 until retirement. The Angela Morton Art Collection is acclaimed as an exemplary collection. Christie is also renowned for the work she did as an oral historian, setting up the Birkenhead oral history project, which was later incorporated into the North Shore Oral History Archive.

Kate Reid retired from the North Auckland Research Centre at the end of February. Kate had originally started at Takapuna Library in 1991 on a PEP work training scheme and was employed to help with the Oral History and Local History archives. Reid’s lasting legacy is the work she did identifying and documenting the photographic collection. She had a great knowledge of local history and worked on the oral history archive, the photographic collection and assisted Colleen with the Angela Morton Art Collection.

Christie and Reid were originally Takapuna Library staff, but with 2010 amalgamation into the Super City, the New Zealand Collection became part of Auckland Libraries Research Collections and is now the North Auckland Research Centre.

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April 12, 2019

Shore to Shore raises $10,000 for schools

Fun running... contestants take off at the Takapuna Grammar School start of the annual Shore to Shore fundraiser for school sports gear

April 12, 2019

Best-dressed Dad Peter Thorne, above, struts his stuff.

Ivy Cooper, above right, from Belmont Primary overjoyed to reach the finish line.

More than 4500 people took part in this year’s Harcourts Cooper & Co Shore to Shore Fun Run, raising more than $10,000 for sports gear for the schools in the area.

This year, the event’s 35th, more than 50 schools took part, with Campbells Bay School taking first place for having the most pupils registered for the event.

Sunday, 31 March, provided a perfect day for the runners, who left from Takapuna Grammar School and followed the shore for 5km to Milford Beach.

Holly, Jack and Lexi Paterson, from St Joseph’s School, as Thing 1, 2 and 3, celebrate a succesful team effort

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April 12, 2019

Giving a flip about mental health Local fitness enthusiasts Tom Moore and Gareth Edwards will flip a 93kg tyre for 24 hours in the hope of breaking a world record and raising $10,000 for men’s mental health.

Moore (28) and Edwards (39) met training.

“It was just one of those bromances at the gym,” says Edwards who approached Moore with the idea to break the current tyre-flipping Guinness World Record. “Straight away he (Tom) was like yup! But he said, let’s do this for charity. Let’s actually do this for something, and he immediately chose mental health.”

The current tyre-flipping Guinness World Record is 20 kilometres in 24 hours with a 68kg tyre. On 20 July, Moore and Edwards are planning to complete 38km in 24 hours with a 93kg tyre, and hope to raise $10,000 for the John Kirwan Foundation. The pair have already raised over $1000 on their Givealittle page.

“We wanted to do something very masculine at its core and say, ‘Hey, we can do this but we can also give back to this really important cause,’” says Moore. “It’s now turned into something much bigger than the Guinness World Record.

The more we’ve spoken about it the more it’s been about John Kirwan.”

The John Kirwan Foundation works with schools in order to give young people the tools to understand and recognise their own mental health. “Rather than being the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff, they start from the beginning,” says Edwards, who is a business owner and personal trainer based in Forest Hill.

The pair have been training for seven weeks

Manning up for mental health…Gareth Edwards (left and below) and Tom Moore Prior to July 20, both men will be focusing now, and Moore has already lost 21kg training between two-and-a-half and four hours every on their strategy: working out when to eat, day. Sponsor AUT Millennium is providing the hydrate and rest during their 24-hour stint. venue for the record attempt and other sponsors A massage therapist and chiropractor will be are donating food and supplements. It comes alongside on the day to help with any injury at a significant time for AUT Millenium, after or body stresses. “We also have to think about recently losing a prominent sportsperson to how it’s going to affect our mental health,” says Edwards. suspected suicide.

“We are starting at midday on Saturday, and between noon and 8pm we’re gonna have loads of people there to support us but from 10pm until 6am the next day we will have no one saying, ‘yeah you can do it.’ Edwards also explains that the great thing about doing it as a pair is that they’re suffering together.

“We have to remember what we’re doing this for. We have a moral obligation to our community,” says Moore who spent most of his life in Devonport. He also attended Takapuna Grammar School, where he was a sports prefect and a sports team captain. He later became a TGS rowing coach and fitness instructor at Just Workout Devonport. Moore now teaches at Macleans College where he continues to be a role model to his students. “I make an effort to wear rainbow socks and the colour pink to show that men shouldn’t be put down for liking or wearing things that aren’t traditionally masculine.”

While over the next couple of months, Moore and Edwards will be spending hours flipping tyres to build up endurance, they also plan to go to schools speaking about the challenge and mental health. “It doesn’t matter who you are, how much money you have, mental health doesn’t discriminate,” they say.

• Moore and Edwards will attempt the record on Saturday, 20 July, from noon, at the AUT Millenium Gym. To donate, visit givealittle.co.nz/ cause/24-hour-tyre-flipping-for-mental-health

The Rangitoto Observer Page 13

April 12, 2019

Schools loud and proud in culture showcase

Hands in the air... Westlake Girls and Boys High Schools’ Samoan Group gets into the swing of Pupukefest, a cultural concert held on 29 March Eight schools in the Pupuke Kāhui Ako (Community of Learning) came together at the end of last month to celebrate cultural identity and raise money for families affected by the Christchurch mosque shootings.

More than 400 students from Sunnybrae Primary, Sunnynook Primary, Takapuna Primary, Milford Primary, Takapuna Normal Intermediate, Wairau Intermediate, Westlake Girls High School and Westlake Boys High School performed during the “Pupukefest” concert, held in the Westlake Boys auditorium on Friday, 29 March.

Pupukefest organiser Ritu Sehji said around 1000 people attended the night, with entry by gold coin donation, which was donated to Christchurch families.

“The main aim of Pupukefest was to celebrate the cultural diversity within our Pupuke Kāhui Ako and create an opportunity for our whanau – principals, boards of trustees, staff, students, parents and wider community to come together under one roof to celebrate our cultural identity, and take pride in who we are and in our background,” Sehji, a teacher at Westlake Boys, said.

“We wanted to bring the spirit and essence of Polyfest, a national cultural event held annually in Auckland, to all school sectors within our Pupuke Community of Learning with Pupukefest.

“The goal was to have a positive cultural and social impact on the community and for it to be a symbol of us coming together, cooperating and collaborating through the process of preparation, rehearsals and final event.

“Through hosting this event we could extend opportunities to not just secondary schools performing at Polyfest, but also to primary and intermediate schools.

“Pupukefest provided a unique platform for our community and learners to connect, offer a sense of belonging and purpose, contributing to group solidarity. It boosted cultural pride, social engagement and communication, awareness of cultures represented and new knowledge for some in the community.”

Peformances on the night included kapa haka, African, Pacific and Korean performances.

See pages 14 and 15 for more photographs. All photos by Keeley Watson

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The Rangitoto Observer Page 14

April 12, 2019

Polished performances part of Pupukefest

Show time... kapa haka performances by Sunnynook Primary School (above) and Takapuna Primary School (below) thrilled the crowd, as did a Korean group from Westlake Boys and Girls (right)

April 12, 2019

The Rangitoto Observer Page 15

The Rangitoto Observer Page 16

April 12, 2019

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The Rangitoto Observer Page 18

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The Rangitoto Observer Page 21

April 12, 2019

Options laid out for boardwalk’s future A new pedestrian pathway at Sacred Grove on Takapuna Beach and the removal of an existing boardwalk are being put forward as a compromise solution between residents and iwi.

The 75m-long boardwalk is closed as it is unsafe due to rotting timber and the threat of tree branches falling on walkers.

Some residents want the boardwalk to re– open, whether it is replaced or repaired.

Iwi want the boardwalk removed and the Sacred Grove trees restored to a natural state.

Four options have been prepared by Auckland Council for the area: • Retain the boardwalk and renew boards.

Costs would be between $50,000 and $100,000, depending on the health of foundations. Access to the beach would remain open via gates for the Mon Desir and Sands apartment residents.

