A New Owner for the Kuaotunu Store
A warm welcome to Nina Hammond, the new owner of Kuaotunu Store.A long time resident of the area, Nina is well known to many locals, having started Nina’s Café and currently co-owner of The Cave in Whitianga.
Nina is in the process of settling in and is not planning on any changes in the short term. Watch for a takeaway menu later in the year.
Pictured is Nina with Fran McCallum. Eve Russell is also on the staff.
Calling all Local Creatives!
Would you like to brighten up one of Kuaotunu’s public spaces with an original artistic idea?
TCDC Is planning to renovate the toilet block by the old boat ramp on Torea Reserve in the near future. KRRA has asked TCDC to consider using a local’s artistic concept to enhance this facility at the time of renovation.
Kuaotunu has a vibrant and talented art community and we feel that this is a perfect opportunity to demonstrate our creativity and reflect the spirit of our Village in one of its public places.
Working alongside KRRA, the Kuaotunu 10 Artists Group is seeking proposals from members of our local community to that effect. We have a deliberately open brief and are looking to be inspired by your ideas and to convince TCDC to adopt our vision. Please describe your idea in writing along with images to illustrate your concept.
We are looking at funding options and there will be a prize for the winning design. Please send responses to ianpreece1@hotmail.com by August 31st.
We are all looking forward to being inspired!
Update on Kuaotunu's Emergency Response Plan
The Community Response Group is an organisation being facilitated by TCDC, lead by emergency services, and comprising various members of the community, including several members of the Residents and Ratepayers Association.
A lot of work has already taken place around identifying our community's local responses to emergencies such as tsunami, earthquakes, significant storms, floods etc. Each potential scenario is supported by a detailed plan that includes vital information like contact details, resources available, evacuation locations, civil defence centres, and notification and activation processes.
The next stage in this part of the drafting process involves a brief questionnaire from Civil Defence to inform the plan further, and once this has been completed a Community Emergency Response Plan brochure specific to Kuaotunu will be delivered to all residents and households. This information will also be made available on Kuaotunu's website, www.kuaotunu.nz.
If you have any questions about this process, or would be interested in being part of the group, please contact Carolyn Gibbs on 021 2163255.
Eradication of Wilding Pines
The Rings Beach Wetland Group began a project in 2006 to hire contractors to cut down wilding pines on a small scale in the Rings Beach/Matarangi Reserve. In those early days the intent was to clear small areas around the wetland for the planting of native trees.
This annual project continued on a small scale until 2016 when the group decided to have all pines eradicated in the reserve. In 2016 and 2017, large donations from local Kuaotunu and Matarangi residents made it possible to eliminate pines on the slopes above the wetland.
It became clear that to complete the whole Reserve (270 hectares) would require significant funds, so the group successfully applied to Waikato Regional Council for a grant. This grant is providing funds over 3 years, and knowing what was accomplished in the 1st year (2018), the group is confident that the project can be completed by the 3rd year.
The initial focus this year is the slopes at the east end of Matarangi. The dramatic change in landscape reveals rocky cliffs and very steep slopes. The few pines in the photo require special skills to access and will be cut down soon. For now it looks a bit of a mess, but as we have seen elsewhere in the reserve, the natives take over very quickly.
Community Plan Update
The KRRA committee is planning to include a refreshed version of the Community Plan for your review in the next community newsletter (look out for this around mid October). We will be seeking your feedback on the revised plan at the next public meeting on the Sunday of Labour weekend (27 October).
Thanks from the Project Kiwi Trust
The Project Kiwi Trust was delighted to be awarded the “Kiwi Project of the Year” award at the annual kiwi awards held in Napier in June.
The Trust received the award not only for its sustained effort on the Kuaotunu Peninsula, but also its contribution to regional and national kiwi recovery goals.
We would like to sincerely thank you, the people of Kuaotunu, for the ongoing support you give us. From couriering kiwi chicks around the top of the north island, to sitting out in the bush during the annual Kiwi Call survey, to feeding our ravenous workers when called upon… you guys rock and we can’t thank you enough.
Hall Recladding Completed
As those of you who live locally will have noticed, work was finally able to get underway in June on the recladding of the south and east walls of the hall, and this project has now been finished.
The Hall Committee would like to acknowledge the grants received from the Lottery Community Facilities Fund, Trust Waikato, and the Mercury Bay Community Board which, together with a significant portion of the committee's own funds, enabled this project to go ahead.
We would also like to thank the many people in the Kuaotunu community who made significant donations to help us bring this project to fruition. Our hall should now be much more weathertight and warmer than in the past and be able to continue hosting the many wonderful events, classes and functions that bring our community together for many years to come.
SH25 Footpath Update
As mentioned in the June newsletter, the long-awaited extension of the footpath along SH25 was started and then promptly stopped as a result of the NZTA contractor not finding the required bedrock to support the proposed design.
NZTA have advised that because they had to come up with a different design solution to that which they had originally proposed, they had to apply to Waikato Regional Council for a new resource consent, which has now been done.
They are hopeful that the new resource consent application will be approved in the near future and that the contractor will be back on the job in the next month or two. We'll keep you posted.
This newsletter is brought to you by the Kuaotunu Residents and Ratepayers Association Inc (KRRA). KRRA thanks the following people for their contributions to this edition: Carrie Parker; Ian Preece; Carolyn Gibbs; Rings Beach Wetland Group; Project Kiwi Trust; and the Kuaotunu Hall Committee.
We’d love your feedback on this issue - please email your thoughts and suggestions to info@kuaotunu.nz.
Like to contribute an article to this newsletter? We welcome contributions about events, happenings, projects etc that are relevant to the Kuaotunu community (maximum of 250 words, please). Please note that the Newsletter Editor has the final say regarding content and may edit content if required.
To find out more about the Kuaotunu Residents and Ratepayers Association, such as the date of the next meeting, how to join, agendas and minutes of previous meetings, etc, please click here. You are welcome to attend any committee meetings, these are usually held on the third Thursday of the month.