The Eastbourne Herald February 2021

Adventures at the pool - but season delay questioned

The decision to delay the opening of Eastbourne Pool by two weeks this summer was questioned by local man John Welch at last week’s Eastbourne Community Board meeting.

An OIA request had shown the projected savings Hutt City Council was expecting to make from the delay actually resulting in a cost, John told the meeting.

The community board was asked if they played a part in the decision to put the opening back, but Mayor Campbell Barry said the November weather was “pretty poor” so Mr Welch’s calculations may not have been accurate.

He said the start of the season was always a quieter period for the pool and opening of all

the pools had been delayed, resulting in savings overall. The Wainuiomata Pool, especially, was costly to run.

The Mayor said he was happy for the council to analyse the figures and ECB chair Ginny Horrocks asked for more information in August, so the board could be involved in the decision on the 2021/22 season opening date.

Cricket stars to play in centennial game for ECC

One hundred years of cricket in the Bays will be celebrated next month with a game featuring locals versus a festival team.

The event had to be delayed due to Covid-19, and what was originally a three-day celebration including a dinner and several games has been scaled back to a day of family fun.

Eastbourne Cricket Club member Neil Gray says the club is still hopeful past members will travel to the March 14 event, which will include a game for children organised by Wellington Cricket.

The adults’ game will include a festival team including our own “famous grocer”, Chris Martin, who is a veteran of 70 test matches and 20 one-day internationals.

The game starts at noon (the coin toss 11:45) and will continue through till 5pm.  In the lunch break (2pm -3pm) there is a game/ activities organised for the Juniors so it will be a great day out.

The invitational team is a mixture of men and women who have represented NZ or province in various sports and also media and other well known people.

The event is being organised by life members, the ECC committee and parents.

The invitational team umpires, managers,

TIMETABLE

scorers and coaches  include:

Bert Vance ( captain), Chris Martin, Chris Nevin, Hamish Marshall, Stephen Donald, Karl Budge,  Anna Corbin, Dave Loveridge,   Megan Wakefield,  Sarah Hills, Peter Taylor, Greg Hooper, Alasdair McBeth, Brett O’Riley, Steve Mark, Liz Green, Grant Cederwall, Ewen Chatfield, , Bruce Edgar, Grant Nisbett, Bryan Waddle, Duke Ellerington, Ken Laban.  Paul Rennie,  Henry Walsh, Nik Swain. To be confirmed - Gavin Larsen, Martin Snedden and  Evan Grey who have all NZ cricket  commitments that weekend.

The format will be a 25 over match, where players can sub on and sub off. A select group of Eastbourne junior cricketers will undertake this on behalf of the invitational team

Eastbourne centennial team:

Steve Girvan ( Captain), Chris Burt, Graham Powell, Conrad Kelly, Matt Girvan,

Scott Young, Lorkin O’Connor, Dan Reed, Chris Reed, Steve Gillespie, Malcolm Cowdry, Mark Meo, Neil Sullivan, Tim Barton, Matt Kelly, Tom Brodie, Fraser Hansen, Chris Dixon, Neil Gray, Michael Ferrier, Mayor Campbell Barry,  Frank Harkin, Phil Sisson and Brendan Boyle

Game day details Sunday 14 March

ECC100 Festival 20/20 Game

Game Toss & Welcome - 1145

Game Starts 1200

First Innings - 1200 - 2pm

Between innings there will be a game/ activities for juniors

ECC100 Game Lunch in Club 2pm-3pm

Second Innings Starts- 3pm- 5pm

Game Ends – 5pm

Everyone is welcome to join the members for After Game Drinks – from 5pm.

SAT,

& PUBLIC

(S) = Sailing calls at Somes Island, subject to passengers.

Sailings may be cancelled at short notice due to weather. To check today’s sailings, call our daily status line on (04) 494 3339.

Next ECB meeting:

7.15pm Tuesday 13 April 2021, East Harbour Women’s Club, 145 Muritai Rd

Airport bus service

Greater Wellington Regional Council is calling for submissions for its public transport plan. We encourage Eastbourne residents to use this opportunity to urge the Council to reinstate the airport bus service to and from Lower Hutt. The consultation closes on 19 March: haveyoursay.gw.govt.nz/publictransport-plan-2021

Days Bay Crossing

Hutt City Council has trialled traffic management measures at the Williams Park pedestrian crossing over a busy weekend in February. The crossing has been a problem on busy summer days when the number of people using the crossing causes traffic to back up. Feedback to ECB on the trial from pedestrians, bike users and drivers has been positive to date.

Sand build-up at Kauri Street

Council has done further work to shape the dune at the end of Kauri Street to stop sand from drifting over the wall.

Eastbourne Community Board (ECB)

Residents are welcome to contact board members to sort minor issues directly with council staff or to ask for a report from council officers for the next

Virginia Horrocks (Chair)

virginia.horrocks@huttcity.govt.nz

Ph 021 230 8210

Belinda Moss (Deputy Chair) belinda.moss@huttcity.govt.nz

Ph 029 494 1615

Tui Lewis (Ward Councillor) tui.lewis@huttcity.govt.nz

Ph 04 970 5159

Murray Gibbons murray.gibbons@huttcity.govt.nz

Ph 04 562 8567

Bruce Spedding bruce.spedding@huttcity.govt.nz

Ph 021 029 74741

Frank Vickers

frank.vickers@huttcity.govt.nz

Ph 027 406 1419

New pipes coming for fuel

The Hutt City wharfline fuel pipeline carrying fuel for much of the lower North Island is to be replaced.

The Seaview Energy Resilience Project will see CentrePort and fuel companies engage with the Seaview Wharf upgrade and, with it, the replacement of the pipeline with a new one.

Mettleworks project manager and engineer Brent Cooper told last week’s Eastbourne Community Board meeting there will only be minor disruption to the flow of fuel from ships berthed at the wharf through the pipeline to tanks in Seaview during work this year.

Jet fuel, diesel, and 91, 95 and 98-grade petrol are all pumped along the pipes beside the road to tanks belonging to Mobil, BP, and Z Energy. From there, road tankers deliver the fuel to service stations, truck stops. commercial customers and airfields as far north as Dannevirke and Wanganui, and Ohakea Airforce Base.

The two other Wellington fuel sites are in Aotea Quay, which serves interislander ferries, and Burnham Wharf for jet fuel.

“The pipeline is old, but it’s about resilience and meeting modern standards for earthquake loadings,” Brent said.

CentrePort owns the wharf infrastructure and the fuel industry owns the pipeline. Both groups are funding the project, with Z Energy acting as project sponsor from the fuel industry.

CentrePort's General Manager Regeneration Anthony Delaney, says the project will include with regenerating the Seaview Wharf. One million tons of fuel has gone through the site each year over the last four years and “there is no alternative way of supplying the fuel,” he says.

The wharf has Lifeline status under the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act

2002, meaning it is an essential asset if there is an earthquake.

The wharf was built in the 1970s, and is now “nowhere near compliant with current resilience standards”. It sustained more than $20m worth of damage during the 2016 North Canterbury earthquake. It’s also very exposed.

The wharf won’t look any different once the work has been completed – the main wharf and dolphins, where ships berth, will be reconfigured at their existing location. For Stage 1, the new pipeline will continue to run along the Seaview Marina foreshore where the current pipeline is located. The new pipeline will be the same size.

The project is looking at how to make the forecourt, which is classed as high hazard, more attractive. While it needs some form of fencing, it is hopes it can be integrated into the environment.

The project is looking at how to make the entrance at Point Howard, which is a high hazard area, more attractive. While it needs some fencing, it is hoped it can be integrated into the environment and enhanced with landscaping and other features.

Part of the upgrade includes a selfsustainable power supply from solar energy.

Stage 1 will include replacing the pipeline from Point Howard to just north of Port Road. This will take until December 2021. Stage 2 from 2022-2023, will involve replacing some of the sections of pipeline between Port Road and the four fuel storage terminals where the tanks are located. The team is consulting with KiwiRail to see if it can utilise the former rail corridor for the new pipeline route, rather than the existing route along Barnes Street.

Downer has been engaged to undertake the Stage 1 work, including traffic management. It is hoped there will only be infrequent stop/ go management needed, when equipment is moved across the road via crane. The work is only anticipated to be carried out during normal work hours and days.

Part of the challenge of the upgrade is having to make sure wildlife such as Little Blue Penguins and marine mammals such as orca are disturbed as little as possible, and the safety of the aquifer is not compromised.

Pines out, natives in BRIEFS

Eastbourne hills are being planted in native trees, thanks to Hutt City Council’s Biodiversity fund.

The fund, which opens again for applications in April, is designed to help Lower Hutt landowners protect, enhance and manage indigenous habitats on their land. The Council can support a range of activities with the grants including pest and weed control, revegetation planting and may include providing materials or expertise.

Larger scale projects with an approved project plan may be eligible for Council funding. Landowners will need to meet basic criteria to qualify.

Locally, Armes Trees Solutions have removed pines behind three homes on Muritai Road. While the trees may look as if they are precariously clinging to the side of the hill, Michelle Swanson says they are secured with a steel cabling system, which shows if there is any shifting in the trees. Over the years, the trees will rot down but remain stable.

‘The pines dominate the area around them and throw out so many other seedlings that if the council didn’t do anything, they would continue to spread and choke out native species,” she says. Working with Forest and Bird, planting of natives the same as those already in the area will begin this year.

Homeowners can apply for the grant, and Michelle says a local homeowner, who is also a lawyer, has been working with her company to help with the application, which can appear “quite daunting”.

Armes Trees solutions uses software aided by GPS to map the trees, and works with homeowners to provide a detailed report on the tree management plan.

Nationwide, there is a push to replace pines with natives, encouraging the return of fauna. For more information, search the HCC website for "biodiversity grants" or email biodiversity@ huttcity.govt.nz

The draft Long Term Plan for Hutt City Council’s spending will be out for consultation from March 29. Mayor Campbell Barry says the council is doubling its capital spend to $1.3b over ten years, with $930m of that on infrastructure and transport. The majority of the 100 respondents to LTP pre-engagement endorsed the plan, which “weighs up affordability with the need to make sure we make this investment and not kick the can down the road”, Mayor Barry said. The plan will see a 5.9 percent rates increase, which equates to $130 per year per household, or $2.50 per week. Formal public consultation: 29 March - 3 May. Hearing of submissions and related advice: 12 - 17 May. Council meets to make final decisions: June 2021. Council adopts the LTP and sets the rates: 30 June 2021.

Wellington Regional Councillor Prue Lamason and Hutt City Councillor Josh Briggs are working to get the reinstated Airport Flyer back to the Hutt and beyond. Cr Lamason told last week’s Eastbourne Community Board meeting the pair had voted for an amendment, and is talking to mayors from Upper Hutt and Porirua about expanding the route of the service. Cr Lamason is encouraging people to submit to the regional public transport plan by 5pm on March 19 2021. For more information on this go to http://www.gw.govt.nz/rptp/

There’s a sprinkler ban across the city, with handheld hoses able to be used on alternate days. Speaking of water, concerns have been raised over lead in our drinking water, following the increased levels of lead found in drinking water in Karitane and Waikouaiti. Mayor Campbell Barry says the same situation is unlikely to happen in Hutt City, “and if it did, it would be minor and come from leaching from the old pipes”. Our water is sourced from the Orongorongo catchment and the aquifer,

making it “extremely unlikely”, he said.

