11 November 2022 Rangitoto Observer

DELIVERED DELIVERED FORTNIGHTLY FORTNIGHTLY DELIVERED FORTNIGHTLY

Council spends nearly $700k fighting resident... p2

Issue 15 2019 March 2019 Issue 941 ––Issue November 11, 2019 2022 Issue 1 March – 115– 15 March

Flourish founder recognised with award... p5

AN INDEPENDENT AN INDEPENDENT VOICEVOICE AN INDEPENDENT VOICE

Interview: New local-board chair Toni van Tonder... p13

Residents oppose Spencer on Byron car-park plan Loss of public access to land beside the Spencer on Bryon – guaranteed when the high-rise was built – has drawn an objection from the Takapuna Residents Association (TRA).

The building’s body corporate wants to turn the fenced-off area on the western side of the

Byron Ave site into more car-parking.

The TRA opposes varying the resource consent granted in 1998 when the hotel and apartment building was built.

Group member Nerida Cath, who lives nearby, said: “There’s real concern in the community that we don’t lose any more of our

green spaces, especially with intensification.”

The privately owned site in question has not been open to the public for some time, being gravelled over and used as a construction yard by contractors during several years of work on the building’s exterior.

To page 2

Mums work out with babies on board

Hop to it... Trainer Sarah McKay (front) demonstrates post-natal exercise routines to new mothers (from left) Rebecca Posa, Karina Ilic and Ariesha Tat, who were working out with their wee ones at Milford Reserve in a session run by the Takapuna North Community Trust. Story, page 11.

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The Rangitoto Observer Page 2

November 11, 2022

Nearly $700k spent battling resident’s winning case Almost $700,000 of ratepayers money was spent fighting a resident who won a six-year court battle to have planning submissions fully considered.

Franco Belgiorno-Nettis of Takapuna took the council to court with evidence that Auckland Unitary Plan submissions were not being given enough weight by commissioners. In August, High Court Justice Whata accepted he was right.

Information released to the Rangitoto Observer under the Official Information Act show Auckland Council spent $696,221.99 (exclud-

Briefs

Projects delayed Cameras to police the Forrest Hill Rd T2 lanes have been further delayed, until early next year. Auckland Transport says the need for signage and road-marking updates have caused another hold-up, after earlier supply issues. Meanwhile, the opening of temporary toilets at Potters Park, Takapuna, has also been put off.

They should be in place by this week.

Restaurant fire Multiple fire engines attended a fire at a Takapuna restaurant, forcing the temporary closing of Hurstmere Rd and the Eat Street complex on the evening of 1 November. Smoke was seen billowing from a kitchen fire at El Humero. The restaurant was expected to be shut for several weeks.

Sunset markets begin Sunset markets start fortnightly on Thursdays in Takapuna until Christmas, with the first this week from 4pm to 8pm and the next on 24 November. The team behind Smales Farm market will set up in the McKenzies Arcade, Hurstmere Rd.

ing GST) in legal fees and court costs in its six years of proceedings with Belgiorno-Nettis in the High Court.

“With the council having been named as a party in each of the proceedings taken by Franco Belgiorno-Nettis, (this) meant we had no choice but to respond and incur these costs,” said Grace Ray, a senior privacy and official information business partner in the council’s governance-services department.

“We did not engage consultants in relation to the legal proceedings nor did we record staff time. There are no reports/reviews that

reference the appropriateness of the money spent,” Ray said.

The Observer understands Belgiorno-Nettis has spent more than $1million in legal fees on the case – not including the thousands of hours of his own time.

Asked about the council legal-costs figure supplied to the Observer, Belgiorno-Nettis said: “I don’t believe that amount would be right. The council must have spent a lot more than me, because I did most of the work for my lawyers.”

A hearing into the costs incurred in the case is scheduled for the High Court on 29 November.

Spencer on Byron body corp wants car parks on public space From page 1 Before that, Cath acknowledges many people did not realise what was a “scrappy” looking area was open to them.

“Generally, it wasn’t used a lot because most people thought it belonged to the hotel.”

The body corporate wants to pave over the land to provide 26 more car parks to be rented to apartment residents. It proposed to Auckland Council that it would put in a landscaped pocket-sized park with bench seating facing the road, with parking behind.

