Category: Riverside Park

Calling All Builders/handyman Types!!



The Puhoi Community Forum needs helps restoring the old tennis pavilion in the park! This another piece of Puhoi’s past that we would really like to see made safe and usable again. The pavilion is currently full of rubbish and needs quite a bit of work, including replacement of some cladding, full roof iron replacement, repainting etc.

We really need the community to get involved on this one so this building does not end up going the way of the poor old hay shed!

If you are willing to help with this project please comment below.

Dustyn O’Leary

PCF Co-Chair

Plans for The Park

Following discussions at the Community Forum, we’re proceeding with plans for an orchard/garden/leisure area in the River Park where we’ve cleared the old sheep pens. Dustyn has has produced a first-cut plan for discussion of what we might want to do.

This is by no means a final plan – in fact feedback and suggestions at the forum will already see a change to the location/size of the horse pens to give more space. A well supported suggestion from Roz Broadmore was that we build a Pentanque court – an achievable community project which could give the village a nice summer evening location for a glass of wine and a fun game … more suggestions welcome (obviously these have to be low/zero budget ideas that we can do as a community as there’s no funding for us from the Council)

Email: mike@hiko.co.nz

Its Happening in The Park

For several years we’ve been having working bees to plant along the river in the Puhoi Pioneers Memorial Park. With the burst of spring weather this week a delicate drift of blossom has appeared along the bank. The council have mown a strip all along for us, so we now have a lovely new walking track from which to enjoy the park. This extends for about 1/2km from the left-hand gate, winding round past the Rosa Villa development on the opposite bank.

A sunny walk along the path is is such a pleasure now – thoroughly recommended to all! If we keep the track well trod it will keep the grass under control (we never know when we’ll be blessed with another mow!). Dogs are welcome on the track too (ignore the current signage, which refers to the paddock) – obviously with the usual clear-up and leash caveats.

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We’d like to make a little picnic space in the area opposite the tearooms with the addition of a couple of picnic benches.

With this new track, and the much improved gravel on the steps of the loop track (starting behind the toilet block), our park is turning into a precious asset for the village. Other projects include the clearing of the old sheep pens and possible development of a community garden, a refurbishment of the old tennis pavilion near the horse area and the clearing of invasive Arundo reeds along the bank – plenty to get involved with, and new ideas always welcome!

Getting Down and Dirty in the Riverside Park

Another of Puhoi’s communal tree-planting working bees, for the riverside walkway, still in developmental mode, brought out enough residents to put 500 small native trees, shrubs and grasses in the ground on Sunday, July 8.

Rodney Local Board chairwoman Beth Houlbrooke helping out at Puhoi’s riverside walkway, for the day.


Recent new Puhoi resident Luke Krieg, keen to get those little trees in the ground and growing.

Spoilt for Choice: Volunteering Opportunities This Weekend

Opportunity 1 – Saturday, Track Maintenance

After a magnificent weekend of community effort last week, we managed to gravel about two thirds of our wonderful lookout track . Over last few years parts of the track have suffered a bit under heavy use (particularly from extra traffic from the trail) and rain has eroded the surface. We are applying a topping of gravel (3m3 kindly donated by JK Contracting) to it and fixing up some of the steps.

In case you’re new to the village, the track rises through the tree, starting next to the toilets in the domain car park over the bridge. It is a beautiful, invigorating walk/run/puff up through verdant dappled bush to meet up with the ridge track. It is now part of the Te Araroa Trail, but was built several years ago completely by village volunteer effort – no small feat as it comprises 120-odd steps. As part of the River Park, it is owned and maintained by the community (not Auckland Council or the Local Board) . We can be proud of our park and the work we put into its upkeep.

This Saturday we’ll have another working bee to apply the rest of the gravel to the steps – not much to finish, but the remaining work is at the top so requires quite a bit of effort to get the material up there. We’ve been unable to use machinery to get the gravel up there as the paddocks are so wet and muddy, but waiting for drier weather would leave the track open to further deterioration.

If you can spare an hour or so, and don’t mind taking a bucket of gravel with you while enjoying a bit of exercise in the fresh air, please come along and give us a hand. We’ll be working from 10am onwards.

Opportunity 2 – Sunday. Planting

Again in the our River Park, we are planting natives along the River Bank. Please come along and between 8:00 and 12:00, bring a spade , smile (& possibly, a raincoat) and help us make the park even more beautiful, it belongs to us all in Puhoi!

 

Wow

Massive thanks to everyone who helped with the River Park steps this morning, we’ve really done amazing work – they look fantastic. I reckon we’re about 2/3 up now (bearing in mind that the 2nd 3rd was twice the lugging work of the first;-). So a another third to go – unfortunately the 3rd that really needs it the most;-) I’ll try and do some during the week, but that’s just one man rather than the awesome power the chain gang – so if anyone’s around during the week and fancies a bit of a workout, let me know!

The weather looks bad for next weekend at the moment, and there’s planting working bee planned for Sunday so maybe another bash on Saturday 7th weather permitting?