• Removal of boardwalk and stone lookout No go... the unsafe boardwalk has been closed and trees restored. Rubbish bins removed and relocated. Existing gates removed for Mon sultation in April, with results reported back to meeting was needed so council experts could Desir and Sands, so no access. the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board in June. explain the concepts to residents before they • Removing the boardwalk, but retaining Board member Mike Cohen said a public made submissions. access to the stone lookout, retaining sea wall and possibly extending it to the promenade.

• Removal of the boardwalk but construction of a new pedestrian path to the beach.

Board member Jan O’Connor described the poor state of the area as “sad”.

DELIVERED FORTNIGHTLY AN INDEPENDENT VOICE The boardwalk was built around 19 years ago, costing about “half a million dollars – but has not had any maintenance”, O’Connor said at a board workshop last week.

Are you a news hound, with a passion for telling community The situation had worsened. “Where we stories, who lives in the Takapuna/Milford area? Expressions should be painting the house, it’s now more of interest sought from experienced journalists for the above like pulling the house down,” she said. position at the Rangitoto Observer, and other editorial Officers said the full costings for each option publications. Basic photography also an advantage. were not available until detailed designs were done. Around 50% of iwi wanted the sea wall Candidate must live locally in the Takapuna/Milford area. removed as well.

Please send your applications to: In the meantime council has been maintainnews@rangitoto-observer.co.nz PHONE: 445 0060 ing and pruning the trees.

The options will be put out for public conIGNITE

SOHO QUARTER LANEWAY TAKAPUNA, AUCKLAND

Assessment of Environmental Effects 03.07.2018

Issue 1 – 15 March 2019

What’s On

Part-time Journalist required

The Man Whose Mother was a Pirate

creative Talk: Rose northey

Sylvia

Middle Age Spread

Sat 6th April - Sun 28th April Margaret Mahy’s rollicking and funny pirate adventure, makes for a brilliant family outing. It tells the story of Sam, an ordinary man who wears an ordinary suit and who works in an ordinary office.

But his mother is an extraordinary mother – she’s a pirate!

Friday 26th April at 7:00 pm The PumpHouse Theatre is hosting free Creative Talks throughout 2019. The programme spotlights a range of subjects from within the arts, giving audiences an insight into the creative process. The next talk is Rose Northey, Spoken Word Performance Poet. Sharing her experience and perform her own original works.

Fri, 3rd May - Sat, 4th May at 7:00pm Thurs, 9th May – Sun, 19th May Sylvia is a classic Broadway A classic comedy by Roger Hall. comedy by A. R. Gurney. Will Greg Tadpole Productions invite you to be prepared to make the ultimate return to the ‘good old days’ for a choice between Kate his wife and night of hilarity, nostalgia – and a few Sylvia the dog? Come and enjoy this home truths… A dinner party becomes smart, silly, bold, and occasionally a journey down memory lane and salty comedy about relationships, an entertaining history lesson for the nature, and growing older. social media set of today.

PH: 489 8360 – PUMPHOUSE.cO.nz

The Rangitoto Observer Page 22 NICOLA JONES INSURANCE

Office / Insurance Administrator

Nicola Jones Insurance is an insurance brokerage based in Belmont. We are looking for an efficient office/insurance administrator. This role is multi-faceted and will provide you with variation and challenge!

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Window Treatments and Interiors Consultant Vacancy: PA and Accounts • You are confident navigating your way around Xero as a Bookkeeper • Accuracy is your trademark in data entry • You enjoy the variety of the work in a PA position If this sounds like you, we would love to hear from you.

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Please call 021 685 737 or email lynn.lawton@depotartspace.co.nz

Have a North Shore position you need to fill?

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sales@rangitoto-observer.co.nz

Demonstrate your design skills in a growing interiors, lighting and furnishings business.

If you know a pencil pleat from a French pleat, and a roller from a Roman, we would like to meet you.

Based in Devonport, Firefly Light and Design deals in European lighting, drapery, blinds and shutters and textiles and furnishings. We are looking for an experienced interior designer with excellent attention to detail to be responsible for the window treatments side of our business.

If you have a good eye for figures, and the ability to exceed customer expectations and see projects through to completion it could be you we are looking for.

Working five days a week, your primary duties would be: • Offering guidance and expertise in window treatments, furnishings and textiles • Preparing and presenting quotes for assorted window treatments.

• General interior design consultations (re: furniture colours textiles etc) • Dealing with customer inquiries and offering informed lighting advice • Inventory management - to include Ordering and Delivery / Stock Control / Price updates Skills required • Measuring, quoting and ordering window furnishings • Sales experience • Experience in design/interior design industry • Inventory management

If you like the idea of working in a professional retail/service environment, and a design savvy we’d love to hear from you.

In the first instance please email Jake Henderson at jake@fireflynz.com

The Rangitoto Observer Page 23

April 12, 2019

Fourth stage of independent apartment plans released!

We are excited to announce a new release of apartments at William Sanders Retirement Village.

There are one, two and three-bedroom options with views of the Sky Tower, Harbour Bridge and Mt Victoria/Takarunga.

These stunning homes are priced from $670,000 and you can lock in your fixed weekly fee* of just $129.

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Located in the historic suburb of Devonport, William Sanders Retirement Village will offer a superb selection of apartments, along with assisted living and an extensive range of care options. Our village is proving to be a popular choice! *Some conditions apply

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For more information please call Janet or Mark on 445 0909 Devonport sales offices: Ngataringa Rd – open 7 days 29 Lake Rd – open Tues to Thurs

Deferred management fee capped at 20%

The Rangitoto Observer Page 24

April 12, 2019

April 12, 2019

The Rangitoto Observer Page 25

Devonport 31 Seacliffe Avenue Devonport 31 Seacliffe Avenue

Style Style and sophistication in a premium location and sophistication in a premium location Distinctive, sophisticated and indulgent this home is the absolute epitome of luxury living. Blending Distinctive, sophisticated and indulgent, this home is the absolute epitome of luxury living. Blending the timelessness of the 1950’s architectural design, a relentless to the the the timelessness of thewith 1950smodern with modern architectural design, a relentlesscommitment commitment to highest standards of quality execution and the wide views afforded prized highest standards of and quality and execution, andstunning the wide stunning views affordedby by this this prized position, this unique property is beyond compare. location, this unique property is beyond compare. Rebuilt from foundations to roof in 2017, this house is in immaculate condition. A superior property - one that was created to offer a truly

Rebuilt from the foundations to the roof in 2017, this abode is in immaculate condition. The internal exceptional lifestyle. If you have high expectations, you should view this fabulous family residence. layout willContact attract me large families, but details it’s soorwell planned willhome. function equally well for smaller today for further see you at theit open ones. The bespoke kitchen is a real highlight with waterfall stone benches and high-end fittings.

Character bayleys.co.nz/1470247 features abound and there is extensive use of natural timbers including solid french oak and NZ cedar.

Outside the sun soaked entertainers deck is the perfect place to relax and unwind with friends and loved ones, while the manicured landscaped gardens and lawns ensure there is ample space for family fun. You can relax in the spa while your children play in the heated salt water pool.

A large double garage has convenient internal entry, there’s plenty of storage and additional parking for at least three vehicles or your boat.

Surrounded by other quality homes and zoned for sought after Takapuna Grammar, the grandstand location is, quite simply, superb. Access to transport options, including the ferry to the city, are close by.

A superior property - one that was created to offer a truly exceptional lifestyle. If you have high expectations you should view this fabulous family residence.

Contact me today for further information or see you at the open home.

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The Rangitoto Observer Page 26

April 12, 2019

Neighbours meet up at Castor Bay BBQ

Something for everyone... as well as brass-band music, local businesses offered trials of e-bikes and standup paddle-boards, plus flat whites, for the first time at this year’s Castor Bay Meet the Neighbours Day For the first time, local businesses and a pair of young musicians got involved in the annual Meet the Neighbours barbecue at Castor Bay Reserve.

More than 150 people attended the barbecue and picnic on 24 March.

