Latest news with #WhangāreiDistrictCouncil
NZ Herald
18-05-2025
- General
- NZ Herald
On The Up: Te Kamo Scout Group recognised in national Volunteer of the Month award
Corney said in scouting, there was a set of 'Better World' badges that could be earned with a focus on making the world a better place, which had been the drive behind their efforts. Scouts could earn badges for climate change, community, conservation, equity, oceans, sustainable choices and more. 'Because we spend quite a lot of time outdoors, that's the environment we're operating in, so we teach about looking after it so it's there for the next generation.' Corney said there had been times at certain locations when they'd returned a year later to find it cleaner and greener than before. 'The youth are very proud of what they're doing. They can see it's making a difference.' Picking up rubbish was a regular part of their programmes, such as when they hiked the Tangihuia track in Kaipara during June last year and hauled out over 10kg of rubbish. 'We don't just talk about it, we get out there and do it,' he said. It was partnerships with local groups such as For Our Real Clean Environment [Force] that ensured they could not just collect rubbish but dispose of it too, he said. 'I think sometimes that the fear for some groups is we'd pick up a tyre out of a river, but foot the bill out of disposing of it.' Corney said his Scouts knew they were in the running for the award when they were interviewed for it. After getting a congratulatory phone call, it was up on the Keep New Zealand Beautiful Facebook page the same day. 'I was stoked that the actions had been recognised,' he said. Corney said it was nice to be in a position to help rather than asking for help after their hall burned down in 2011. The group were nominated by the Whangārei District Council's waste minimisation officer, Wendy Bertholet. She said it was how they had taken part in their own and wider clean-ups that demonstrated their keenness to make the world a better place. 'They learn about issues and take action to make things better for both the people and the environment.' 'I recommended the Te Kamo Scout Group for their consistent work in this mahi.'
NZ Herald
16-05-2025
- Lifestyle
- NZ Herald
Whangārei family's sustainable renovation breathes new life into CBD
She had been working with Ngāti Hine Forestry Trust on potential extracts from trees on its land, and when she found out the building the trust tenanted was for sale, she quickly declared her love for it. Gregory said the 1960s building had potential but was very tired, with an unusable courtyard, 14 different air conditioning units and the top floor leaking from internal gutters. 'Every time it rained a bit more water got inside,' he said. 'But if you squinted you could see there was really good bones - there was potential.' The couple moved into the apartment with Mary Smith and her dog Jaz, initially anxious about the large change from the country. But all quickly found they liked the convenience of inner-city living, with almost everything available within walking distance: including events, art galleries, film nights and an extensive array of eateries. They have also not had any problems with a lack of safety or excessive noise. Mary Smith soon decided she should be putting her green thumbs to use on the green space in the neighbouring car park and Whangārei District Council gave its blessing. She transformed what was an overgrown and weedy grass area with hundreds of plants grown from seed, with the gardening soon spreading across the car park with layers of yuccas, flax, hebes, succulents and other shrubs. Mary Smith said she gets plenty of positive feedback, especially from regular car park users. 'One lady said, 'I love coming to work on Monday seeing what you've done over the weekend'.' Scroll through the photo gallery to see more detail of the renovations: Image 1 of 5: Pete Gregory and Jules Smith are proud of the renovation, which has created an industrial chic office space upstairs. Photo / Denise Piper With the family's love of outdoors evident, the first stage of the Vinery Lane redevelopment was to transform the outdoor area in 2021. Advertisement Advertise with NZME. The couple bought a sliver of land from the council's car park and built an engineered retaining wall, complete with private car park and Balinese-inspired sheltered courtyard on top. In 2022, stage two of the development saw the lower-level office, previously occupied by a small law firm, transformed into a modern, open-plan 50sq m office space. The final, and biggest, stage of the redevelopment took place after Ngāti Hine Forestry Trust ended its tenancy in June 2024. Jules Smith and Gregory took the opportunity to modernise the space, upgrade the seismic rating of the building, and replace the problematic roof and internal gutters. Using local firm DHS Construction, the final stage involved tenting the building, removing the roof and adding considerable structural steel. The new space is a modern, industrial chic office space with exposed metal beams, bagged brick and vintage kitchen light shades from Bali. With the carpet freshly installed, the couple hope to lease the office space now it has been finished. But the finished building is just one half of the renovation story: the other half is the way materials were reused or recycled during the project. With Jules Smith's new business, Again, focused on reusing textiles and the couple discovering 40 to 50% of landfill waste is from construction, they decided to recycle where possible. 'We didn't feel it was right for us to make an improvement to the building but at the same time add to the waste stream going to landfill, when it could be distributed around the community,' she said. Recycling the old materials soon became Gregory's fulltime job, including painstakingly cleaning 7000 bricks, 4.5 tonnes of acoustic ceiling tiles, 14 rimu doors and 250m of Oregon roof beams. A lot of the materials went to projects around Northland, such as tiny homes, while most of the metal could be recycled, he said. Innovation even saw things like 3cu m of mortar rubble being used for hard-fill and treated timber being used by mental health provider Ka Puta Ka Ora Emerge Aotearoa for raised garden planters. The project also used recycled wall panels saveBOARD, made from old milk cartons, to further increase the recycling. Like many grand designs, the project ran over budget and over time, but the final cost was still less than a new building and something that will stand the test of time, Gregory said. 'There's a lot of tired commercial buildings in Whangārei that haven't been shown the love: this is a good example of what you can do to transform it.'