But Cath sees the potential for better public use of the larger site, as originally provided for, saying the need for passive recreation spaces will increase over time, especially given the extent of development around Burns Ave, with Byron Ave linking through to the town centre.

She said a council officer had advised that removing the public space was “not a permitted activity while the building to which it relates remains on the site”.

Cath said she was sure local residents would be happy to help landscape the larger area. A group in Takapuna was interested in planting

fruit trees and creating garden areas, she said.

Council said the application was currently on hold, awaiting further information from the applicant. Public notification of a change to the resource consent was not required, it said. A consent holder could apply to change conditions as a discretionary activity under the Resource Management Act. The proposed change was first raised in late 2021, with an application lodged in April this year and updated in July. The application noted the original consent referenced a public space/garden as a factor that “assists in avoiding the apparent bulk” of the tower. A condition of that consent also said creating a landscaped place “in which the emphasis shall be as an amenity space useful to the local community”.

The applicant submitted that there was no requirement that public/garden space be preserved in perpetuity, and that car-parking was a permitted accessory activity.

But in recognition of the existing amenity, it said its proposed car-park development incorporated design elements to improve the site’s quality and usability for the local community.

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The Rangitoto Observer Page 3

November 11, 2022

Teachers hit the road for charity Takapuna Normal Intermediate teachers were cheered on by students during a fun training session attended by comedian Mike King in preparation for an 11km fundraising run in conjunction with the Auckland Marathon.

The teachers hope to raise more than $1000 for King’s I Am Hope charity and its Gumboot Friday counselling-for-kids initiative.

Teacher Nat Mene was among those who enjoyed running over the Harbour Bridge on 30 October. “Even through the rain and wind, we persevered and had a great time,” he said.

“We’ve raised over $600 for our running, and we are having Gumboot Friday so we are aiming to get to $1000.”

Mike King, who did a couple of laps around the school fields with the teachers, welcomed the support. “It’s great to see the kids come out and support the teachers as well,” he said.

Meanwhile, Takapuna cafe Kinship also donated to the charity, with $3500, raised from its takings last Friday.

Best boot forward... Mike King (second from left) with Takapuna Normal teachers (left to right) Niall Redmond, Courtney Sheehan, Nat Mene, Nicole Bolton and Briana Winter

Hands up... Lincoln Wilson and his passenger Sam Reid were among pupils who supported teachers on their training run

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The Rangitoto Observer Page 4

November 11, 2022

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November 11, 2022

Cafe with a purpose earns recognition for founder The founder of an innovative Takapuna cafe helping young people with learning disabilities become work-ready has been recognised for her efforts.

Sarah Dann-Hoare – who splits her time between being a hands-on job coach at Flourish Cafe in Como St and working for its parent trust, Project Employ – said she was thrilled to receive a new award for people helping others.

She is one of five inaugural winners of the ‘Care Collective’ programme sponsored by Panadol. Each receives $3000.

But she said the best thing about the recognition is the opportunity it gives to further promote her passion project. “It’s lovely to win, but publicity is what it’s all about,” she says.

Dann-Hoare, who plans to spend the money on a trip to see family in the UK, wants to spread the word about the cafe, which opened three months ago. “I’d like this to be the place the community comes to in its own right.”

Servers at the cafe have been trained to overcome the likes of anxiety issues, so that once their six-month internship is over they have the skills and track-record to seek paid employment.

Among them is Ariel Knight, who will soon be seeking a cafe job closer to home in west Auckland. She was one of the first five trainees taken on in June, before its August opening.

She enjoys serving at the Flourish counter and also doing the coffee run to offices upstairs.

“I like to work with different people and get my confidence up,” she told the Observer.

Prior to working at Flourish, Knight worried about making mistakes, but with the help of Dann-Hoare and fellow job coach Hannah Sykes has learned these are just opportunities to learn. “It’s a good skill to learn, step by step,” she said.

Her advice to other young people in her position was to “give it a go”.

A further eight to nine trainees will be chosen from around 20 applicants to start work at the

Coffee break... Sarah Dann-Hoare and Ariel Knight take time out to chat at Flourish cafe in Takapuna cafe in the next couple of months.

Having worked for eight years as a special education teacher at the Wairau Valley Special School, which caters for the learning needs of people aged five to 21, Dann-Hoare had long seen the need for something that helped her young charges transition to meaningful work.

