Hawkes Bay Today
  • Hawke's Bay Today home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Havelock North
  • Central Hawke's Bay
  • Tararua

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Gisborne

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Hawkes Bay Today

Editorial: Cafe a work of art - or ugly mess?

By Tracey Chatterton
Hawkes Bay Today·
3 Nov, 2015 08:00 PM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article
The frontage of the old Haumoana garage, which is now a cafe and gallery, is attracting some negative comments. Photo / Paul Taylor

The frontage of the old Haumoana garage, which is now a cafe and gallery, is attracting some negative comments. Photo / Paul Taylor

Freedom of expression is important but when does it go too far?

Haumoana is a beautiful place - whether it be for a stroll along the shore, a spot of fishing or fish and chips on the beach.

Locals describe it as a warm, creative, seaside community.

Surely any new development should complement the unique character of the beachside settlement.

Read more: Ugly or arty? Locals, cafe owner at odds

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

But an unusual-looking new cafe seems to have too much flair for the community's liking.

Locals are not happy about the transformation of the old Haumoana Motors building into a new cafe.

Some people have vandalised the building while one man even threatened to burn it down.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Cafe owner and Haumoana builder Ben Meier has been repairing the damage since three of his wooden fences - which he built as sculptures - were torn down.

Hawke's Bay Today had received texts lamenting that the site was an ugly mess, while the Hastings District Council had received numerous complaints about the address.

Many of the complaints had been about the fence, but as it was not attached to the ground and was referred to by Mr Meier as a work of art, the council was investigating what, if anything, they could do about it.

Mr Meier said it was a work in progress and was nowhere near finished. He said he wanted to do something colourful and interesting for the seaside district, where several businesses had closed in the past year. It's hard to miss the eccentric building as it does look slightly out of place.

Discover more

Editorial: All Blacks' prove their greatness

01 Nov 08:00 PM

Editorial: We must stamp out poaching

02 Nov 08:01 PM
Lifestyle

Is this New Zealand's ugliest cafe?

03 Nov 09:44 PM

Supermarket to get revamp

04 Nov 03:00 AM

It would be like plonking Auckland's Sky Tower in the middle of Waipawa.

But if Haumoana's new cafe draws people and money into the community - even just to look at it - should people complain?

Save
    Share this article

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

Hawkes Bay Today

Napier electorate expanded to take communities from Tukituki

Premium
Hawkes Bay Today

After 61 years of cutting hair, veteran barber Mike Bird is not done yet

Premium
Hawkes Bay Today

NZ receives 1500 refugees each year but Hawke’s Bay doesn’t settle any. Why?


Sponsored

Revealed: The night driving ‘red flag’

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

Napier electorate expanded to take communities from Tukituki
Hawkes Bay Today

Napier electorate expanded to take communities from Tukituki

Pākōwhai, Waiohiki, Fernhill, Ōmahu and rural areas such as Crownthorpe move to Napier.

10 Aug 12:37 AM
Premium
Premium
After 61 years of cutting hair, veteran barber Mike Bird is not done yet
Hawkes Bay Today

After 61 years of cutting hair, veteran barber Mike Bird is not done yet

10 Aug 12:31 AM
Premium
Premium
NZ receives 1500 refugees each year but Hawke’s Bay doesn’t settle any. Why?
Hawkes Bay Today

NZ receives 1500 refugees each year but Hawke’s Bay doesn’t settle any. Why?

09 Aug 06:00 PM


Revealed: The night driving ‘red flag’
Sponsored

Revealed: The night driving ‘red flag’

04 Aug 11:37 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Hawke's Bay Today e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Hawke's Bay Today
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP