Local Happenings

Published as Issue No. 115

October 29, 2014

School Fair: Community garden members are again year involved with the plant stall at the November 8 School Fair. Seedlings to add to the stall would be greatly appreciated. Bring them to the garden on Sunday, or to the stall at the fair.

Pipe Flushing: Weather permitting: Wellington Water will this week commence its six-monthly Houghton Bay flushing programme. The attached [attachment missing] is being sent to local residents Further information – Michelle Chew, Investigation and Design Engineer, Wellington Water.

Wellington Water www.wellingtonwater.co.nz, which recently changed its name from Capacity, is owned by the Hutt, Porirua, Upper Hutt and Wellington City Councils and Greater Wellington Regional Council. It manages drinking water, wastewater and stormwater services.

Mural planned: Houghton Valley residents will be invited to get involved in the planning and painting of our ‘lost’ creek. This project has been generously supported by former View Rd residents Sam and Shane and Resene paints. Watch this space.

Island Bay Seawall: Before making any decision about how to proceed with replacing (or not) the damaged Island Bay seawall, the City Council is seeking ideas from the community. Five options have been identified with factors to be considered including traffic impacts, heritage issues, costs, long-term sea level rise and amenity.

To have your say; submission forms are available are available at the Island Bay Library and Island Bay Community Centre.

Norman and contributors

Published as Issue No. 114

October 14, 2014

Subdivision 215 Houghton Bay Road: Recent communication from Ryan O’Leary, Senior Consent Planner, Wellington City Council:

“I am contacting you to advise that further information has been received by the Council in the form of revised plans. To summarise, the proposal in front of the Council remains as 13 new residential buildings in a similar configuration as previous plans submitted (with some amendments). I have attached a proposed subdivision plan submitted as a reference to the proposed site layout. [No attachment]

A full copy of these plans can be requested from the Council’s dedicated Planning helpdesk, or viewed at the Council Offices. Please direct any queries you have the Council’s dedicated ‘Planning Helpdesk’ service. The Council’s reference number is SR No: 295568 and the document number for the revised plans is Docs No: 2723062.

Currently the application remains ‘on hold’ at this point in time. However, I will inform you via email when the Council is a position to make a decision. I do wish to make it clear that: (i) the application is still on hold, (ii) no formal decision on notification (or non-notification) has been made; and (iii) at the time that any such decision is made I will advise, and any such decision would be available to the public.”

Gone with the Wind: Found in a garden on October 9, driftwood coloured cotton fitted sheet.

Vision: “The Lifting the Creek Project in Houghton Valley is an inclusive, holistic response to the need to increase community resilience; end pollution on the beach; and exemplify best civic practice.” What started in life as an engineering brief ended up as a document created by the community in partnership with the Council. This is presently with two consulting engineers.

Houghton Valley Progressive Association: Notes from Sunday’s quarterly meeting from new president Ken. A community brainstorm the previous week celebrated the many activities that go on in the valley and suggested that the HVPA had an important role in communicating with residents and publicising all the opportunities that exist to get involved. As well as looking after the hall as a centre of activity, there is an important role in keeping in touch with council and other groups.

Discussion followed these themes and, as a result, we will be talking with other Residents’ Associations, exploring what funding is there to encourage strong community spirit and offering an information display at the School Fair on November 8. Several projects were started including a noticeboard for the hall, investigating a mural and an activity contributing to Neighbours Day, 2015.

Norman and contributors

Published as Issue No. 113

September 30, 2014

Houghton Valley Progressive Association: From Ken of Hornsey Rd, incoming President of the Houghton Valley Progressive Association. “Two meetings will be held on the next two Sundays starting at 4 p.m. in the community hall, all welcome to both. Prior to the regular quarterly meeting on October 12, this Sunday there will be an informal gathering – to get some mulch on the ground – to discuss how the hall might become more of a focal point for community activities. This meeting is for anyone interested in ideas for the HVPA as a part of life in our community.”

“I’m looking through the original minute books from that first meeting of the association on 19 April 1928 and wondering whether I should have the white gloves on! We have a real treasure in the valley and the hall is the centrepiece of this. The hall committee has provided the care and energy to make sure we conserve this resource, use it, and grow local activities.” Calls welcome if you can’t make the meeting or ideas you want to send.

Fun of the Fair: School and community are winding up for the Houghton Valley School Fair, which this year will be held on Saturday, November 8. Organisers are Katy and Karen.

The fair has always been a community gathering as much as a school event with the participation of local residents welcomed. They are looking for musicians and other performers to do a session. To get involved on stage or any other way contact Karen.

Ground-up Cookbook Research: Creative Technology students at Weltec will visit the community garden on Sunday afternoon as part of their research to create a cookbook that focuses on the community gardens of Wellington.

Ash, Jacob and Erin want the recipes to showcase produce growing in the gardens and also to include stories about the people involved and the community. They are asking people to bring along some of their favourite recipes to include in the book.

Lifting the Creek Update: Councillor Sarah Free, three council staff and 11 locals met again on Sunday to prepare a document for consultant engineers. They will identify the methods to Lift the Creek (to put an end to the leachate problem on the beach) and the main costs involved. See draft document.

This information will be incorporated into a submission to the Long Term Plan (the deadline is December). By the end of this week, locals plan to have a vision statement ready that will be put at the front of the consultants document.

Community Projects: Funding up to $500 is available for neighbourhood and community projects over the summer leading up to Neighbours Day Aotearoa 2015. The focus this year is on youth and seniors.

Wellington City Council is inviting applications to apply for funding for events or projects specifically targeting inclusion and interactions between youth and/or seniors. [Resources link not current]

Norman

Published as Issue No. 112

September 16, 2014

Goodbye to Piebe: It was standing room only at Piebe’s Seat on Friday when 30 people remembered long-standing community stalwart Piebe Kooistra who died earlier this month, four days after his 81st birthday.

Friends and neighbours walked up from Houghton Bay to the seat on the headland overlooking Te Raekaihau Point that was erected by the Houghton Valley Progressive Association in 2011 to recognise his immeasurable contributions from track cutting to maintaining the Community Hall over 40 years. On the Sunday he was planning to come to the community garden to celebrate his birthday but died after completing his regular Sunday morning swim at Freyberg Pool. [Photo missing]

Community Consultation: By the end of the week local residents will have the opportunity to review the Wellington City Council’s proposed approach to addressing the issue of Lifting the Creek in order to eliminate leachate pollution in Houghton Bay.

On Sunday ten members of the community met with Council staff Nicci Woods and Adrian Mitchell. Following a discussion about problems and potential solutions there was agreement on the vision of ‘an integrated amenity civil works project with embedded educational outcomes’.

The next phase involves Council engaging external engineering consultants to evaluate and develop the proposed re-mediation. Community input will be integral to the preparation of this high level scoping document. This work will be completed in November, in time for the results to be integrated into the Council’s long-term plan. Adam from Houghton Bay Rd has undertaken to be the community’s principal liaison with the council for this project.

Playcentre fund raiser: Houghton Valley Playcentre presents the eighteenth annual Great Debate – ‘MMP Does Make For Strange Bed Fellows.’ Speakers are Annette King, Pinky Agnew, David Townsend, Grant Robertson, Heather du Plessis-Allan and Brent Edwards. Wednesday 24 September, Doors open at 7 pm at The Pines, 50 The Esplanade. Tickets $20 from Melissa. Light supper provided and raffles galore!!

Yoga in Houghton Valley: Sunday evenings 5.30 – 6.30 pm at the Houghton Valley Community Hall with Megan. Starting 21 September for six Sundays (until 26 October). $10 per class or $50 for the block of six classes. All abilities welcome. Breathe, stretch, re-energise and relax. Please email Megan.