The North Shore resident, who came to New Zealand from the UK 19 years ago, thought training cafes of the type she knew from her homeland would be a good model. A year ago she put the wheels in motion.

Dann-Hoare suggests local groups consider meeting at the cafe, as Rotary and a church group have done already. “It’s about the community knowing they are making a difference.”

A paid manager and a barista help keep

Castor Bay group still pressing for beach steps Castor Bay residents have reiterated their calls for steps to their local beach and for assurances that illegal camping on the adjacent reserve will be better policed this summer.

They delivered the message to the two Devonport-Takapuna Local Board members who attended the Castor Bay Residents and Ratepayers Association (CBRRA) annual meeting held last week.

George Wood and Terence Harpur said they would liaise with Auckland Council officers over improving beach access.

The steep drop from the rock wall to the sand was a safety issue, they were told, with one person saying the fix was “just three little steps”.

CBBRA chair Hamish Anderson said

the group’s top priorities remained water quality; the promotion of a pest-free environment; improving safety and mobility with a focus on road crossings, footpaths and walkways; Kennedy Park preservation efforts; and engaging with the community.

Improving pedestrian links from Castor Bay to Milford was another aim, he said The meeting also heard from North Shore MP Simon Watts who ran through key National Party talking points, including crime and Three Waters, and answered questions from the floor.

Quizzed about National’s support for the government’s housing intensification legislation, Watts indicated the party was now open to “sensible changes”.

things running smoothly each day, with the trainees working 16 hours each week in pairs on morning or afternoon shifts. They are not paid, meaning their benefits are not affected.

Dann-Hoare liaises with another charity, PolyEmp, which helps place people in paid work.

The cafe breaks even, she said, but she would love it to be busier, so able to provide more training.

The trainees learn about team work, gain communication skills and prove they are reliable.

“In June they were not work ready, but now I can say to any cafes that are interested in employing them that they are worth every penny,” she says.

Simon Watts MP for North Shore

National Party Spokesperson for Local Government and Associate Finance & Associate Infrastructure

Your local MP, supporting you and our community 1 Earnoch Avenue, Takapuna northshore@parliament.govt.nz 09 486 0005

Authorised by Simon Watts, Parliament Buildings, Wgtn.

The Rangitoto Observer Page 6

November 11, 2022

Local-board workshops staying open to public Workshops of the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board will be kept open to public scrutiny, says new board chair Toni van Tonder.

After being officially installed as chair last month by unanimous decision of the six-member board, van Tonder told the Flagstaff she had over time shifted from her previous opposition to open workshops.

“They’re a good way to give information to the community,” she said.

This means members of the public and the media can sit in on workshops, which are typically held several times a month.

Auckland Council staff, and others from council-controlled organisations, attend the sessions to background issues for board members.

This provides the opportunity to ask questions ahead of monthly business meetings, where decisions require the board’s voting sign-off, but are often less extensively debated.

Van Tonder said she would love to see more people – “as many as possible” – turn up at the board’s various meetings.

In changing her position, van Tonder has removed a potential source of criticism for the new board. The Heart of the Shore team, which was voted off the board in the local-body election, had open workshops as a bottom line.

Van Tonder said she had wanted to canvass the views of all board members – three from her A Fresh Approach team and two Communities and Residents representatives – before going public with the policy.

Having spent the previous three-year term on the board, during which workshops were closed for the first 18 months, then opened up, she had “grown accustomed to it”.

Expressing confidence that the new board would operate with better staff relationships and less grandstanding, she trusted that those who briefed the board would be “more inclined to come in and work with us” irrespective of whether meetings were open or not.

For sensitive legal or financial matters, the board retains the ability to go into confi-

dential session. Devonport-Takapuna is one of only a handful of Auckland local boards holding open workshops.

Wood said he did not favour open workshops. Better relationships needed to be built with Auckland Transport and the council’s community facilities teams, and the board had “been hamstrung in staff not wanting to speak freely”.

The new line-up of board members was sworn in at a public ceremony at the PumpHouse Theatre. Van Tonder noted they represented the entire board area. “It’s the first time ever we have had a board representing the whole rohe,” she said after taking her declaration of office in both te reo and English.

Van Tonder said the board would be wellserved by people with an intimate knowledge of their areas.

She flagged the possibility of considering a new name for the board.