1News
09-05-2025
- 1News
Man's unit destroyed by car site of three previous crashes
A Whangārei home destroyed after a speeding car crashed through its roof had been hit three times before by vehicles flying off the same stretch of road, a relative of a former owner says. She fears it will happen again and is urging the council to build a crash barrier or realign the road, before luck runs out and someone is killed. Around 11pm on Tuesday a car police say was travelling at high speed left Mill Road, smashed through a fence, sailed over one unit on Millers Lane and landed on another. The car crashed through the roof into the living room, which was completely destroyed. Police said if the owner hadn't been away that night - his partner told RNZ he was in his 80s and in hospital at the time — he almost certainly would have died. A relative of the unit's previous owner, who did not want to be named, was distressed to learn of the latest crash. "I'm really upset to see it's happened again, but I'm not surprised either," she said. The woman said one of her relatives was a previous resident of the Millers Lane unit. She had enjoyed living there for many years, despite the unit being hit by cars three times. On two occasions damage was relatively minor but a 2018 crash demolished part of her bedroom and could have been fatal if she had been home at the time. After that crash the family lobbied the Whangārei District Council for a safety barrier on Mill Road, spoke to council engineers, and made direct contact with then mayor Sheryl Mai. "We kept going back and saying, 'What are you doing about it?'" The woman said council contractors resurfaced the road to improve grip, and engineers told her they were going to look at the corner because that seemed to be part of the problem. "I don't think houses should have been built there in the first place. They need to try to build a barrier or realign the corner," the woman said. Council transport strategy and planning lead Nick Marshall said staff investigated options for reducing crash risk in 2019. A crash barrier was considered, but building one that was effective would be difficult due to the complex geometry and steep slope between Millers Lane and Mill Road/Whareora Road. The road would need to be widened and a retaining wall built to allow the guard-rail to fit, and the footpath on Whareora Road would need to be relocated. "In short, there's not enough ground at the edge of the road to hold up any barrier without building significant foundations," he said. "We also have concerns about the effectiveness of a barrier here, given the angle at which cars seem to leave this part of the road." Marshall said guard-rails were designed to be effective when hit at angles of less than 30 degrees, but in the crashes to date the car would have hit at 90 degrees. At that angle, any vehicle travelling at high speed would likely punch through the barrier and still end up in the property. Despite those challenges the council sought funding from NZTA in the 2024-27 Regional Land Transport Plan, but was unsuccessful. The council would continue to seek funding for safety improvements at that location in future Long Term Plans, he said. After a 2012 crash, the unit's owner at that time told a reporter she hoped the council would install a barrier. She also had ideas for what should happen to the three young men who crashed into her property in the early hours of New Year's Day. "I think they need a good spanking, and made to clear up the mess because I have to get help to do that." In this week's crash, the driver fled the scene and could not be tracked by a police dog. Police said they were "following lines of enquiry".
Otago Daily Times
09-05-2025
- Automotive
- Otago Daily Times
Home destroyed by car had been hit three times before
A Whangārei home destroyed after a speeding car crashed through its roof had been hit three times before by vehicles flying off the same stretch of road, a relative of a former owner says. She fears it will happen again and is urging the council to build a crash barrier or realign the road, before luck runs out and someone is killed. Around 11pm on Tuesday a car police say was travelling at high speed left Mill Road, smashed through a fence, sailed over one unit on Millers Lane and landed on another. The car crashed through the roof into the living room, which was completely destroyed. Police said if the owner hadn't been away that night - his partner told RNZ he was in his 80s and in hospital at the time - he almost certainly would have died. A relative of the unit's previous owner, who did not want to be named, was distressed to learn of the latest crash. "I'm really upset to see it's happened again, but I'm not surprised either," she said. The woman said one of her relatives was a previous resident of the Millers Lane unit. She had enjoyed living there for many years, despite the unit being hit by cars three times. On two occasions damage was relatively minor but a 2018 crash demolished part of her bedroom and could have been fatal if she had been home at the time. After that crash the family lobbied the Whangārei District Council for a safety barrier on Mill Road, spoke to council engineers, and made direct contact with then mayor Sheryl Mai. "We kept going back and saying, 'What are you doing about it?'" The woman said council contractors resurfaced the road to improve grip, and engineers told her they were going to look at the corner because that seemed to be part of the problem. "I don't think houses should have been built there in the first place. They need to try to build a barrier or realign the corner," the woman said. Council transport strategy and planning lead Nick Marshall said staff investigated options for reducing crash risk in 2019. A crash barrier was considered, but building one that was effective would be difficult due to the complex geometry and steep slope between Millers Lane and Mill Road/Whareora Road. The road would need to be widened and a retaining wall built to allow the guard-rail to fit, and the footpath on Whareora Road would need to be relocated. "In short, there's not enough ground at the edge of the road to hold up any barrier without building significant foundations," he said. "We also have concerns about the effectiveness of a barrier here, given the angle at which cars seem to leave this part of the road." Marshall said guard-rails were designed to be effective when hit at angles of less than 30 degrees, but in the crashes to date the car would have hit at 90 degrees. At that angle, any vehicle travelling at high speed would likely punch through the barrier and still end up in the property. Despite those challenges the council sought funding from NZTA in the 2024-27 Regional Land Transport Plan, but was unsuccessful. The council would continue to seek funding for safety improvements at that location in future Long Term Plans, he said. After a 2012 crash, the unit's owner at that time told a reporter she hoped the council would install a barrier. She also had ideas for what should happen to the three young men who crashed into her property in the early hours of New Year's Day. "I think they need a good spanking, and made to clear up the mess because I have to get help to do that." In this week's crash, the driver fled the scene and could not be tracked by a police dog. Police said they were "following lines of enquiry"
RNZ News
08-05-2025
- RNZ News
Elderly man's unit destroyed by car site of three previous crashes
The home of a Whangārei man in his 80s was destroyed when an allegedly stolen car landed on the unit's roof. Photo: RNZ / Susan Edmunds A Whangārei home destroyed after a speeding car crashed through its roof had been hit three times before by vehicles flying off the same stretch of road, a relative of a former owner says. She fears it will happen again and is urging the council to build a crash barrier or realign the road, before luck runs out and someone is killed. Around 11pm on Tuesday a car police say was travelling at high speed left Mill Road, smashed through a fence, sailed over one unit on Millers Lane and landed on another. The car crashed through the roof into the living room, which was completely destroyed. Police said if the owner hadn't been away that night - his partner told RNZ he was in his 80s and in hospital at the time - he almost certainly would have died. A relative of the unit's previous owner, who did not want to be named, was distressed to learn of the latest crash. "I'm really upset to see it's happened again, but I'm not surprised either," she said. The woman said one of her relatives was a previous resident of the Millers Lane unit. She had enjoyed living there for many years, despite the unit being hit by cars three times. On two occasions damage was relatively minor but a 2018 crash demolished part of her bedroom and could have been fatal if she had been home at the time. After that crash the family lobbied the Whangārei District Council for a safety barrier on Mill Road, spoke to council engineers, and made direct contact with then mayor Sheryl Mai. "We kept going back and saying, 'What are you doing about it?'" The woman said council contractors resurfaced the road to improve grip, and engineers told her they were going to look at the corner because that seemed to be part of the problem. "I don't think houses should have been built there in the first place. They need to try to build a barrier or realign the corner," the woman said. Council transport strategy and planning lead Nick Marshall said staff investigated options for reducing crash risk in 2019. The carnage from Tuesday's crash. Photo: RNZ / Susan Edmunds A crash barrier was considered, but building one that was effective would be difficult due to the complex geometry and steep slope between Millers Lane and Mill Road/Whareora Road. The road would need to be widened and a retaining wall built to allow the guard-rail to fit, and the footpath on Whareora Road would need to be relocated. "In short, there's not enough ground at the edge of the road to hold up any barrier without building significant foundations," he said. "We also have concerns about the effectiveness of a barrier here, given the angle at which cars seem to leave this part of the road." Marshall said guard-rails were designed to be effective when hit at angles of less than 30 degrees, but in the crashes to date the car would have hit at 90 degrees. At that angle, any vehicle travelling at high speed would likely punch through the barrier and still end up in the property. Despite those challenges the council sought funding from NZTA in the 2024-27 Regional Land Transport Plan, but was unsuccessful. The council would continue to seek funding for safety improvements at that location in future Long Term Plans, he said. After a 2012 crash, the unit's owner at that time told a reporter she hoped the council would install a barrier. She also had ideas for what should happen to the three young men who crashed into her property in the early hours of New Year's Day. "I think they need a good spanking, and made to clear up the mess because I have to get help to do that." In this week's crash, the driver fled the scene and could not be tracked by a police dog. Police said they were "following lines of enquiry". Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
