Northland news in brief: Dancing Petrel, Sage and Kai Mata among 2025 Savour Northland winners

Northland MP Grant McCallum (left) with Sage Restaurant executive chef Daniel Fraser and Northland Regional Council chairman Pita Tipene.

The region’s food and beverage industry came together on Monday for the 2025 Savour Northland Award. Winners were: Dancing Petrel (Best Marketing), Origin Northland (Best New Event), Sage Restaurant at Paroa Bay (Outstanding Event), Charlotte’s Kitchen (Hero Ingredient – haku kingfish), The Duke of Marlborough (Hero Ingredient – kūmara), Terra Restaurant (Hero Ingredient – subtropical fruits), Schnappa Rock (Creative Culinary), Marcus Berndt of Terra Restaurant (Air NZ Chef Excellence), Scenic Hotel, Bay of Islands (Perfect Pairing, Highly Commended) and Kai Mata Restaurant (Perfect Pairing, Ultimate Award Winner).

Westpac joins rescue helicopter sponsors

Westpac NZ is the newest associate sponsor of Northern Rescue. A long-time supporter of rescue helicopter services in Auckland, Waikato, Wellington and Canterbury, Westpac NZ has now added Northland to the list.

Dress for Success sale

Dress for Success Northland’s annual second-hand Walk in Wardrobe sale is on this Saturday from 10am to 4pm at 10 Butter Factory Lane, Whangārei. Fill a bag with quality pre-loved clothes for a koha.

New pontoon at Tutukākā

A new pontoon has been installed at the Tutukākā boat ramp. Whangārei Deputy Mayor Scott McKenzie says the pontoon triples the ramp’s capacity. He credited the Tutukākā Coast Boat Ramp Reinstatement Group for making it happen.

Stokes wins Whangārei rally

Robbie Stokes was crowned winner of the Vertex Oil International Rally of Whangārei. He beat the 2025 Brian Green Property Group New Zealand Rally champion Ben Hunt by 1m 15s on Sunday. Stokes’ brother Jack came fourth and was won the Junior Champion title for the NZ Rally Championship.

Ngāpuhi concerned about TPM tussle

Ngāpuhi chairman Mane Tahere has written directly to the national executive of Te Pāti Māori expressing disappointment regarding the approach and the claimed unconstitutional removal of elected Tai Tokerau representative Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. Ngāpuhi have agreed to facilitate a discussion on November 23 at Kohewhata Marae in Kaikohe. Attendees are asked to RSVP via anarina.marsters-herewini@ngapuhi.org.

Water safety workshops

Hine Te Aparangi Waka Safety Project organisers are running water safety workshops to give people confidence on the water. Workshop locations and times are: Kaikohe Library today, Procter Library in Kerikeri on November 21 and Paihia Library on November 28.

‘Facelift’ for Kaikohe shops

Kaikohe shopfronts will receive a major spruce-up along the entire main street starting on Monday. The “Kaikohe facelift” project will take several weeks to complete and has been planned in co-ordination with the Kaikohe Business Association, with funding provided by the Kaikohe-Hokianga Community Board.