Mahina Bay’s historic bus shelter will have to be moved, Greater Wellington Regional Council says. Cr Prue Lamason says locals want to keep the shelter, but it is nearing the end of its life. The stop is being moved and the old one “is just about beyond its use-by date”, meaning a new shelter will need to be constructed. “Whilst we understand it has character and community ownership, its functionality is limited,” she said, adding that the drawings will be reproduced on the modern shelter. Consultation with Mahina Bay residents will be carried out.

Hutt City Councillor Tui Lewis told last week’s Eastbourne Community Board meeting an increase in cars on the road could be partly due to the unreliability of buses. GWRC Cr Prue Lamason told the meeting that timetables are not being met, but that the buses will never cancel school runs, or the first and last trip of the day. ECB chair Ginny Horrocks said the regional council needed to sort its public transport out if it was to meet its climate change obligations. A fleet of new electric buses will be joining the bus routes soon. Consent for the shared path around the Eastern Bays is expected shortly.

The upgraded Days Bay Wharf is likely to open on Friday, April 23. Eastbourne Community Board member Murray Gibbons says it is hoped to combine the opening with the introduction of the new East by West electric ferry, and the event will be a celebration of sustainable transport, as well as the end of work on the wharf which has suffered delays due to Covid-19 restrictions, and poor weather.

Meanwhile, a modest ceremony will be held to unveil the revamped signage for Greenwood Park. The park has been upgraded in recent months, and the historic sign xrestored.

JAG032

Sad farewell to advocate for local community

MATTHEW CONRAD HAYES

8 October 1977 – 31 January 2021

Matt Hayes fell in love, married, lived much of his adult life and died all within a very small geographical range. The Days Bay dad of Edward, 12, and James, 10, met Louise Small at James Walshe’s home at 440 Muritai Rd, married at her parents' home at 446 Muritai, then suffered a fatal brain aneurysm while surfing not far from Lion Rock.

A passionate intellectual property lawyer in his working life, Matt Hayes was better known locally as an advocate for kids. He’s the one who finally got a skate ramp for Eastbourne, after decades of thwarted attempts, in June 2019. Sinead Diederich says: “Matt was a hive of energy – it was my privilege to work with him on this project, which took three years to complete. We encountered some hurdles along the way which Matt faced with humanity and equanimity. We had fun and I learned a lot from him: he was a special sort of man. When I see people enjoying the skate ramp I will remember most of all his vitality.”

Matt also coached a group of senior Wellesley boys in waterpolo, taking them in to Kilbirnie and Huia pools on many early mornings and late nights. “He was genuinely interested in kids and getting them involved,” says Louise.

Most recently, Matt had dreamed of creating a surf club this side of the harbour, starting with a Nippers program for kids. Although the fledgling Days Bay Surf Lifesaving Club was nowhere near incorporated, Matt had certainly done his homework, talking to clubs in Worser Bay, Lyall Bay and Titahi Bay. The family were having lunch at home one weekend before Christmas when an enormous trailer load of pre-loved surfboards arrived, a donation from Titahi Bay SLS Club. They sat on the front lawn for a couple of weeks before a local business offered storage.

Matt was born in Singapore to Helen and John Hayes during his father’s first diplomatic posting. In all, the family would spend 12 years overseas at places as diverse as New Delhi, Bahrain, Riyadh and PNG. He got lost in a temple in Java as a toddler, could row a

dinghy at five, set sail on the family’s small yacht in Bahrain, and skied for the first time in Switzerland. “He was a happy, outgoing and sunny-natured child,” says his mother Helen, “and he made friends so easily, across a spectrum of people. It didn’t matter where they came from.”

Matt met Louise when both were doing degrees at Victoria University – Matt’s in politics and law. Once qualified, he headed to a law firm in Blenheim to gain litigation experience, and then travelled overseas. After a time in London, Matt moved back to New Zealand and began working in his chosen field of Intellectual Property at the Auckland firm James & Wells, later moving to AJ Park, where he worked six years in their Auckland Office and six in their Wellington Office. He was made a Principal at AJ Park in 2019 and Head of Litigation and Commercial in 2020.

Matt enjoyed his move to Days Bay, Wellington, citing it as the best thing he ever did.

Days Bay Residents’ Association chair Di Cheyne says Matt was a dynamic committee member with incredible enthusiasm and the vision to achieve improvements in the park, bush and beach for everyone’s enjoyment. “He never hesitated to volunteer for a task – he loved the bush and sea and was an inspiration.”

Never one to sit around, in the last year Matt cycled in the Motatapu race from Wanaka to Arrowtown, surfed Taranaki, cycled the Old Ghost Road and enjoyed a fishing trip to the Bay of Islands. This January he hiked with his family in Abel Tasman National Park.

On the morning of 30 January Matt had gathered kids and friends to surf at Burdan's Gate, doing what he loved in the place he loved, surrounded by friends.

The family would like to thank the heroic actions of people on the beach and the first responders. They would also like to thank the organizers of what was, they believe, Eastbourne’s first ever “paddle out”, (pictured below) an amazing event with over 120 board riders, including all the members of the fledgling Days Bay Lifesaving group.

The community response to Matt’s passing has been enormous, Louise says. “So many people have pitched in to make sure Matt has been remembered and commemorated in the best way possible. It has been the most amazing send off for a most amazing guy."

Penguin numbers suffer from heavy rain, warmth

Veteran penguin specialist Mike Rumble and his team of volunteers discovered a large number of dead chicks in nests on Matiu-Somes Island last year.

The nesting season usually lasts from August to mid-December, but this year the last chick left its nest at the end of January.

Mike calls the island a "hidden gem", with 600-800 little penguins – a large colony.