• Van Tonder interview, page 13

First meeting... The new Devonport-Takapuna Local Board held its swearing-in and inaugural meeting at the PumpHouse Theatre last month. The members are (from left): George Wood, chair Toni van Tonder, Melissa Powell, deputy chair Terence Harpur, Peter Allen and Gavin Busch

Split views on making business leader deputy chair A split of opinion was revealed in the second act of the new board, when it divided 4-2 over the election of new member and Takapuna Beach Business Association (TBBA) chief executive Terence Harpur as deputy chair.

Harpur was backed by his Fresh Approach teammates, but not by Communities and Residents pair George Wood and Gavin Busch.

Wood later told the Flagstaff he questioned how Harpur would combine the new role with an already busy full-time job. Auckland

Council guidelines said the deputy-chair role would take 20 to 30 hours a week. “We’ve put this to Terence and he just pushes it aside and says he can do it.”

Busch said it was up to Harpur to decide how to juggle roles, but he personally had stepped aside from his own position on the TBBA board as soon as he was elected.

Busch said he knew Harpur to be “very professional and capable” and it was up to him how he managed his work life and hours. But

for himself, he did not want there to be any suggestion of a conflict of interest.

Harpur says he will step aside from any board debate that conflicts with his TBBA position. “I am confident I am able to perform the role to a high standard, along with my TBBA role and manage my time effectively,” he said.

Van Tonder said it had always been known Harpur would have to manage conflicts, adding: “I have absolute full confidence in his ability to do that and the job.”

The Rangitoto Observer Page 7

November 11, 2022

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November 11, 2022

Face off... (clockwise from above) Yevin Adikarige, 5, from Sunnynook and Teddy Nagel, 3, and Madeline Mearns, 6, both from Takapuna, queued for facepainting at Shore City last week

Fright night

Bewitched... Big Halloween fan Emily Poulton made a nod to the occasion in an accessorised trip to the Milford Centre, where she stopped at the candle workshop’s themed display

Trick and treaters of all ages took to the streets of the Observer circulation area last week, from Sunnynook to Hauraki, with big crowds also travelling to the annual Bayswater Halloween Trail, while the Lake House Arts Centre hosted weekend activities.

The evening of 31 October seemed to pass smoothly for most – allowing for the inevitable sugar highs For many little locals the dress-ups began early, with a trip to Shore City, which put on free-painting to get them ready for the night ahead.

Write your family stories with Lynn Dawson Navy Museum - Torpedo Bay, Devonport Wednesday 23 November, 10am - 4pm Limited numbers - bookings are essential Cost: $30 per person includes morning and afternoon tea - BYO lunch For more information and to book: info@navymuseum.co.nz or T: 09 446 1824

The Rangitoto Observer Page 9

November 11, 2022

Sister acts... Milford Primary girls Jordan (7) and Ashley (5) Elrick and (below) from Takapuna are Delilah (4) and Violette (2) Purcell

From school to spook... Leo Kin, 7, headed straight from Hauraki Primary to Shore City for help with his look for Halloween

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The Rangitoto Observer Page 10

November 11, 2022

Get out and about on the shore this summer Our Out and About teams are hosting a range of fun, free events designed to get children of all ages active over the summer break.

events in other areas.

by your local board. That keeps it free, but some events do require you to register, and it is best to do so as early as you can to avoid disappointment. You don’t have to restrict yourself to your local area and are more than welcome to attend

And if you’re still stuck for ideas, check out your local library.

Auckland’s extensive network of libraries also offers school holiday fun, catering from the littlest citizen to older youngsters - and increasingly for adults too, with lectures, events,

Activities from the DevonportTakapuna Local Board include Junk Play, Hungerball and the Wild The events help connect residents to Families Nature Network. nature and focus on keeping more Our Out and About team post Aucklanders living healthy and active information on where they are and lives through play, recreation and what they are up to on facebook. sport. com/OutandAboutAKL. You can There are activities across the city, also access detailed programme lists ranging from treasure hunts to at aucklandleisure.co.nz by searching sea kayaking, all hosted at parks for Out and About, which will take and reserves. The Out and About you to a page with activities by Activation programme is funded Board area.

CONTACT US: aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/devonporttakapuna FOLLOW US: Facebook.com/devonporttakapuna

courses, help with family research and dozens of other activities.

For updates follow Auckland Libraries at facebook.com/aucklandlibraries or a library in your area, for instance, facebook.com/devonportlibrarynz or facebook.com/devonportlibrarynz.

