VIEWS FROM THE BEACH with Peter White

February Views

An overview of what is happening in Takapuna Beach from Business Association General Manager Peter White.

Takapuna certainly takes on a special character during summer, and although we have had to wait a little longer this year, it has been marvelous to see large numbers of people flocking to Takapuna – New Zealand’s best urban beach – to make the most of the long hot evenings.
The Tuesday Night State Beach Series is once again attracting great crowds of both competitors and spectators; Takapuna Boating Club host the 470 World Youth championships as this issue of Channel goes to press; both the City Nippers and the Takapuna Aquathon Series meet regularly and Sail Auckland will be held on February 8th. With a busy weekend on February 17-19th (Takapuna Beach Cup and Contact Energy Takapuna Tri events - see story) as well as the Coastal Challenge the following Saturday 25th and strong calendars at both the Pumphouse and Bruce Mason Centre, it is easy to see why Takapuna is dubbed the “Events capital of the North Shore”.
Congratulations to local identities Simon Gundry, Dianne Foreman and James Young who were all deservedly recognised in the New Years honours list; Nigel Cherrie and the crew (Including James Blake) of Team Gallagher who became the first team to row from Sydney Harbour bridge to Auckland Harbour bridge and to Cheron award recipient Frank Cui (BNZ Takapuna Manager).
2012 promises to be an exciting year for Takapuna. McKenzies (the upmarket hospitality and fashion development opens in May; Location Group hope to start work on the Merge Development in Northcroft Street, and the long awaited $2.5m Hurstmere Green redevelopment will be completed. Council have appointed a team to start precinct planning of the beachfront, CBD and Hurstmere North which will eventually feed into the Unitary Plan and although the significant contribution that Takapuna can make to Auckland has been recognised in the Draft Auckland Plan, alignment has yet to be attained with that and the Auckland Long Term Plan – there is still a lot of lobbying to be done!
A number of new shops and businesses have located to Takapuna Beach including the highly popular iStore, Retrospace (Sci Fi collectables) shop, Cruiseabout, Migun Wellness Clinic, Nautitravel, 2 Degrees and La Revolution.
I hope that you enjoy reading this edition of Channel and to see you in Takapuna Beach soon.
– Peter White.

I am currently advertising for a PA / Office manager / Events Manager. Please contact me on 092154347 or email peter@takapunabeach.co.nz if you are qualified and passionate about Takapuna.

Takapuna Beach BNZ Night Market to reopen in October

The Takapuna Beach BNZ Night Market closed at Christmas and will not resume again until October this year.
We had superb support from all involved – stall holders, council, our sponsors - the BNZ, Rotary, neighbouring businesses and yourselves, the community who turned up regardless of the trying weather experienced over the four months of operation.
The decision not to reopen in January was not made lightly as we were very pleased with the success of the Market and feel that it will become a feature of Takapuna Beach. However, it was important that we delivered a quality product and there were concerns that this may not happen if we continued with the operating model employed. Consequently we are currently re-evaluating that model to ensure that we can provide an enjoyable experience for all involved as well as providing a community fundraiser that will be overseen by the Night Market Trust Board.
Thank you to all who supported the BNZ Night Market – we hope that we see you back later in the year.

Busy weekend coming up for Takapuna Beach

The weekend of 17-19th of February looks to be a huge and exciting one for Takapuna Beach with both the Takapuna Beach Cup and Contact Energy Takapuna Tri events held simultaneously on the beach and coinciding with the Devonport Wine and Food Festival.
Up to 1200 competitors and 2000 spectators are predicted to attend the Takapuna Beach Cup, a three-day outrigger regatta in which competitors race a 5-7km race on Friday, a 42km ‘marathon’ for six crew canoes on Saturday and a 24km relay race for single and double canoes on Sunday.
A further 660 competitors and 3000 spectators are expected at Sunday’s Triathlon, open to recreational and professional athletes of all abilities. The event, filmed for later broadcast on TVONE, includes ten separate races throughout the day (7.30am to 6.30pm) including a shortened event suitable for children. The transition area will be set-up on Gould Reserve, next to the Takapuna Boating Club, and the finish line on Hurstmere Road adjacent to Hurstmere Green where a scaffold gantry will be set-up over the road.
Spectators will have fantastic vantage points from many places around the course including the many bars, cafes and restaurants alongside run and cycle legs in Hurstmere Road and The Strand.
Road closures - The Auckland Transport car park at 12 Channel View Rd will be closed to the public on Friday from 5pm and Saturday to provide a parking area for the canoe trailers.
In addition the following road closures will apply for Sunday:- The Strand (between Lake Road and Hurstmere Road, inclusive of the cul-de-sac extension to Takapuna Beach), Hurstmere Road (between Killarney Street and The Strand/Lake Road), Anzac Avenue (between Campbell Road and Hurstmere Road) and The Promenade (between Hurstmere Road and Killarney Street) will be closed from 1am to 7pm, Sunday 19 February.
Two-way traffic will be maintained on Lake Road during the event.
Residents and businesses will be able to access their properties before 6am, or at specific times notified to them by letter drop. The letter drop document will also serve as their road closure pass during the access times.
Free Parking – For shoppers we would suggest the Killarney Street and Anzac Street Council carparks, both of which offer free parking during the weekend. In addition there is 60 minutes free parking under the Library (accessible from Blomfield Spa and Gibbons Road). Negotiations are currently underway to provide carparking for spectators and competitors at Takapuna Primary School.
NB: The Anzac St Carpark runs parallel to, and the length of, Hurstmere Road with numerous laneway and shop accesses through to Takapuna’s mainstreet. This is not available on Sunday until the Takapuna Market finishes at midday.