A good season can result in up to 280 eggs and an equally large number of chicks.

On November 14 the team were preparing to band chicks for monitoring. However, instead of just healthy chicks in the nesting boxes, they discovered a large number of freshly dead chicks.

Checks on live chicks revealed they were listless and very lightweight and seemed to have no fatty reserves “as if they were starving”.

"That rang an alarm bell," Mike says.

Looking at the north-western and eastern sides of Matiu-Somes, Mike noted wide silt tracks on the Petone end – there had been heavy rain a few days earlier.

"The second alarm bell rang then, because penguins are visual animals, and cannot find food when the water is silty."

The count on 14 November was 54 dead. “That was pretty distressing. It was far and away the most we’ve ever seen," he says..

A small emergency team kept an eye on the chicks that were still alive, and a written report was sent to DOC. Mike recommended they checked on other colonies, given what had happened in Wellington Harbour.

Two weeks later most of the remaining chicks were still alive, “which was sort of a good sign”, but their growth rate had slowed

Kidztalk

markedly.

This indicated that whatever had caused the starvation had gone or reduced to a point where the parents could get food for themselves and chicks.

Massey University pathologists also performed an autopsy on one of the chicks. The most likely cause was starvation

In the end, there were 82 dead chicks in total, a number way up on previous years.

“It was catastrophic for the nesting colony because of the long term effects that loss of chicks may have on its future.”

Silt from heavy rain appears to be behind the record number of penguin deaths in the 2020 breeding season.

A second cause may be the rise in temperature of the Harbour last year, in line with global warming predictions. This keeps the fish lower down in the cooler currents. Penguins can stay underwater for 2-3 minutes and, along with the murky water, they would not have been able find prey at their depth.

If parents can’t get enough food for themselves and two chicks they will desert the nest.

Mike predicts penguins with either adapt to

News from our local playcentres

ts Tangaroa Term at Point Howard Playcentre! In the coming weeks we will acknowledge the atua of sea and fish, as we explore our natural world and all it has to offer. Join us on our exciting journey, starting with a rock pool visit next Wednesday 24th Feb at Point Howard beach, or at our fundraiser on Saturday the 27th Feb where Gerry Paul and the Elephant Tree Band feature at the Fringe Festival with his hit Hank The Wrestling Shark. Hank will be joining us with some of his sea creature friends!

What: Gerry Paul & the Elephant Tree Band

Where: St Peter’s on Willis St

When: Saturday 27th February, 1:00pm – 2:00pm

Tickets: Adults $20, Children $10, Family $50, Concessions and Fringe Addicts $15

Tickets and more info at: www.fringe.co.nz or search Gerry Paul and the Elephant Tree Band on Facebook.

Otherwise join us any Monday, Wednesday or Friday from 9:15-11:45 at 1A Ngaumatau Rd - the Point Howard Tennis Club Building. There'll be great coffee and a lot of fun to be had!

PETONE

a temperature rise over time, or they will leave.

"If they stay and struggle on, the colony size will shrink."

Matiu colony has been growing for a number of years, and Mike says there's little that can be done to correct that change.

"We have to allow nature to take its course – that’s written into our protocols.”

The initial effects of the chick deaths won't show up until this August when the nesting cycle begins again, but Mike predicts a small number of adult birds might not return..

In January he started a survey on how many adult birds were returning to the nest to moult - they were .“It looks like we may have dodged a bullet so fingers crossed”

24-hour endurance race coming in March

The unique annual 24-Hour Endurance Yacht Race will start from Rona Wharf at 1100 on Saturday, March 27.

Competing yachts will be cruising up and down in front of the wharf to jockey for the best starting position.

It will be an exciting spectacle to watch from the wharf. The local community, young and not-so-young is invited to come and watch the start of the race and enjoy the various on-wharf activities and soak up the carnivalesque atmosphere that is being planned for this event.

Details of the event programme will be published in the March edition of The Eastbourne Herald.

NEWS FROM POINT HOWARD PLAYCENTRE

A Little Blue Penguin chick.

Eastbourne KnitWits have a good yarn

One of the positive things about knitting, Joy Baird says, is it can be done either collectively, or by yourself. “Covid-19 didn’t stop us knitting,” says the coordinator of St Alban's’ social knitting group KnitWits, “it just meant we knitted on our own. Our 18 members communicated by email for the first part of 2020 and met physically later in the year once we’d reached Level 1.”

The group, comprising parish members and non-church Eastbourne locals, first got together six years ago to support an Anglican charity shop in Taita. It includes women who crochet as well as knitters with skill levels from beginners, who are helped to become confident knitters,

and more experienced knitters who tackle complicated patterns, such as baby shawls in the finest yarn, that are raffled for charity. Late arrivals to monthly gatherings can pick up an odd ball of wool and add a few rows to strips that later become blankets.

With hands occupied in mindful stitching, the gatherings are an opportunity to chat about children, grandchildren, ageing parents and topical issues like surviving under lockdown. Surprising cultural connections are sometimes revealed, and hilarious reminiscences can be triggered by current events – a 90-year-old recalled being in the bathtub in London during the blitz.

Over the years KnitWits have raised money for specific projects – $200 one year from $5 and $10 pairs of fingerless gloves – and they’ve lost count of the number of beanies knitted. They just keep on coming, says Joy.

Last year, as well as contributing to Women’s Refuge and the City Mission, KnitWits worked on a special project, in answer to a call from the Wellington Anglican Diocese, providing 20 sets of “beanies and toothpaste” for Mission to Seafarers sailors – men on ships stranded in Wellington harbour by Covid-19.

They discovered “fish and chip vests” –one-piece baby or small child’s garments, traditionally produced by African missionaries, that ensure little ones have their own practical garments rather than being wrapped in newspaper like a parcel of fish and chips, a classic way of staving off extreme night-time temperatures on the continent.