Youcanalsoheadtoaucklandlibraries. govt.nz and the events tab will take you to a page listing activities all over the city, and just like Out and About, you are welcome to attend those outside your immediate area.

But the beauty of the site is that you can search for events in your particular area, perhaps where a friend you’d like to catch up with lives, or just neighbouring areas.

Find out more about your Local Board initiatives at facebook.com/ devonporttakapuna

The Rangitoto Observer Page 11

November 11, 2022

Trust rolls out new manager and summer play activities The Takapuna North Community Trust has a new manager, Natasha Geo (pictured), who is relishing reconnecting with the area.

The former Carmel College student, now 33 and living in west Auckland where she and her husband have bought a house, grew up on the North Shore from the age of eight.

She comes from working for IHC’s Idea support arm.

The trust supports community development from Hauraki Corner north to Sunnynook and delivers activities ranging from children’s play sessions to environmental programmes and sessions encouraging intergenerational dialogue with seniors. It is backed by the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board and Auckland Council.

Geo, who took up the job last month, oversees a small team of part-timers. She is spending her first weeks getting to know people. Among groups she works with, is Pupuke Birdsong Project.

The trust will hold its annual meeting, open to the public, on 14 November, from 5pm. It will include a talk on building communities.

Another new team member at the trust is Grace Samuelson, who is its events co-ordi-

Council won’t budge on plonked puriri A puriri tree planted in the middle of Henderson Park will not be moved, say Auckland Council staff.

The response follows concerns raised by residents about the siting of the tree and others planted on green open space in Takapuna and Milford reserves, interrupting views and eating into play space. They were also concerned about a lack of consultation.

Council regional arborists and ecological manager David Stejskal said decisions were made by the urban forest and arboriculture teams in collaboration with other council staff and based on council strategies and plans.

The puriri at Henderson Park was planted to provide shade for park users and to be a habitat for birds. “We believe that the slow growth of this tree, its graceful structure and year-round provision of food for birds will enhance the atmosphere of the park.”

Stejskal said the council did not typically publicly consult over replacement tree planting or succession planting (this is where there are declining trees expected to be removed in the near future).

For new planting plans, local boards were consulted, he said.

nator. She is now rolling out the Summer Fun pre-school play sessions in reserves across the board area. These are held on Mondays and Wednesdays, depending on weather, at a rotating roster of parks and reserves.

Toys are set up between 10am and noon for children to enjoy, under supervision by parents or caregivers.

The programme runs each year from late October until late March, with a Christmas break. Winter activities are then offered indoors.

Additions this season include playball, a sport and movement programme; and kanga-training, where mums with babies in frontpacks can do a post-natal workout.

Places for these sessions, which have different start and finish times, are limited, so register on the trust website. The site also has the full schedule of times, days and places for all Summer Fun sessions.

Sessions for the next fortnight include Monday 14 November, at Sunnynook Reserve, Tonkin Rd; Wednesday 16 November at Milford Reserve, Craig Rd; Monday 21 November at Sylvan Park, Sylvan Park Ave, Milford, and Wednesday 23 November at On the go... Layla Watson tries out the toys at a free community Kennedy Park, Beach Rd, Castor Bay. play session in Milford Details at www.takapunatrust.org.nz

Northcroft Street upgrade Have your say On the proposed design to upgrade Northcroft Street.

With more people set to move to the neighbourhood, we want to improve the street environment and create a vibrant place where people want to live, work and visit.

The proposed design was developed with feedback from community engagement during the testing and trialling phase. Your feedback will help us confirm a final concept design.

Give your feedback by 20 November 2022

Draft visualisation - Northcroft Street To give feedback, visit:

akhaveyoursay.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/ northcroft-street-upgrade

The Rangitoto Observer Page 12

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November 11, 2022

Interview

The Rangitoto Observer Page 13

Early jobs formative for local-board chair Raised in Tokoroa and Christchurch, Narrow Neck’s Toni van Tonder is a new leading light of Shore politics. She tells Helen Vause about her early years, and hopes for a more cohesive local board.

At one time, Toni van Tonder would never have seen herself heading into local politics.

But in her mid-30s, as a young mother, raising her family on the North Shore, she began to reflect more about the workings of the world around her, and the people with the power to make things happen in her community, and thought: “There is a place for someone like me at their table.”