This year, the Castor Bay Residents and Ratepayers Association invited local

businesses to get involved, plus musicians Sam and Bo, from Westlake Boys, who sometimes play in the reserve.

Consequently, in addition to North Shore Brass, there were opportunities to try out e-bikes with Big Street Bikers, and have a go on stand-up paddleboards from Starboard, or buy a coffee from a Little Finch coffee van.

Residents could also get a free rat trap and sign up to be part of Pest-Free Castor Bay. The event was supported by Takapuna North Community Trust and the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board.

To join the residents association and get updates on local projects, email castorbrra@gmail.com.

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The Rangitoto Observer Page 27

April 12, 2019

Sunnynook bush walk opened

Ponga patrol... children are already learning about native plants in newly opened-up Lyford Reserve More than 80 people attended the official opening of a new bush walk next to Sunnynook Primary School, which features bridges and boardwalks made from recycled plastic.

The 23 March opening of the 750-metre Lyford Reserve walkway celebrated the culmination of several years of work on the community-initiated project.

“The [Devonport-Takapuna] local board approached the Sunnynook Community Association and said they had $10,000 in the budget and could use it for some bollards,” the association’s project manager for Lyford Reserve restoration Tabitha Becroft, said.

“The Sunnynook Community Association said, ‘How about doing something with this reserve instead?’”

So, in 2016, the association used the funding to get a design for the walkway.

Takapuna engineering company Stellar Projects donated an additional $15,000 worth of work to develop the design and get a resource consent.

Early last year, Auckland Council started construction, clearing wattle and pine trees and building the walkway and bridges, including the sections of boardwalk and two bridges made from recycled plastic.

Members of the community have cleared away rubbish and weeds, and managed pest control and water testing at working bees on

Celebrating the opening... Devonport-Takapuna Local Board member Jan O’Connor and Sunnynook Community Association’s Tabitha Becroft. the third Saturday of each month for the past two years, Becroft says.

She says it is exciting to see the walkway opened, with the official opening supported

by Takapuna North Community Trust and Countdown Sunnynook providing milk and fruit.

Children from the school are now using the walkway to learn about native plants and for their cross-country runs.

Volunteers are still needed. The next working bees are on Saturday, 13 April, 9.30-11.30am; and Saturday, 18 May, 9.30–11.30am.

The Rangitoto Observer Page 28

April 12, 2019

The Man WhoSe

Mother was a RATE I P

by Margaret Mahy

LIVE ON STAGE

6-28 APRIL

Bookings ph 489-8360 or via website: www.timbray.org.nz Takapuna

Illustration by Margaret Chamberlain

adapted by Tim Bray

The Rangitoto Observer Page 29

Classifieds

April 12, 2019 REST HOMES

SERVICES OFFERED

SERVICES OFFERED

TUITION

Ascot House Retirement Home, quality care with dignity in a friendly, family atmosphere. Phone Shona, 445 2518.

Komatua Care Centre – We care for older people who have memory loss and behavioural difficulties. Professional care is given in a nurturing environment. For all enquiries phone 445 1707.

Palm Grove Rest Home: A non-institutional style home providing compassionate, holistic care. Soul food and good people. Call Sharon Byron-McKay: 445-0009.

Devonport Window Repairs.

Sash and casement windows, wooden doors. Rotten sills and window components repaired or replaced. General carpentry.

For your local window specialist. Phone Hubert Strang 446 6174 or 021 274 4191.

Dog grooming available.

Full groom, bath and blow dry, puppy introduction to grooming. Devonport-based.

Call Barbara 021 141 0331.

Gardener Available Qualified and experienced landscape designer. Enjoys getting his hands dirty. Good plant knowledge. Hard-working, reliable and creative with plantings. Contact Paddy 022 502 2122 or 446 6188, paddyvogt@gmail.com Gardening. Do you need regular help? No time for a tidy-up? Let me help. Exp e rien c e d g a r d e n e r. P h Carolyn on 446 6517 or 027 292 8167 for a free on-site consultation.

Gardening help? Call the WEEDS & WORMS team.

Local, experienced, efficient, reliable. Free quotes. Jeni 021 951 153 or Kirstan 021 540 226.