South Coast Clean-Up: It’s election day but the date is a universal one. Saturday September 20, 10.30 am – 12 midday. Meet at one of the 11 places and look out for the person in the hi-viz vest. All rubbish will be gathered around 12 and taken to Lyall Bay to form a large pile, with a sausage sizzle near the play ground. Bags and gloves are provided but if you have your rubber gloves bring them along. [Attachment missing]

Norman

Published as Issue No. 111

September 2, 2014

Environmental Improvements: Wellington City Council will shortly spend $30-40,000 on a feasibility study to improve the Houghton Valley environment. It will explore the idea of ‘lifting the creek’ with a principal benefit reducing leachate from the old tip polluting Houghton Bay and the south coast marine reserve.

The proposal was outlined at a Sunday meeting in the community hall attended by 35 local people, four Council staff and councillors Sarah Free and Paul Eagle. Residents have been working on this idea for two years. Council infrastructure director Stravros Michael outlined a partnership proposal which will see the community join with staff to work on the feasibility study, to be completed by the end of the year.

Missing cat: Dave, the School caretaker, discovered a deceased brown-white-black (tortoise shell?) cat under the hall. Feel free to contact him for more details if you are missing a cat of this description.

Proposed Subdivision: From Jacob of Houghton Bay Rd: “I recently read a document about ‘Vegetation and habitats associated with a proposed new subdivision at 215 Houghton Bay Road.’ This was included in a larger document submitted on 6.5.14 by Immaculate Construction Ltd to WCC planners in response to a section 92 request for more information about resource consent application SR95568. The document also includes a number of small changes to the project.

“I’ve briefly looked through the changes particularly about vegetation issues and have sent the following letter to WCC as below:

“I feel that it is important to contribute more feedback to WCC in light of these changes to the development, and of the information detailed in the legal representation letter which Barrister Graham Taylor sent to WCC in April and recently published in Houghton Valley Community Newsletter Issue Number 110, August 20, 2014.”

The secret lives of cats: Recently you may have seen cats wandering around the neighbourhood wearing harnesses and GPS trackers. This was all part of a project into cat movements conducted by View Rd resident 12 year old Kate. The project titled ‘Where Does My Cat Go At Night’ was awarded a prestigious 3rd prize for Class 2 (intermediate year 8) at the recent Wellington Regional NIWA Science Fair.

Tracking 6 local moggies she found that the cats ranged over a 6 – 7 km2 area which extended from the Lyall Bay waterfront to the Houghton Valley playing fields. The cats visited any house in their area that had a cat flap so prepare for night time visitors of the furry kind.

Houghton Valley Progressive Association: The City Council intends to invite the Association to join in its current planning process around September 15; if anyone is interested in being part of that group please let Ken know. The next Association meeting will be on Sunday, 12 October at 3 pm in the Hall, all welcome.

Norman

Published as Issue No. 110

August 20, 2014

Community Meeting: Wellington City Council has asked the Houghton Valley Progressive Association to arrange a public meeting to discuss initiatives to eliminate pollution in the Bay from the old tip and lift the creek which currently flows through a pipe under it.

This will be held in the Community Hall on Sunday afternoon August 31 commencing at 3 pm with afternoon tea. Attending will be ward Councillor Sarah Free, Director of Infrastructure Stravros Michael and Senior Advisor – Infrastructure Planning, Nicci Wood. Please come along if you want to know more and have questions; also see the website Lifting the Creek page and the forum discussion [link not working].

215 Houghton Bay Rd: Strong community concern last year about the size of a property development on this vacant land lead to public meetings, discussions with the developer and the creation of a group to oppose this. The attached document [no attachment] summarises the position of the group and provides a copy of a letter sent to the City Council in April.

Now in our Back Yard: An earlier issue discussed the recent decision to build the proposed airport runway extension to the south and into Lyall Bay. The group established to object to its extension into Evans Bay have considered this and resolved the issues behind their opposition remain the same and as a result have changed their name to Guardians of the Bays. To understand more about this issue and further background see the new listing in the forum discussion [link not working].

Norman

Published as Issue No. 109

August 5, 2014

August is a notable month in Houghton Valley history for three events:

• On August 11, 1929, the Haughton Valley Community Hall opened;
• Early August 2010, the community garden was started;
• On August 10, 2013, the Houghton Valley website was launched.

Any excuse for a celebration, so one will be held at the community garden, this Sunday, August 10 starting at 3 pm. All welcome, bring a plate; tell the gardeners what seedlings they should plant if you are interested to buy from them this spring.

Elvis has left Hungerford Rd. Sadly, Piebe’s (Peter’s) black Labrador dog Elvis was recently killed by a car. Piebe, a long standing resident who has contributed to the community in many ways, was often seen walking with Elvis down Houghton Bay Rd to the beach. Piebe has a bush track and a seat named after him in the View Rd / Te Raikaihau Headland Park.

Norman

Published as Issue No. 108

Published as Issue No. 107

July 8, 2014

Celebration reminder: Kae Miller Trust annual founders day is this Saturday at the Alice Krebs Lodge from 2 pm. All welcome, the ten minute walk up from View Rd extension will be rewarded with afternoon tea. There will be tree planting as well from 1 pm. Follow the signs and balloons from Hungerford Rd. [No attached flyer].

Progressive Association: All are welcome to the next meeting Houghton Valley Progressive Association, which is also the Annual General Meeting. If you fancy taking on a role within the Association, such as President, Treasurer or Secretary, come along. It will be held at 4 pm on Sunday, July 20 in the Community Hall. Meetings usually last less than an hour. All welcome.

Local birdlife: On Saturday afternoon a continuous flow of people took advantage of the bright, fine weather to visit the school forest and community garden and get close up and personal with birdlife courtesy of Peter Reese’s bird netting and banding programme.

Norman and contributors

Published as Issue No. 106

June 24, 2014

Invitation: This year the Kae Miller Trust will celebrate Founder’s Day on Saturday, July 12 at the Alice Krebs Lodge from 2 pm. All welcome, the ten minute walk up from View Rd extension will be rewarded with afternoon tea. There will be tree planting as well from 1 pm. More detail next newsletter.

We owe you one: Thanks to the efforts of our website webmaster Ian from View Rd, a potential disaster of losing our website was avoided.

Website changes: Ian has made a change that could be useful. New members to the forum page (Gurgling) will no longer have to get a code from Ian first. To join the forum you only have to use the ‘Apply for membership’ button on the right hand side, type in the capture number displayed/played when you register after you filled in basic details. [Forum page not working]

Hall co-ordination: Andrea Selwood has kindly offered to look after the Community Hall bookings while Miranda is away. If you want to make a casual booking for the hall after July 7 or wish to become a more regular hall user please ring her.

Yams and Strawberry: Jenny harvests yams from the community garden while from now on birds will be kept away thanks to Anna from View Rd who made a scarecrow she has named ‘Strawberry’.

On the buses: Recently Linda Cameron from View Rd attended a public hearing held by the GWRC Transport Committee on the Wellington Bus Review. She gave a brief oral presentation and answered questions on the Houghton Valley / Melrose / Southgate bus submission, which also has support from the Newtown Residents Association.

Councillors indicated details have still not been pinned down including the direct services at peak times for our area and shelter and other facilities at the transfer ‘hub’ outside Wellington hospital. Our community representatives, Christine Fowler and Linda will have the opportunity to continue working through the issues in our latest submission with council officers and will keep you informed.

Annual meeting: The annual meeting of the Houghton Valley Progressive Association will be held on Sunday in our Community Hall at 4 p.m. on Sunday, July 20 at 4 pm.

Norman and contributors