And once that idea came into her head, she never stopped thinking about it, she says.

Recently re-elected as a second-term member of the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board, van Tonder last month became its new chair.

Now aged 41, she talked to the Flagstaff about the journey that’s taken her into the heart of local issues. At her kitchen table in Narrow Neck, she talked about the work ahead, and finding a balance with family life.

Looking at her three children today, with a middle-class life and a comfortable home, she recalls that her own early life was much less privileged.

She spent her early childhood in Tokoroa where her grandparents had settled when they came from the Netherlands, and where her own parents put down roots, thinking they’d have a chance of having a home of their own there. She still has a photo of their stark little house.

But before van Tonder was out of her primary school years, her parents split up.

She and her older sister Amber went to Christchurch with their mother.

Until their mother re-partnered, the family endured an unsettled time in a series of different addresses. Van Tonder eventually attended seven different schools.

“It was hard but we weren’t unhappy. Mum worked very hard, and she was strict because she had to run a tight ship with us. With all the moving around, we just learned fast how to adapt and settle in somewhere new.”

Amber was only 18 months older than Toni and the two were close.

The girls always had little jobs after school, on the weekends and in the school holidays.

“As kids we had to work for whatever we needed and pay for our own stuff.”

When she was barely a teenager, van Tonder got her first real after-school job, doing filing and document-shredding in the offices of a shipping company in Lyttelton, where the family then lived. “I still remember what we used to earn and how it got better and better.

When I got a job at Countdown, I was earning $5.11 an hour, and then later, I was making $8.50 an hour at McDonald’s.”

By the time she was 10, she was doing the vacuuming at home and making dinner.

“All those jobs I had were good for me,” she says. “Instead of just listening to the rules of Mum and Dad, we were out in the real world, listening to the rules of the boss. We grew up fast.”

Stepping up... Toni van Tonder was re-elected to a second term on the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board, and has become its new chair Van Tonder recalls herself as a “pretty average” student and a fairly rebellious kid at home.

“I was the wild one. A little bit eccentric and a bit creative and pushing the boundaries at home.” Van Tonder went to the University of Canterbury, and tentatively explored studies in arts and in law. Big sister Amber had another idea.

“She told me to take a paper in politics.

She said, ‘You will like it because you are argumentative’.” And big sister was right. Van Tonder loved it.

When Amber moved to Auckland, van Tonder went too, transferring to the University of Auckland. Once she graduated, she found herself again wondering about what direction to take, eventually training as a secondary school teacher.

She travelled and found work teaching teenagers in London. Back in New Zealand, she was pleased to land a job teaching English at Takapuna Grammar. “I loved, it and the kids were fantastic,” she says, but, after a year in the classroom she decided the administration and the endless paperwork weren’t for her.

“I am more of a projects person, and I like to change things around with fresh challenges.”

And she and her husband Pierre (a commercial architect) wanted a family. “Once I was pregnant with Jasper, I realised I didn’t want to be tied to a regular full-time job and be missing out on special moments with my kids when they were little.”

Her children – Jasper, now 11, Sadie, 9, and

Sid, 6 – are, she smiles, “the most awesome little people”, with Jasper fiercely interested in her board role and the issues she is contending with.

Van Tonder’s first foray into working in the community was the unpaid job of revitalising the Devonport Arts Festival, in 2012.

Through that and subsequent work with the Kaipataki Project’s environmental initiatives, she developed connections in the community.

She was appointed Devonport Business Improvement District manager in 2017, which brought closer and more regular contact with the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board as well as the workings of Auckland Council.

She decided to run for the board herself in 2019, and credits Takapuna businessman Aidan Bennett for helping make it happen, with her as part of the ‘A Fresh Approach’ team. “I learned so much from him about how to get things done.”

What followed after their election in 2019 was far from smooth political sailing. Three years of dysfunction and frustration on a divided board almost saw her call time on her fledgling political career.

This time around, she believes there is the promise of a more collaborative approach.

“We won’t always agree, but we will be respectful of our differences and opinions. And I believe there can be a solution at the end of every conversation.”

Is this her future? Who knows, she asks. “It takes a big toll on family life. I’ve probably got at least another career challenge ahead of me.”