Gutter Guards / Gutter Cleaning LeafScreen Gutter Protection, Competitive Rates, Flagstaff discount. info@leafscreen.co.nz, 0800 LEAFLESS (53 23 53) Handyman. Mature professional in Devonport, Bayswater area. Repairs, painting, those jobs you just don’t have time to do. Free quote. References.

Ph. Brian 021 150 8898.

House plans, renovations, alterations, and sketch designs.

30 years experience in heritage area. First hours consultation free. Call Donn 021 273 9739.

Housekeeper. Home cleaning, including windows. Experienced. References. Phone 442 2273, 027 492 6220.

Let me mow your lawns and trim your hedges. I live locally.

Phone Chris from Lifestyle Plus on 09-488-7279 or 027245-6264. Or you can email me on chris@lifestyleplusltd. nz. References available.

Mob 021 976 607. mint. HOME CLEANING Your local cleaning couple is ready to deliver our 5-star shine to your home. For weekly cleaning, Spring, Moving or Open-Home cleans, and a FREE quote, call Pat (09) 415 0028.

Painting. Prompt quotes, workmanship guarantee, premium products. Water blasting and house washing available.

Phone Techno Classica 021 0233 6518.

Painting and decorating reasonable rates. Ph Bernard 445 8816 or 021 0255 5456 Rotten wooden joinery etc repaired by craftsman builders using marine glues and fillers and treated t i m b e r. C a l l D u a n e o n 027 488 5478.

Section services. Trees: pruned, removed. Hedges: trimmed, reduced. Section clean-ups. Ph Dom 027 222 1223.

Shadbolt Concrete. Local Concrete layer. Small job specialist. Exposed, broom and trowel finishes. Call Ben Shadbolt on 022 102 5700.

Bonjour! Visiting France? A French student? Or a devout Francophile? French tutoring - one-on-one or group sessions. $40 per hour per person. Call Vicky on 0274 899 011.

Guitar lessons. Private tuition in Bayswater, near the school, by experienced professional musician. Learn in a recording studio atmosphere. All ages, all levels. Phone: 022- 309 2272.

Learn piano/keyboard. Lessons from $19.00. Private, Professional, Affordable, Enjoyment for all ages. Competitions, Practical, Theory Exams.

NZ Modern School of Music 0800-696-874.

Mathematics Tuition Available for years 9 to 13 by a retired maths teacher. Phone Graeme 445 8575.

Maths and physics tutoring for secondary school students. From an experienced university student.

George: 021 063 5149.

NCEA Maths Exam specialist. 100% Student pass rate in 2018 for all my level 1 and 3 students. Please ph Peter 021 0817 5037.

Piano Lessons. Piano & music theory tuition from classically trained pianist. Devonport-based and can travel to your home.

Ph 021 079 0005 or email windarc.darius@gmail.com Primary Tutor Maths, English, Health & Wellbeing and Drama for 5-11-year-olds.

School prep also available. Visit www.gschuwertutoring.com for further details. 027 410 6871 gschuwertutoring@ gmail.com SLSS Swim School, 11 Evan Street, Belmont (off Eversleigh Road). Specialists in preschoolers. Phone 486 6728 for more info.

SERVICES OFFERED

A1 Home cleaners Weekly/ fortnightly. Husband and wife.

Honest, reliable, careful workers. All equipment supplied.

Refs avail. Ph/txt Joyce on 022 073 1550.

Amazing home cleaning including windows. 15 years’ experience. References available phone 027 492 6220.

Concrete-laying specialist.

Shadbolt Concrete. Broom, Exposed and trowel finishes.

Free quote call Ben Shadbolt 022 102 5700.

Curtains & Roman Blinds Free measure, quote and design advice. 20 years’ experience.

Phone Sara 027 625 5844.

Custom-Made Lampshades An easy & effective way to update your interior decor!20yrs+ local known business serving commercial & residential customers, specialising in new creations or reviving old favourites & vintage. Free quote & design advice.Contact: Claire, Oscuro NZ Ltd on 021 0249 7428, oscurolampshades@gmail. com, www.oscuro.co.nz Devonport upholstery.

