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Waikato News Director

Huge garden and native nursery to provide free food and jobs
An ambitious project to grow fresh food for the community is under way in Taupō.

Upston sets her sights on fixing child poverty
Taupō MP Louise Upston is comfortably winning her electorate for the sixth time.

Coffin Club to send member sailing away in style
The full benefits of the Coffin Club kick in when members check out.

Bring the noise: Car stereo contest so loud it 'irritates the kidneys'
Car stereo lovers are taking their passion to a newer, noisier level.

Future of popular Lake Taupō reserve to be reviewed by council and iwi
A popular Lake Taupō camping spot is being reviewed to reflect its significance to iwi.

SH1 to close on two days for truck removal, 53km added to journey
SH1 south of Taupō will close yet again for a truck to be removed from Bulli Pt.

Lots of roadworks planned for Waikato highways over the next month
Waikato's roads have been under the weather lately, delaying some works.

Fire fighters set social media ablaze with hilarious videos
Tūrangi's firefighters have become TikTok stars.

Winston Peters confident of National-Act-NZ First arrangement
Winston Peters says he can work with anyone - except Labour.

Cannabis company buzzing after 'milestone' export
Cannasouth is the first company in NZ to export cannabis API to Australia.

Huge tracts of land retired, fenced or planted to protect Waikato rivers
Massive private and council efforts have gone into protecting Waikato waterways.

Tokoroa ram raids leave business owners frustrated
A Tokoroa service station owner had a rude awakening this morning thanks to ram raiders.

Autumn date announced for Taupō Supercars round
Dates and level of government spending to attract Supercars to Taupō has been revealed.

'Huge opportunities': Major milestone connects business park to highway
A massive new industrial park near Te Puke has made a $60 million leap forward.

Battery disposal sparks Hamilton fires
Council is warning people to dispose of lithium batteries correctly after several fires.

CBD light feature still on despite cost over-run
Taupō's new town centre is about to get a whole lot brighter.

Kmart introduces robots to its NZ stores, opens huge new facility
Robots are coming to a Kmart store near you.

Early intervention could prevent up to 80 per cent of eye health problems
A Taupō woman is urging people to get their eyes checked.

'Better than cocaine', say all-seasons lake dippers
Swimmers love nothing better than a refreshing plunge in the coolest months.

Supercars set to supercharge Central North Island tourism
Supercars are coming to Taupō providing a big boost to the central North Island economy.

Plan highlights ongoing impacts of Coromandel storms
Thames Coromandel District Council has finalised its disaster recovery plan.

Bad vibe sinks Thames' 'tactical urbanism' trial
A plan to liven up the Thames CBD has proved to be widely unpopular.

ATM machine stolen from 1938 phone box in Tairua
Thieves have stolen an ATM machine and destroyed the historic phone box it was housed in.

Heavy snow dump has Ruapehu skifield operators smiling
Skifield workers are swimming in metres of snow on Mt Ruapehu.

All Black stars unveil the ‘bench for 5 million’ in Reporoa
The All Blacks have named an extended squad of 5 million people for the Rugby World Cup.

He's found! Bodhi comes home
Missing Coromandel dog Bodhi has been reunited with his owner after three weeks.

Native trees face chop due to flight path concerns
An aerial battle between humans and trees is likely to see botanic garden trees chopped.

Two good deeds deserves a dog trial
There's no better way to say 'thanks for rescuing me' than a dog trial.

Taupō 'housing crisis' prompts council action
The Taupō District Council is looking at its role in providing housing.

Off-road cyclists spend a mountain of money
More than 55,000 people come to Taupō each year for off-road cycling.

'Several processes at play': Taupō volcano alert changes again
The Volcanic Alert Level was raised to 1 in September.

Coromandel leaders upset over loss of concert
Cancelled Whitianga Summer Concert is another blow to the region's visitor industry.

Homeless family with baby forced to sleep in car
A family of five had to sleep in their car in Taupō as temperatures reached 4 degrees.

Rescue spurs $37k in fundraising from grateful mother
Wai Johnson's son was rescued five years ago and she's been paying it back in spades.

Small town banking trial sunk due to lack of a suitable building
A banking hub trial in Tūrangi has ended before it began.

Sheep and beef farmer clinches top beer award with perfect pilsner
A farmer forced to rethink his business has brewed up the best beer in NZ.

NZ’s oldest man dies two days after his 107th birthday
NZ's oldest man Jack Coe marked his 107th birthday last week and died a few days later.

Another birthday for NZ's oldest man
Jack’s long life had humble beginnings - he was born in a tent.

Still plenty of legs in prawn park after setbacks
It's been a tough time for the Huka Prawn Park but the future is bright.

Five youths arrested after Taupō jewellery store incident
Youths have been taken into custody following an incident at a Taupō jewellery store.

The big reset: Key issues laid bare in tourism plan
Taupō plan highlights need for hotels, highways, museum and more.

First new state houses in 40 years to take pressure off
Regional director for Kāinga Ora said it was exciting to see work starting.

Cyclone recovery: PM says it might be best to 'give up' on some roads
Some roads, like State Highway 25A, just shouldn't be there, says Chris Hipkins.

PM attends sculpture unveiling in Taupō's new town centre
Taupō people are celebrating the completion of a $25m upgrade of the town centre.

Taupō-Napier road set to be closed until April
Waka Kotahi NZ TransportAgency was hoping to have the road open earlier.

Sudden downpour overwhelms Taupō drainage systems
Taupō residents are mopping up after a short, sharp deluge on Sunday.

'Scariest moment of my life': Rescuers brave falling trees to carry injured woman to safety
"At one point she looked at me and said ‘I can’t feel my legs’."

‘Trees coming down all over the place’: Woman suffers serious spinal injuries as tree crushes car
A woman is in a serious condition after the car she was driving was hit by a falling tree.

'Utter devastation' of forestry areas hampers power companies
Thousands of people will have to make do without power in southern Lake Taupō communities.

New Taupō community hub hit by fallen tree
Taupō is waking up to extensive damage and thousands of homes without power.

Flooding fears as Lake Taupō reaches capacity
Mercury Energy is urgently shedding water from Lake Taupō and the Waikato River.

Huge Brickell sculpture saved from the scrap heap
It was destined for the junkyard but now takes pride of place in the new Taupō Airport.

Council plan puts brakes on Bus Stop Cafe
Mangakino's quirky Bus Stop Cafe will be closed and dismantled after Easter.

Where's the $1 billion dollar highway?
The project was proposed “in a staged manner over 30 years as funding permits”.

Tonnes of pumice wash ashore in Lake Taupō
A raft of pumice hundreds of metres long has washed up on the shore at Lake Taupō.

Public warning: Estimated 20m of foreshore drops into Lake Taupō after quake
Large chunk of land has been lost to tsunami or quake damage at a Taupō beach.

Quake tsunami destroys boats on Lake Taupō: 150 aftershocks rock North Island after 5.6 tremor
The quake and scores of aftershocks made for a sleepless night and left a trail of damage.

Taupō - a place fit for a queen
Taupō has always been a favourite destination for Queen Elizabeth II.