They delivered bassinet blankets to Knit World in Lower Hutt, as part of the wool firm’s annual gift to needy families with new babies, and made knee rugs for Wellington City Mission to give to some of the older people in their care. More locally they established contact with Kokiri Maori Women’s Refuge, gifting knitted and crocheted cot blankets, fish and chip vests, jerseys and a big bag of beanies.

The first KnitWits meeting for the year will be held at the home of Margaret Turner, Rona House, on Monday 8 March 2-4pm. [Seaview Marina Liveaboards]

Back in October Trap and Trigger, professional hunters undertook eight days of deer hunting in the Northern Forest as part of Greater Wellington’s deer control program. Night shooting and the ability to respond to public sightings resulted in nine pigs, three goats and thirteen deer culled. The public hunting ballot will be available in April 2021 and this will be followed by another eight days of professional hunting. Together with MIRO we aim to look into how to measure the impact of deer in the Northern Forest as part of the Key Native Ecosystem plan.

Despite a very disrupted 2020 planting season, due to COVID 19, and a thankfully wet spring just over 7000 plants made it into the ground at Baring Head along the river valley and over 1500 plants at the Parangarahu lakes. The recent dry weather has had its toll on some plants that did not have time to put down a big enough root system which is a shame.

A small group of planters cut light wells in one of the more mature planting plots to plant Kahikatea and other plants needing shelter and some experimental plants on the lake shores in protectors.

Weed of month - Yellow flag iris - Iris pseudacorus

Greater Wellington has been removing the invasive Yellow flag Iris from Lake Kohangatera(2nd lake past Pencarrow light house) for 10 years.

This attractive garden escapee grows in robust, tall clumps, and yellow flowers appear from October to December. Floating, salt tolerant, rhizome mats displace native

wetland plants like raupō (bullrush), sedges and rushes, and quickly distribute around a lake. Once widespread it causes changes in the water levels, flooding and the poisonous seeds may have an impact on birdlife. The rare salt marsh vegetation provides a special habitat for some regionally threatened oceanic, dune and wetland birds including the threatened –nationally critical Bittern/Matuku and secretive Spotless Crake/Pūweto. Early use of herbicides proved unsuccessful and a concerted effort to hand dig the rhizomes, bag and remove them has stopped the spread around the lake and the bulk of the infestation should be controlled in another couple of years. The use of a small boat in recent years has accelerated the program.

The historic Power House at Baring Head, East Harbour Regional Park was transformed into a story hub and day shelter where the untold stories of Baring Head/ Orua Pouanui are revealed! It’s now open to the public daily from 9-5.

The landscape is dramatic and there is a lot to discover here – iwi and early settlers, defence history, maritime navigation stories, NIWA and GNS work, geology and the wider site's ecological restoration.

Peter Jackson, Te Atiawa, Taranaki Iwi and Prue Lamason, councillor, officially opened the building on 9th February, marking a significant milestone for the Friends of Baring Head Trust in the presence of two previous lighthouse keepers and many sponsors.

Garden Stuff with Sandy Lang

WASTED FRUIT

March: The Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness [Keats] and waste [Lang]...

Fruit skin structure: Most fruit skins are thin (0.05 mm). Just one layer of small cells (epidermis) on top of about two layers of slightly larger cells (hypodermis). Inside this are the giant, thin-walled cells of the flesh (cortex). On top of the epidermis is a very thin (0.01 mm) waxy cuticle.

Skin function: The fruit skin separates the watery, nutrient-rich insides from the dry outsides - overrun with pathogenic microbes trying to get in. Skin strength is determined by the epi- and hypodermal cells. Skin barrier properties are determined by the polymeric cuticle. An intact skin is an effective barrier. Stretch marks: But a fruit skin is easily damaged by browsing insects or by wind-rub (a nearby leaf). It’s also damaged if cuticle synthesis doesn’t keep up with skin-area growth. From flowering to harvest, a fruit’s insides grow to 64,000-times their initial volume and its skin extends to 2,000-times its initial area. To do this the flesh and skin cells divide many times over. Sometimes cuticle synthesis can’t keep up, so cuticular ‘microcracks’ occur when the cuticle is overstretched. The skin cells near a microcrack divide to form a corky layer (russet). This reestablishes the barrier - keeps water in, keeps microbes out. We don’t like fruit with rough patches of brownish russet.

Pollination: Pollination produces seeds - seeds produce hormones - hormones trigger growth. Poor pollination means few seeds –means small fruit – and crooked fruit (lopseeded=lopsided). We don’t like overlarge or oversmall or lopsided fruit.

Ripeness: Trees flower over two or three weeks, so fruit are not all the same age, so they don’t all ripen at the same time. We don’t like underripe and overripe fruit.

Damage: Birds peck, grubs burrow, pickers bruise. We don’t like damaged fruit.

Market forces: On the tree, fruit are tatty – patchy, lopsided, too small, too big, too green, too yellow, pecked, bruised. But we like perfect fruit. So, retailers sell perfect fruit, so wholesalers sell perfect fruit, so cool-stores store perfect fruit, so packers pack perfect fruit (25% of all fruit entering a packhouse is below standard – some rejects go to local market, the rest are dumped). So, pickers pick perfect fruit (25% of all fruit is left in the orchard). We eat about 50% of the crop. About 50% is wasted… slang@xtra.co.nz

www.gardenstuffnz.blogspot.com

The historic Power House at Baring Head, East Harbour Regional Park has been transformed into a story hub and day shelter.

Life on the high seas stilled at marina

Fancy a floating lifestyle?

How many people do you reckon live aboard boats at Seaview Marina – twenty? Forty? More?