Recover specialist. Antiques and contemporary styles. Recycling furniture for 36 years.

John Hancox. Phone: 446 Jones electrical. Domestic 0372. and commercial electrician.

Great rates, quick service.

020 4154 5904.

WANTED Wanted trucks, vans, utes, 4x4, motorhomes and machinery 0800 333 398.

Reach your Takapuna & Milford customers cost-effectively Contact the Observer for our rates

Email: sales@rangitoto-observer.co.nz

April… well just after St Patrick’s, we’re celebrating late with a touch of the old blarney, an Irish comedy in the very capable hands of Company Theatre.

WRITTEN BY MARIE JONES, directed by Kristof Haines 4 April - 13 April 2019 at the rose centre, belmont 8pm Wed - Sat, Sundays at 2pm

‘a side-splitting tragedy with 2 actors, 15 characters and maybe a cow’ Book at www.iticket.co.nz, phone (09) 361-1000. Tickets $27 Concessions $22 plus booking fees

Marie Jones’ Stones in His Pockets should see gales of laughter flowing from our doors….as well as some thoughtful faces at the end of each performance. “a veritable masterclass in acting” DCTheatreScene.com “an immensely entertaining night out” londontheatre1.com For the whole story outline and to book tickets, go to iticket.co.nz and search “Stones” and click on the poster.

“Funlicious - Improv for Kids” A school holiday programme April 15–18 The Rose Centre is delighted to bring to the North Shore a stunningly delicious experience for kids aged 8 to 12 this next school holiday.

Improvisation is an art form that allows kids to selfcreate, self-discover and self-express. It develops the skills they need to have a happy and successful life such as collaboration, communication, confidence, creativity, resilience, storytelling and so much more. It teaches them to be in the present moment with other people so it’s an other-centric mindfulness activity. Improv is liberating, it frees anyone from the blocks that make them live small and of course it’s a HUGE amount of fun.

You need to be quick to get your kids on the programme. It’s $295 (or $275 each for kids from the same family). Go to eventfinda.co.nz and search The Rose Centre to book. Included in the price are tickets for parents to come along and enjoy what the kids have developed that week.

P 09 445 9900 E info@rosecentre.co.nz

F @RoseCentre

W rosecentre.co.nz

The Rangitoto Observer Page 30

April 12, 2019

Young and old put heads together

Voting booth... Laura MacLean (home schooled), left, Emma Mason and Allegra Bouwer (Takapuna Grammar School) place stickers on their favourite topics About 60 teenagers and seniors from Takapuna and Milford got together to debate social issues and potential solutions at an annual community event.

The intergenerational dialogue saw mixedage groups discussing such controversialtopics as immunisation, the Christchurch shootings and climate change, in Takapuna Library on 4 April.

“These groups can tend to be marginalised in society and their ideas not respected, but actually, they have some fantastic ideas,” Takapuna north community coordinator Sarah Thorne said.

“The young have that fresh perspective and the older people have the wisdom of experience.

“It’s also an opportunity for developing understanding.”

In the morning, the groups discussed the topics and shared ideas.

At lunchtime, participants put stickers on

the wall to vote for those to be carried forward.

“They pick the one they think they could find a local solution for or they feel there is the most hope of finding a solution for,” Takapuna north community coordinator Sarah Thorne said.

After lunch, six groups came up with local solutions, then presented to the group.

Judges councillor Richard Hills, a member of the council’s seniors advisory group, Judy Blakey, Gray Power’s North Shore spokesman Bill Raynor and Takapuna Library manager Helen Woodhouse chose the winning presentation, which related to the Christchurch massacre and developing inter-cultural understanding.

The idea was to hold a big cultural event in a local park to showcase and celebrate cultural diversity in the area.

Takapuna North Community Trust chair 91-year-old Joan Lardner-Rivlin instigated the annual event almost a decade ago.

Council jumps gun on mural A gaffe by Auckland Council saw a historic mural, Te-Ika-a-Maui by E. Mervyn Taylor, put up in Takapuna Library without an official unvieling.

