Terry Corridan and Jill Lancaster bought their home last year on the proviso that the council remove the stand of huge redwoods. They are still waiting. Photo / Jenny Ling
Terry Corridan and Jill Lancaster bought their home last year on the proviso that the council remove the stand of huge redwoods. They are still waiting. Photo / Jenny Ling
Far North residents told to evacuate during Cyclone Vaianu over fears unstable redwood trees could fall on their homes now want the district council to act before someone is killed.
Far North District Council plans to remove the trees later this year, saying it is prioritising resident safety.
Sixhomes on Wendywood Lane in Kerikeri were evacuated on Saturday, April 11, because of the risk of nearby trees falling from wind gusts.
Most of the residents were accommodated by friends and family and were advised to stay away from their homes until at least Sunday afternoon.
Resident Joan Fordson, who refused to evacuate because she didn’t want to leave her elderly dog, said the stand of huge redwoods were “a complete and utter menace”.
“There are children up and down this road, and people from the retirement village and supermarket customers ... it’s the children I worry about the most.”
Terry Corridan and Jill Lancaster, who have lived on Wendywood Lane since last July, said their evacuation on Saturday, which lasted until Monday, was “a bit of an inconvenience”.
“But we’d rather that than getting squashed by a redwood,” Corridan said.
“Every time there’s wind or rain I get a bit nervous,” Lancaster said.
The couple said they bought the house because Far North District Council (FNDC) committed to removing the redwoods following ex-tropical Cyclone Tam in April 2025 when a 30m redwood fell on the Kerikeri Retirement Village garden shed, narrowly missing the gardener.
“But they seem to be taking longer than they originally said,” Corridan said.
“It’d be sensible to have it done as soon as possible.”
Last June, the council announced the two stands of mature redwood trees beside Hawkings Cres and Wendywood Lane were deemed an “unacceptable risk” to life and property and would be felled.
The decision by council chief executive Guy Holroyd came after a WorkSafe review of the near-fatality.
It was the third serious incident involving the trees and the retirement home since 2018.
Six residents were evacuated from Wendywood Lane because of fears large redwood trees could fall on their homes during Cyclone Vaianu. Photo / Jenny Ling
However, there is no date for the removal of the trees on Wendywood Lane.
The council’s delivery and operations group manager, Hilary Sumpter, said they would be removed later this year.
“Council staff are currently in discussion with contractors about the costs and timeline to remove the stand of redwood trees located at Wendywood Lane.
“The safety of all residents is of the utmost importance to the council and every effort is being made to conclude the removal of the redwoods as soon as is practically possible.”
The trees were planted in the 1940s as shelterbelts for adjacent farmland but are now surrounded by urban development.
Though unstable trees were removed from Hawkings Cres in March, residents are still waiting for trees to be removed from Wendywood Lane. Photo / Jenny Ling
In 2013, the retirement village trust asked the local community board forpermission to fell 142 redwoods on Hawkings Cres at no cost to ratepayers.
However, the request was knocked back, because community board members voted to reject it after public submissions.
Sumpter couldn’t say how much it would cost, stating the final costs were being finalised.
Jenny Ling is a senior journalist at the Northern Advocate. She has a special interest in covering human interest stories, along with finance, roading, and social issues.