Arts / Entertainment Pages

The Rangitoto Observer Page 14

November 11, 2022

No fish, but moody kelp shot hooks landscape prize

Hidden depths... Teen photographer Cruz Erdmann with his prize-winning shot of a kelp forest at Great Barrier Island Westlake Boys High School student Cruz Erdmann’s photograph of an eerie kelp forest won him top spot in the landscape category of New Zealand Geographic magazine’s s Photographer of the Year competition last month.

The 17-year-old, who also placed third in the competition’s people’s choice award, was diving for crayfish at Great Barrier Island when he came across the desolate kelp forest.

“There were no fish, the water was really murky, it was really eerie like an empty forest.”

The lack of fish to photograph led to him

taking a landscape shot.

The year-12 student was surprised to win, as it was his first time competing in adult categories against experienced photographers.

But he has won photography competitions in the past, taking home the British Natural History Museum’s young Wildlife Photographer of the Year award in 2019 and Ocean Geographic magazine’s Young Ocean Photographer of the Year award in 2020.

Born in Bali, Cruz moved to New Zealand with his family nine years ago.

He plans to submit more photographs in competitions in future, but other commitments, including rowing for Westlake Boys, make it hard to be prolific with his hobby.

“It comes down to time constraints, because I don’t have a lot of time during school and rowing season to go out and take photos.”

And however good he is at photography, Cruz says he isn’t considering to make it a fulltime career, preferring to keep it as a hobby he can continue on top of whatever he chooses to do in the future.

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November 11, 2022

Arts / Entertainment Pages

The Rangitoto Observer Page 15

Singers sought for festive-season community choir If you love Christmas and can hold a tune, the PumpHouse Theatre would love to hear from you about joining a special community choir performance in December.

The family-friendly show of favourite seasonal songs and carols will be held this year on 18 December at the Takapuna venue’s amphitheatre. Expect renditions of the likes of ‘Jingle Bells’, ‘Frosty the Snowman’ and ‘Santa Claus Is Coming to Town’.

The choir comprises around 20 or more people and it will be led by music teacher Samantha Cheong, a former Rangitoto College student. Auditions are not required, but members usually have two or three rehearsals, leading into the show and appearances at several local events. The first is on the evening of Monday 21 November.

“The choir is made up of people who just love to sing,” says PumpHouse manager, James Bell. “There are no auditions, no harmonies, or operatic voices – just a fun community singalong of everyone’s favourite Christmas Carols.”

This will be the sixth edition of the Christmas Community Choir, with last year’s performance cancelled due to Covid.

Anyone interested in participating can register online at pumphouse.co.nz or contact Mags from the PumpHouse, ph 486 2386.

Ho ho ho... Father Christmas plays master of ceremonies to an eager audience at a previous carol-singing session at the PumpHouse, with a small section of the choir at rear

Concert band to play The North Shore Concert Band is playing a seasonal selection of favourites in Takapuna on 22 November. Expect Christmas music and sing-a-long carols.

Tickets for the Festivities show at 7.30pm at the PumpHouse are $15 to $20 from the theatre box office.

Di & Viv & Rose

10–20 NOVEMBER

Auckland Premiere of a West End smash-hit starring Jodie Dorday, Lisa Chappell, and Eilish Moran

Festivities!

22 NOVEMBER

A celebration of festive music

by North Shore Concert Band

Rear Window

24-27 NOVEMBER

Based on the masterpiece thriller by Alfred Hitchcock, performed in Chinese

PH: 489 8360

PUMPHOUSE.CO.NZ

NOW SHOWING Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (TBA) 160min NEW Mister Organ (M) 96min NEW Bros (R16) 116min NEW Munch: Love Phantoms and Lady-Vampires (E) 90min NEW The Wonder (M) 108min NEW Mister Organ (M) 96min with pre-recorded Q&A 13 NOV

SPECIAL EVENT

COMING SOON Emily (M) 130min 17 NOV She Said (TBA) 129min 17 NOV The Menu (TBA) 107min Previews 18-20 NOV Mel Parsons Slow Burn Album Tour - Live Show 19 NOV Seriously Red (M) 98min Night Before Preview 23 NOV The Vic Open Mic Night 24 NOV

SPECIALS CHEAP TUESDAY ALL TICKETS $10 *EXCEPT PUBLIC HOLIDAYS

events@thevic.co.nz

48 Victoria Road | (09) 446 0100 | www.thevic.co.nz

The Rangitoto Observer Page 16

November 11, 2022

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