“A 1961 Mervyn Taylor mural was kindly gifted by his estate to the Takapuna Library.

The mural was installed at the library on 27 March 2019,” general manager libraries and information Mirla Edmundson said.

The family wanted anl opening, she said.

The family said it had not been informed about the mural being put up. The historic significance of the mural warranted an unveiling, grand-daughter Sarah Taylor says.

However, they are thrilled the mural will be on show and understands someone in council was too busy and missed a few important steps.

Takapuna plans move ahead Plans for development of Takapuna’s public car park on Anzac St are moving forward, with developers submitting expressions of interest.

The developers need to submit their plans, which need to be coordinated with Panuku’s, Takapuna Beach Business Association chief executive officer Terence Harpur says.

“For example, paving needs to be the same as in the town square,” Harpur explains.

He’s excited about the plans, which include an upgrade to the bus station, the new multi-level car park and upgrades to Northcroft and Huron Streets to the tune of $2.5 million each.

“Without this development going ahead none of this would have happened. There’s huge change and it’s making Takapuna more attractive.

When you look around the world, when you make a place more attractive, shoppers spend more time and more money.”

The next stage of public consultation will be asking locals what they would like included in the town square. It will take place mid to end of this year.

The Rangitoto Observer Page 31

April 12, 2019

Controversial topics were top picks when students voted...

Mason O’Malley, left, and Leo O’Malley; Takapuna North Community Trust chair Joan Lardner-Rivlin heard about the idea and brought it to the North Shore.

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The Rangitoto Observer Page 32

April 12, 2019

TAKAPUNA | Absolute Beachfront Superbly located on Takapuna beachfront is this delightful one level, 2 double bedroom apartment.

Wide, wide views of the ocean and the beach are unobtrusively framed by ancient pohutukawas, allowing for some amount of privacy. Tastefully renovated, spacious living.

VIEW | BY APPOINTMENT PRICE | $4.65M PREMIUM.CO.NZ/9761 MARIA TODD 021 743 187 SHANNON DOELL 021 720 225

TAKAPUNA | 18 CAMPBELL ROAD | Black Beauty Beautiful inside and out this striking recently renovated home in the heart of Takapuna oozes street appeal with cherry trees edging the perimeter within the secure gated grounds.

VIEW | SUN 2 - 2.40 PM OR BY APPOINTMENT EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST | 14 MAY 2019 AT 5 PM UNLESS SOLD PRIOR PREMIUM.CO.NZ/9783 JELENA FREEMAN 021 65 65 63 JIM MAYS 021 937 766 | 916 6000

CHELTENHAM BEACH | 2/20 MACKY AVENUE | European Sophistication The absolute best of contemporary living, this impeccable elevated two bedroom apartment combines an enticing blend of heritage charm and European grace. Offering breath-taking views of the ocean and beach out towards Rangitoto Island.

VIEW | SAT/SUN 12 - 1 PM OR BY APPT TENDER CLOSES | 26 APRIL 2016 AT 4 PM UNLESS SOLD PRIOR BY PRIVATE TREATY

PREMIUM.CO.NZ/60583 KIM PAUSINA 021 201 7488 | 445 3414 MILES WALLACE 021 565 601 | 916 6000

TAKAPUNA | AG03/8 LAKE PUPUKE DRIVE | Divine Terrace Apartment Brand new to the market. Stunning one level 125m² 3 bedroom plus media room. Northeast facing with super large terrace with border planters for privacy.

Two carparks plus storage. Own gate for easy stroll to Takapuna shops and cafes.

VIEW | SAT 3 - 3.45 PM OR BY APPOINTMENT PRICE | $1.585M PREMIUM.CO.NZ/9768 MARIA TODD 021 743 187 SHANNON DOELL 021 720 225 | 916 6000

p re m i um.co.n z | Fin e Homes | Fin e A pa rt m e n t s | Fin e L if e s t y le s P REM I U M REA L ESTATE LTD L I CE NS E D R E A 2 0 0 8