Beach Haven locals are the first to admit their suburb looks a little scruffy. But they've worked together on a new idea, writes Jared Boreham.
Walking through Beach Haven shopping centre you are faced with the scruffy shopfronts of decaying buildings and electrical cables seeming to grow like weeds from every gap. An old post office, abandoned 15 years ago, sits in the centre, filled with rubbish and graffiti.
But, now, local people are banding together to bring this rundown area back to life.
Neil Coleman, of the Heart of Beach Haven community project, says they aim to make the shopping centre a place where people can come to relax and enjoy themselves. "It is about time the place got cleaned up. We have had a great reaction from the community with a lot of people and groups coming forward to try and make the area a better place."
North Shore City Council has granted the project an initial $50,000 to spend on the shopping centre.
Mr Coleman says a wharf and harbourside theme will be used. "We felt this was a theme that people could relate to and it reflects the
history of the area."
The $50,000 will be spent on building gateways at each end of Beach Haven out of recycled wharf piles from Birkenhead wharf and Auckland waterfront. Local people have volunteered to help with the job.
"We have a wonderful youth group in our area who have already spent time cleaning shopfronts, pathways and removing rubbish from the area," says Heart of Beach Haven member Robyn Laurenson.
"Over the school holidays they are collecting stories from local shopkeepers which will be posted on the website and in shopfronts to let people know who they are and bring the community even closer together."
Ms Laurenson says the youth group, Haven Art and Ngati Whatua, is working on murals in the shopping precinct.
Shopkeeper Claire Bolton has petitioned the local electrical supplier, Vector, to put power lines in the area underground.
"We suffer from a lot of power outages and a lot of the shopkeepers are tearing their hair out. There are wires everywhere and the local kids swing and play on them."
Ms Bolton says more than 600 people signed the petition.
"It also brought a lot more support for the upgrade and the community is getting really excited about it."
The council has also allocated $750,000 for a square in Beach Haven shopping centre and Heart of Beach Haven is being consulted to ensure the community's wishes are factored into its design. Mr Coleman, who has an architectural background, has worked with local people on a master plan for the area using all the ideas put forward.
The council's senior urban design planner, John Stenberg, says community input has been very successful.
"What we are doing now is to get a designer on board to take it to the detailed design level so that construction drawings can be developed.
The masterplan for Beach Haven
The Heart of Beach Haven group's plans include:
- Gateways at Rangatira Rd and Beach Haven Rd to announce arrival at the suburb
- Murals reflecting a coastal theme painted on blank walls throughout the centre
- Enhancing the roundabout at Rangatira-Beach Haven roads
- Undergrounding powerlines to improve the look and provide better service to retailers in the area
- A central square and public space at the Sunnyhaven Ave-Rangatira Rd intersection, with seating, shade and artworks.