Ask any local and you’ll get a surprising range of responses – but the answer is way higher than you might think. There are currently 60 berths with vessels accommodating one or more people, which takes the number of residents up to around 80, estimates marina CEO Alan McLellan. That’s double the numbers for 2014.

With up to four residents on some boats, “it’s a community in itself,” says the engineer, who has managed the marina for 17 years. One family then in residence still lives onboard, with their now teenage children. “With so many people in very close contact you can get some conflict,” Alan says, “but by and large it’s a very good bunch of people.”

He says it’s good for the marina to have so many regularly going up and down the piers. “If there’s a boat in trouble or mooring lines adrift, they’re the first line of response and we value them for that.”

Alan has seen the facility go from a small cluster of yachts and motorboats to a marina accommodating 329 vessels, including what he thinks is possibly the highest number of liveaboards of any marina in the country.

(Chaffers in Wellington has around 40 berths,

Evans Bay a limit of 20, and Mana has 25 vessels with people living on board.)

With the number of berths at Seaview capped at 60, there’s a waiting list of 27 hoping something afloat might offer a cheaper option than skyrocketing rentals on land. After all, as Alan notes, “A deposit for a house will put you into a nice boat.”

But if you’re hoping for a cheap floating alternative, forget it – it’s not for those without some boating experience. You must own your own vessel, it must be seaworthy and comply with a boat safety inspection, be capable of making way under its own power, hold a current electrical warrant of fitness and have “black water” holding tanks. And you certainly can't offer your floating home as an Airbnb.

Pets are allowed, but do not dream of draping your laundry on the lines.

On top of berthage charges, power consumption is monitored and charged for, along with a monthly levy of $110 for the privilege of living at the marina. There is no

charge for the excellent parking facilities in the marina, which is a bonus compared to Chaffers. And there are currently 18 bikes locked up below the two-storeyed marina office.

“At the end of the day,” says Alan, “the boat sizes we have at Seaview make them quite a tiny house. Even if the facilities on board are first class, it’s probably easier living on your own than with a couple of kids, especially if you’re home schooling.”

EASTBOURNE DENTAL CENTRE Kaungāongo’i me te karangi

The Eastbourne Dental Centre would like to introduce our new associate dentist, Esther Cheong. Following in the footsteps of Ceri (who worked with us for over 3 years) and Luci (who has just completed a locum position with us), Esther has also worked at the Hutt Hospital Dental Department. She has also worked in private practice in Lower Hutt.

In the hospital dental position, Esther has worked extensively with children, dental emergencies, trauma, and oral surgery and has a special interest in these areas.

Esther grew up in the Hutt Valley before heading to Dunedin to study. Outside of dentistry she plays netball, enjoys running and cooking traditional Malaysian cuisine.

Esther says she is “excited to join the established team at Eastbourne Dental Centre. The work culture, community and focus on offering the best dental care possible gives me confidence that I will fit in well and I am excited to get to know you all.”

If you would like to make an appointment with Esther, one of our other dentists or our dental hygienist, please call us on 5627506 or email us, reception@eastbournedental.co.nz

Empathy

562 7506 reception@eastbournedental.co.nz

The Eastbourne Dental Centre welcomes Esther Cheong to the team

Mondays

• Retired Persons’ Assn meet 4th Mon, 10am St Ronan's Church hall for morning tea followed by a speaker - $2 entry.Transport can be arranged for these meetings on request, ph 562 7365 or 562 8387.

• East Harbour Women’s Club – Contract Bridge 2pm-5.30pm. Contact Judy Bishop 562 8985

• “Baby Bounce & Rhyme” at the library 10.00am.

• Singalong 1st Mon, 2pm at St Ronan’s.

• Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday mornings, from 9:15 to 11:45, phone Andrea 02102797311 for more info.

• Pt Howard Playcentre. Mon 9.15 -11.45am. Lucy 021 335 391.

• The Historical Society’s Eastbourne History Room above the library is open 2-4 pm every Monday.

• Eastbourne Volunteer Fire Brigade training every Monday 7-9pm. Ph 562 7001 for more info.

• Toy Library 8-9pm. St Ronans Hall www. eastbournemibase.com.au Elizabeth 021 08224664.

• Eastbourne Karate Dojo junior and senior classes (children 8 year & older, plus parents) on Monday and senior classes on Thursday. Contact lindsaysensei@live.com, cell 021 844 873.

East Harbour Women’s Club

• Duplicate Bridge: 2-5pm. Contact Judy Bishop 562 8985

Keas: Monday 5.15pm – 6.15pm

Kea Leader: Ed 021 738 699

Cubs Monday 6.30pm – 7.45pm

Cub Leader: Damon 022 620 7116

Tuesdays

• Eastbourne Bowling Club. Gentleman’s Casual and Social bowling held every Tuesday from 2.30 to 4.30pm. Experience not required. Bowls and instruction provided. Casual dress code Contact Bruce 562 8401 or Warren 562 860.

• Pt Howard Playcentre Tues 9.15 -11.45am. Lucy 021 335 391.

• Days Bay Playcentre Puddle Jumpers Tues 10:30 to 12 noon: Messy and Sensory play for children 2 years and under. Casual sessions, $3 donation.

• Muritai Tennis Club 9.30–noon. Merryn 562 0236.

• Eastbourne Homebirth Group 1st Tuesday of the month. Phone Kate 562-7096.

• East Harbour Women’s Club Morning Tea & Chat Group 10am. Contact Glendyr 562 7181.

• Indoor Bowls Club 1.30pm, at the croquet club, Oroua Street. Rosemary 562 7365

• Menzshed 9 till 12 , Williams Park, Mike 562 8688.

• Poetry group, every second Tuesday meet to read and enjoy poems old and new. Phone

562 8387.

• Toy Library 9.30-10.30am. St Ronans Hall. Facebook: Eastbourne Toy Library Elizabeth 021 08224664www.eastbournemibase.com.

au

• 9.30am Nia Dance Fitness Class (low impact - teens to 70+) Music Movement MagicMuritai Yacht Club - call Amanda 021 316692 www.niainwellington.com

• Pump Dance preschool and junior hip hop. 4pm onwards St Ronans Hall. 0274373508 info@pumpdance.com

Wednesdays

• Retired Persons’ Assn meet 2nd Wed at Tartines for morning tea and socialising 11am. Occasional outings arranged. Ph 5627365 or 562 8387.

• Library preschool story time 10.00 am.

• Pt Howard Playcentre Wed 9.15 -11.45am. Lucy 021 335 391.

• Scottish Country Dance. Merryn 562 0236.

• Bridge Club 7-10pm. Shona 562 7073.

• DB Playcentre Mon, Wed, Fri 9-12. Siobhan siobhan_whelan@yahoo.ie

• “Steady as You Go” Age Concern sponsored Falls Prevention and Exercise Programme. Held 12 noon each Wednesday at Eastbourne Community Hall. Classes are held for 1 hour and costs only $2. Improve your strength and balance to reduce falls and injuries. Falls are preventable. Please join us!

• Intermediate/teen hip hop and contemporary. 5pm onwards St Ronans Hall. 0274373508 info@pumpdance.com

• EHock - Fun Stick and Ball game Girls and Boys 7- 13.Eastbourne Community Hall. Wednesdays 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. Derek Wilshere 0274303596

Thursdays

• Menzshed 9 till 12 , Williams Park, Mike 562 8688. Women welcome.

• St Ronan’s Mainly Music, 9.30am-10.30am, contact Cathy 027 213 9342.

• SPACE at Days Bay Playcentre. Michelle 971 8598.

• East Harbour Women’s Club

- Bolivia 12.45pm, Contact Glendyr ph: 562 7181. Guest Speaker (3rd week of month)7pm, drinks and nibbles provide, Contact Diane ph: 562 7555 •Lions meet 2nd Thursday of the month at the Eastbourne Sports and Services Club, Tuatoru St 6.30 pm. New members and visitors are welcome. Graham 562 8819.

• Eastbourne Karate Dojo junior and senior classes (children 8 year & older, plus parents) on Monday and senior classes on Thursday. Contact lindsaysensei@live.com, cell 021 844 873.

• Intermediate Contemporary Dance Thursdays 6:30pm - 7:30pm St Ronan's Hall info@pumpdance.com,0274373508Scouts: Thursday 6.30pm – 8.00pm

Scout Leader: Susan 027 535 4962

Fridays

• Pop in and Play playgroup at St Ronan's Church Hall, 9am-11.30am during school terms. All preschoolers (0-4 years) welcome. Cath 027 213 9342.

• Pt Howard Playcentre Fri 9.15 -11.45am. Lucy 021 335 391.

• AA Plunket Rooms 7.30pm. Mark 566 6444/ Pauline 562 7833

• DB Playcentre Mon, Wed, Fri 9-12. Siobhan siobhan_whelan@yahoo.ie

• Discovery Time for 4years+ at San Antonio School, 78 Oroua Street, 9.30-10.30am. Office 562 7398.

• Eastbourne Bowling Club. Newly formed Ladies casual bowling group meets Fridays at 2.00pm. Experience is not required. Bowls & instruction available. Casual dress code. Contact Cheri - 021 0699 274.

Saturdays

• Justice of the Peace at the Eastbourne Community Library, first Saturday of each month 12pm-1pm.

• Lions’ rubbish bin last Saturday of each month.

• Croquet from 10am Muritai Croquet Club. Lyn 562 8722 or Val 562 8181.

Inquiries: 021 028 85347

Tartineseastbourne@gmail.com

Tartines’s team wish you all A very Happy New Year 2021 “Bonne Année 2021”

Great turnout for young sailors

Faith in the Community

But wait… There’s more…!

Young local yachties joined sailors from Worser Bay, Paremata, Plimmerton, Heretaunga and Evans Bay in this month’s Junior Regatta at the Muritai Yacht Club.

Held on a beautiful day, with an 8-knot wind perfect for learners, the regatta was designed to get parents working with kids to get them out on the water. Organiser and veteran yachtie Garth Cheyne says Derek McLellan came up with the idea for the day in the 90s to have a race day of friendly competition and help sailors “come away from this regatta with a real boost to their sailing”.

Junior bosun Kyle Adair has been running

a kids’ class on Monday nights, and the popular addition of the Feva has allowed many to have a go at sailing the latest technology.

The boat will also allow easier access to adult learn to sail lessons.

With professionally trained coaches, for a $60 honorary membership, it’s one of the most accessible places in the world to get involved in the sport.

“Eastbourne people don’t realise what a little gem this is,” Garth says.

“We have literally some of the best sailing waters in New Zealand at this time of year.”

“Anywhere else in the world it would cost thousands.”

Boats are available for those learning to sail, including optis that parents have left for others to use.The Feva is a two-person boat, recognising that people have different strengths.

“Some people just want to crew,” Garth says.

“In this high-tech age it’s easier than evr to jus tget out and commune with nature.”

The day included five races for different classes, with parents helping get the boats in and out of the water, and run the races.

APPLICATIONS FOR EASTBOURNE FREEMASONS’ SCHOLARSHIP

Closing date 31 March 2021

This $4,000 scholarship is available to students who have distinguished themselves during a minimum of three years tertiary study and who have lived in Eastbourne for a minimum of five years during their life.

Application forms are available from the website www.ebct.org.nz

Correction: In last month's Eastbourne Herald we mistakenly said the fee for a year's membership at the Eastbourne Women's Club was $100- it is, in fact $60.

