Car parks unsafe Gavin Quale, Stanmore Bay (abridged) Just read the letter in this week’s Hibiscus Matters (June 5) “Salesyard Concerns”. I live along this part of the road and it is of major concern to myself and other residents....... Read More

Equitable funding of services across the Auckland region is one of our local board priorities. Facilities like the Estuary Arts Centre, Centrestage Theatre and the Hibiscus Coast Youth Centre should have the same access and certainty around operational...... Read More

Most people have only ever seen one moon – our own. But this month, we are going to look at how to use technology to find and observe the four largest moons of Jupiter (Galilean Moons) – Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto. June is the best...... Read More

I see so many health and movement issues in my clients that are driven by lack of movement, or single repetitive movements. The simple notion of moving more can feel too hard with ever increasing demands on our free time. All this busyness drains the...... Read More

It’s planting time again. Volunteers at the SOSSI nursery have once again raised thousands of seedlings and a truckload more has arrived from the Botanic Gardens, so we have 15,000 waiting to get their roots down. Upcoming public planting days...... Read More

Eight months after the shock news that a new regional landfill dump is being planned for the Dome Valley, Waste Management has lodged its formal resource consent applications with Auckland Council. The applications went in just days before local iwi...... Read More

Blowin’ in the wind. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, as Amanda Johnson’s photo of the goal posts at the Mahurangi rugby grounds demonstrates. Yes, it was a pretty windy day. Creative thinking. At a recent Leigh Bar quiz...... Read More

Imaginative leadership. Thank you for your front-page acknowledgment in Mahurangi Matters of two young New Zealanders and their outstanding achievements the fields of politics and technology (MM June 5). Both are recognised – at least by the...... Read More

A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes. In the middle of the night, Creusa wakes to find her beloved Troy engulfed in flames. Ten seemingly endless years of brutal conflict between the Greeks and the Trojans are over, and the Greeks are victorious....... Read More

Autumn has provided us with some amazing weather, with very little rainfall and higher than normal temperatures. For most sheep and lambs, this has resulted in really good growth rates and condition scores. However, in the last month since the rains have...... Read More

In gardening circles, some practices have been in long use without a lot of scrutiny as to their effectiveness or side effects. The use of copper sprays is one of these; quite effective as protection against the fungi that cause downy mildew, late blight,...... Read More

Following on in the series of my non-farming career is my disastrous folly into “drafting out”. To be fair, I was a very willing participant and eager to add to my skill set. So, I marched off, keen as mustard, to the sheep yards full of hundreds...... Read More

One of the myriad hangovers from the bad old days of the six o’clock swill when beer choices in New Zealand were limited to two kinds of near-identical amber lager – one with a lion on it and one with a horse – is our collective naivety...... Read More

It is often said that grandparenting is one of life’s greatest joys. Certainly, listening to my 16-year-old grandson muse about his life dreams and plans during a long, cross country walk in the Kaipara was very special for me. He was constructing...... Read More

Prior to the age of the internet, accessing pornography was a little more challenging and somewhat exposing; having to purchase magazines, or renting/purchasing videos or DVDs over the counter. With the introduction of the internet you can now, almost...... Read More

It’s planting season. Each year we give the plants grown in the Tāwharanui nursery new homes in the ground around the park. By far the largest number are planted during public planting days. This year, public planting days will see the planting...... Read More

Since my last update to Mahurangi Matters readers, we’ve made good progress on planning for Auckland’s growth, improving public transport and protecting our environment. The Warkworth Structure Plan, approved by Auckland Council’s Planning...... Read More

Think again Melissa Baybridge, Red Beach The news that a seawall could be built on Orewa Beach that will increase the amount of sand that needs to be shifted (HM May 22) has shocked and alarmed my friends and I who love this beach. We may not have all...... Read More

This is a local body election year, and in the coming months there will be candidates seeking your vote for the Hibiscus & Bays Local Board and the governing body of Auckland Council. Locals are being encouraged to stand for these positions and to attend...... Read More