Beach Shorts

Takapuna Company wins BNZ Virgin Business Challenge
Takapuna company HiTech Solutions, which owns FaceMe, were the winners of the inaugural BNZ Virgin Business Challenge and will receive $100,000 cash, mentoring from BNZ and Virgin executives (including one-on-one time with Sir Richard Branson, who launched the challenge at Takapuna Beach in October last year) and international flights as a consequence.
Over 260 Kiwi companies entered the competition, which sought a winner that had passion, drive, creativity and innovation. The ability to go global was of prime consideration. FaceMe has developed a system that allows users video conferencing that provides quality calls and is compatible with any device.

Local Manager wins Chevron award
Takapuna BNZ Manager Frank Cui has been awarded a Chevron award, considered the highest recognition for outstanding performers in the BNZ. At the same time, Frank has been appointed to head up the BNZ Asian banking sector and will be replaced by Stefan Waijers as BNZ Takapuna manager – welcome Stefan.

Consumer Institute recognize Takapuna business
Sunworld Professional Tanning Studio, in Byron Avenue Takapuna was recently identified by Consumer NZ as the only Auckland operator who met all of the industry standards assessed by the watchdog organisation during a mystery shopper investigation of 66 operators nationwide.
Congratulations Rudi and Heike Hofer – its great to see another Takapuna business providing outstanding and benchmark service.

RWC to visit Takapuna Beach
The NZRU are launching a Rugby Roadshow that will tour the trophies won last season, including
the Rugby World Cup. Although all details had not been finalized when Channel went to print, it
will be displayed at a public open day in Takapuna (more than likely at Hurstmere Green) on Saturday the 18th February.

AIA Takapuna hold healthy living day
After completing a comprehensive independent survey of people in 15 Asia Pacific nations, that determined New Zealanders underperformed in a variety of key healthy living indicators, 80 AIA New Zealand staff took part in a ”Hunt for Wellbeing” team competition in Takapuna late last year to help highlight the results.
“What’s particularly interesting to us as a company was what employees told the researchers about work environments,” AIA New Zealand CEO Wayne Besant says. “When asked whether companies could do more to help staff lead healthier lives, 76% of Kiwi respondents said yes, and added that offering healthy food options in the office and providing flu vaccinations were the two best ways companies could help.”
Other key findings: 56% of New Zealanders said said their health is not as good as five years ago. Better quality of life and better mental health are the key motivators for New Zealanders to live a healthy life.
The key health-related concerns for New Zealanders are ‘not exercising enough’ and ‘weight is too high’ (in both categories, NZers scored 9% higher than the regional average), along with ‘too much snacking’ (5% higher than region), ‘too much alcohol’ and ‘feeling depressed’ (both 2% higher), and ‘smoking too much’ and ‘not getting enough sleep’ (1% higher).
New Zealanders are the least concerned about food safety of any nation in the region.
New Zealand is in the mid-range in the region in terms of exercise, with 50% of Kiwis saying they do not exercise regularly against a regional average of 49%; One-third of NZers exercise less than an hour per week.

Why should you shop in Takapuna?

The Takapuna Beach Business Association is working hard to attract destination retail and quality commercial tenants to Takapuna to complement our existing high quality members. Each month we highlight a Takapuna Business, which we believe, deserves the support of you our reader. This month we bring to you…

Caffe Massimo

Established in 1997, by Ali and Zuhla Yildiz, Caffe Massimo has become synonymous with great coffee, great food and great service. After renovations in December 2010, Caffe Massimo reopened with a reorientated perspective, allowing guests alfresco dining and views of Takapuna Beach. A louvre roof and removable wrap-around screens enable guests to enjoy the warm Summer months with a cool refreshing beer or wine in hand, accompanied by a fantastic selection of tapas plates and platters. Now open at night Caffe Massimo welcomes private and corporate functions.
Caffe Massimo, The Strand, Takapuna Beach.
Ph: 486 5550. www.caffemassimo.co.nz