A REPORT FROM THE PROVINCES

From the outside the Ruakokopatuna Community Hall looks like almost any other corrugated iron Wairarapa shed or even a half-hearted wool shed.

As is so often the case, first impressions can be deceptive.  Something was different.  The faded painted iron sheets still looked the same, but the grass had been cut.  Clearly cars were going to park.  An event was looming.

Inside the stunning polished wood floor was reflective at its best, out the back the barbeque was fired up and the FaceBook page request of “anyone going to Greytown, can they take the lamb to the butcher” had been fulfilled.  (Being the only vegetarian in the valley, I never go to Greytown).

This was ‘community’ at its best.  The table was lined with salads that the Ritz would be jealous of, chocolate cake, eclairs and lemon drizzle cake would put any café out of business and some appropriately out of character, but delicious samosas were flown in from Mumbai.

Chairs were in rows; staging had been cadged from Gladstone.  Punga fronds and flax leaves adorned the walls.  In comparison The Opera House would have looked forgotten about, positively faded and wilted.

The Ruakokopatuna Theatre Royal was all ready for a good night and that is what we got.  

The BITCHES BOX took to the stage.  The Bitches’ Box is the decade long comedy partnership between ​creators/performers Emma Newborn and Amelia Dunbar, who have been together making audiences around the world laugh since 2011.  The pair landed on ​the idea of performing a comedic theatre piece as two hot farm bitches, passing ​the time whilst locked in a bitches’ box, acting out the bitches’ dreams, fantasies and frustrations. … Continue Reading

Māori cloak taonga humbles Mayor

Taonga gifting (L – R) Tania MacGregor, Liz Karaitiana, Mayor Martin Connelly, Dani Dean, Maria Tanoa.

A Māori kākahu (cloak) gifted to South Wairarapa District Council last month represents a powerful symbolic gesture from the original mana whenua (people of the land) of Martinborough, said Mayor Martin Connelly.

“This taonga (gift) humbles the council and it is an honour that we would be thought worthy of it,” said Mayor Connelly at the kākahu gifting ceremony on 19 October at the Waihinga Centre in Martinborough.

The kākahu was a bequest to the council from the late Tiki-Rangimarie Mahupuku McGregor of Ngati Hikawera, prior to his passing on 22 June 2021. It was made with aroha by his whānau from Soulway Church in Masterton. The kākahu’s given name is Manaakitanga o Ngati Hikawera.

“The gifting of this kākahu, Manaakitanga o Ngati Hikawera, to the council of South Wairarapa was a moment of reflection, ka mua, ka muri – acknowledging the past to set direction for the future. At council, we are mindful that the key is manaakitanga and understanding our role in reciprocity,” said the council Pou Māori Advisor, Narida Hooper.

“Where we stand today is their whenua, the land they were displaced from over a century ago,” said Mayor Connelly. “The taonga of this kākahu, along with the loan of the name Waihinga, continues what Matua Rangi once referred to as the awakening of Ngati Hikawera.”

“This kākahu connects us to Ngati Hikawera and to the spiritual world through the whakapapa of the values, ancestral knowledge and practices that went into its creation. When anyone from this council wears this cloak, they will share in that knowledge. Thank you very much for what you have created. It is beautiful,” said Mayor Connelly. … Continue Reading

Festivals, foodbank, families, forests given council funds

Nourishing body, mind and environment are top priorities in South Wairarapa District Council’s annual Community and Youth Grant funds, distributed this month to Martinborough’s foodbank, family oriented projects and forest regeneration.

The largest amount went to the family-focussed Greytown Mid-Winter Christmas festival (run by  Country Heaven Trust) followed by The Social Crust foodbank in Martinborough, Wellington Free Ambulance and Aorangi Restoration Trust, regenerating native forests in South Wairarapa.

These groups were the biggest beneficiaries of this year’s grants totalling $120,000.

“This fund is a powerful example of how we can come together to nourish both the body and the soul, fostering a brighter future for everyone,” Councillor Martin Bosley said in a statement.

“By supporting both our local orchestra and food banks, these initiatives not only enrich our community through music but also (help) ensure that families have access to nutritious food.”

Some 19 applicant groups received funds this year, seven were declined from the 26 applications which applied for $249,289. 

The Community and Youth Grant fund is distributed annually by the council’s Assurance Risk and Finance Committee from the 2024-25 Enhanced Annual Plan to support social, environment, economic and cultural outcomes in the community. … Continue Reading

Water, water everywhere – stand by for the bills

By Ray Lilley

Planning is forging ahead for a new water services model to cover 10 southern North Island local bodies _ from Horowhenua to Masterton _ to deliver three waters services – but only if the councils agree to go ahead. 

They have little time to decide as central government legally requires decisions to be made in the next 12 months.

Dame Kerry Prendergast, whose advisory group oversaw the report prepared by Scott Consulting,  

warns there are “no quick fixes,” with up to $17 billion of water infrastructure investment needed over the next 20-25 years. 

Not investing means risking significant network failures, being unable to build the 99,000 new homes needed in the region, wastewater treatment and drinking water supplies “compromised. And we push this issue onto future generations.” she said, but didn’t add: “as has happened till now.”

So how did all this begin? The nine councils within the Wellington regional area and Horowhenua District signed a Memorandum of Understanding in May 2024 to work together on a joint water services delivery plan process. Hence the “Recommended regional approach to a joint Water Services Delivery Plan and delivery model” report. (Link at end).

The recommended new delivery model is for a joint council-owned regional water services utility vested with ownership of all regional water assets, revenues and liabilities, a WSCCO – Water Services Council Controlled Organisation. 

The report notes the need for speed: “councils will need to make some difficult choices about how to fund and deliver the urgent work needed on the three waters network and demonstrate financial sustainability by 30 June 2028,” under central government’s planned system.

The initial set-up cost to ratepayers for WSCCO from the 10 bodies: “$75m to more than $125m.” … Continue Reading