EASTBOURNE MEMORIAL RSA (Inc.)

Notice of AGM

To be held on Sunday 28 March 2021 at 1pm in the Clubrooms, Tuatoru Street, Eastbourne.

Nominations for Executive Committee & Notices of Motion must be with the Secretary by Saturday 6 March 2021. Contact: Anne Keogh 027 687 1845

There’ve been several tragic deaths here recently - untimely, unexpected, sad. At such times we can be the best we can for others, and it’s in the Eastbourne culture to be this. Unexpected and tragic deaths rattle our cages and make us aware again how fragile and precious life is. We are mortal.

I’m sure we’ve all seen TV ads that tell us about some product that’ll dramatically improve our lives, and these ads then say: “But wait… There’s more...!”. We’re told about the extra things we’ll get that we don’t need. We mutter: ”I’m not interested in the ‘extras’ – spare me the ‘But wait… There’s more…!’.”

The opposite is true when someone dies. It’s a time we do want to hear the words: “But wait… There’s more…!”. We don’t want this to be the end. At the heart of the Christian message is a message of hope - that after death, there is more. Death doesn’t have the final say. This more, we do want.

There’s one person I’ve come to know, who’s made the journey to the other side of death and come back to tell us about it - Jesus. For me, it makes sense to trust him for this life and for the next. There is more, and he knows the way.

St Ronan’s: Services Sun 9.30am. Ask if you’d like our weekly emailed e-Services. Also, our monthly printed magazine The Record E: office@ stronans.org.nz W: www.stronans.org.nz

St Alban’s: Service & Kids Club (primary) & Hot Chocolate Club (intermediate), Sun 10am, Wellesley School; Communion, Thurs 10am, various venues; Lenten Course, Weds 7pm, 28 Kotari Road, Days Bay. See website for more.

E: office@stalbanschurch.nz

W: www.stalbanschurch.nz

San Antonio: Sat Evening Mass 5.30pm. Sun Mass 9.30am & 5.30pm Sacred Heart, Petone. Parish office, Petone (weekdays 10am-2pm).

T: (04) 971 7885

E: holyspiritparish41@gmail.com

W: www.holyspirit.nz

Photo by Phil Benge.

News from Point Howard

The PHA and PHTC warmly invites all residents to our late summer lunch social at the Point Howard Tennis Club. Time: From 1pm Date: Saturday, 20 March 2021. Bring a plate to share with your friends and neighbours. Look out for our mailer for further details. We look forward to seeing you there!

The PHA continues to follow up with HCC regarding the loud music coming from Toop Street, Seaview. We hope that once the bright lights that HCC have on order are in place that they will be an effective deterent.

Advance notice, the PHA and PHTC AGMs will be held in May. The actual date is to be confirmed, but likely to be 4pm, Sunday 02 May. Pthowardassn@gmail.com

Track signs vandalised

Vandalised signs at the entrances to Eastbourne tracks could result in tragedy, EHRP ranger Jo Greenman says.

Brochure holders have been smashed, and signs giving information about the tracks and Covid-19 QR codes have been graffitied, including at the Lakes and Baring Head. “People in Eastbourne know exactly where they’re going, and people from elsewhere can get lost,” Jo says. “The signs take a lot of time and money to fix.”

LETTERS

Grammar issue

You have done it before where you mix up singular and plural. “No lifejacket in Days Bay death” page 2.

“Sadly attempts to revive THE PERSON were unsuccessful and THEY died at the scene.” I fail to understand why you use a personal pronoun, 3rd person plural, to indicate “the person” which is 3rd person singular.

This is an incredibly bad grammatical move. If you have to translate that into another language you will see how stupid it is.

As you mentioned already that it was a woman the following would have been quite correct: “Sadly attempts to revive THE PERSON were unsuccessful and SHE died at the scene.”

Adrian Moonen Eastbourne

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Meanwhile, steps are being replaced at the entrance to McKenzie Track. While making the track more accessible on the steep start isn’t simple, Jo says she is hopeful engineers will come up with a plan to make the entrance easier.

Also to be upgraded is the Fern Gully entrance to the Cheviot Road track (“without having to go up big steps).

Rugby centenary

The Eastbourne Rugby Club is celebrating 100 years during Queens Birthday weekend this year.

The weekend includes a captain's run on Friday 4 June involving registration, a guest speaker, fellowship and dinner.

On Saturday, 5 June all junior teams will be playing at HW Shortt Park. In the afternoon , the senior team will play at home. The game will be followed by dinner and a dance.

On Sunday, June 6 there will be brunch and farewell.

All events are at the Eastbourne Sports and Services Club.

editor@eastbourneherald.

Freephone: 0800 284 767 Mobile: 022 033 0405

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FABULOUS FAMILY HOME IN

This is a fantastic 1970s property on a spacious section in sought-after private sheltered and sunny Ngaio st. Spread across two levels, and currently configured as a two family dwelling, it could equally easily be used as a 5 bedroom family home. This home will have wide appeal whether to couples looking for space to diversify, families looking to spread out, and anyone who needs extra space – e.g. the burgeoning work-from-home crowd. Benefitting from absolutely tons of sun, lovely views to the bush, a short walk to the beach and heart-ofEastbourne positioning, the home features;

• Amazing sun

• 5 bedrooms

• 2 living areas

• 2 lovely bathrooms with new vanities

• Beautiful modern sunny kitchen

• Recently recoated and repainted decramastic roof

• Ducted heating

• Lots of storage

• Double internal access garage; spacious laundry

• Huge back yard, for entertaining, play; with practical garden shed

View By Appointment

Sinead Diederich

04 568 2222 | 021 02581960

sinead@tommyshv.co.nz

REF: THV02824