Park Survey Results So Far

A list of responses so far below. We’ll leave the questionnaire open for a while to gather more bright ideas…

Add a little bike pump track in conjunction with the horse area.  So the kids have somewhere safe to ride their bikes which isn’t completely flat like the car park and tennis courts.  Maybe updating the current playground area with new things to play on.

Community garden where the sale yards are, using them as the frame for the gardens and paths in between.

Drain area where horse jumps are to make it useable all round for various sports

Focus on environmental enhancement projects like the wetland

Avoid more built structures to maintain naturalness

Focus on looking after our existing heritage buildings instead of time effort money on building replica’s

Keep the park as a park but proving for the people that live in Puhoi as a whole.

Community gardens/orchard

Community pool

More walking tracks

Music in the Park area

Wetland. Re invigorating the existing wetland area

Community gardens and orchard/ wetlands

Wetlands if left will come away on their own. further native planting of small areas, where needed, but leaving wide open spaces.

NO buildings for tourist ventures such as the ‘little village project’ – this must not be let to go ahead with so many people apposing it, at the information day –  I would like the forum to reject this project on PUBLIC LAND on behalf of the community.

Community orchard sounds nice, and a link to the Te Araroa trail is a good idea.

I think we should leave the horse riding alone, or there will be horse riders from all areas and floats filling up the area – at the moment it is nice as it is (Do too much and OHS and everyone will want a bite of the apple).

A&P shed is not suitable for scouts or other, it is just an old shed with a earth floor, no power or toilet etc etc … we have the Puhoi Sports Club, and the Hall that are perfect and are for community use, I have watched this club go from a ground floor concrete building used for Rugby to the amazing multi use building and sports field it is now.

Music in the park would be great, but I don’t think we need an ‘area’ made for it, these things are mobile now – though an event would be great!

The park as a memorial – I would like to see info spots like the one in the link below, touching on our historical past, using photos of old puhoi, the logging, the river etc … Keep the place simple and natural is the most important thing. http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BafCidobXPw/Uyo2Mmqi7GI/AAAAAAAAAEU/SVc_WaPcBQg/s1600/DSCN9519.JPG

I would like us to leave the park alone, in terms of buildings and structures. I think that any green spaces we have should be protected, especially given the pace of development/urbanisation coming to the surrounding area. With a larger population, both here and nearby, it’s even more important to have quiet, green spaces for people to be able to get outside and relax and exercise. If there are people with time and enthusiasm to complete a project I would rather their efforts went towards planting, weeding etc to continue the good work of those that planted along the riverbank and did weeding working bees and made the steps.

I like the idea of opening up the next section of walk by the river to walkers and their dogs and I like the idea of continuing on with the tracks to make a ‘loop’ walk.

I would like the rotunda area left as it is so that people can use it for musical events, plays, performances, recitals, picnics, get-togethers etc. I would not want to see a large part of it concreted/graveled over for buses and parking. As we know, as soon as there’s an area there for school buses other buses, coaches, and cars will use it all the time. My main worry with the park is that as soon as one structure, building or concrete area is allowed it will open the floodgates to more and a precedent has then already been set. We have been left an absolute treasure and we should protect it.

Acknowledge the original settlers of this land the Maori with some structures/buildings then the Bohemians and then include what Puhoi is today a multi-culture community village or perhaps soon a mini city with all of the new housing development planned.

Leave park as it is

I am in favour of a Museum on the Park and a blacksmiths shop. But no other development. The only other viable alternative I can see is build on Church land?

I have spent an hour or so reading the recent survey results. One thing that is patently obvious is that our residents value the rural undeveloped character of our Puhoi above all else. Another thing is that they do not value the Bohemian history very much, if at all.
Since Larry’s proposal was overwhelmingly defeated and the Puhoi Museum is in an impossible situation (the Church want them out of the Convent and they haven’t got enough room in the Convent anyhow), can I suggest a posible solution.
Why not shift the Puhoi Bohemian Museum to Walkworth? They have room for another building.Can I suggest a survey on the historical character of our village?

Turn the old A&P stock yards into a shade-house to grow native seedlings for replanting in the park. It wouldn’t need a lot to set up. A simple shade cover over it and the tops of the pens could become benches for plants. It would be a great little community activity growing trees from seeds – very accessible for most ages and abilities.

Utilize the facilities to reflect on the heritage of the village and to provide some areas for all of the community to be proud of. There is sufficient area for all to enjoy and how long before the horses are banned due to the housing influx over the next 10-15 years. The prospect of having a few buildings as per the sketch plan provided by the PLHVP is worth considering.

A track where you can walk the dog.

On the one hand I am totally against rampant development in Puhoi but on the other hand I was disappointed by the recent Puhoi River Park Survey results rejecting the proposed Puhoi Heritage Village (which included a new Bohemian Museum) being built in the River Park. Our Museum needs room to grow and the Puhoi River Park could provide room for growth. We could easily support a modern museum in Puhoi the size of the Warkworth Museum. The question is where will the Puhoi Museum go now if it is to grow? For example, could the proposed Heritage Village be located by the Puhoi Cheese Factory and a visitor hub be created there? Unfortunately, I imagine that to be viable it would need to be built on council land and the only council land I know of in Puhoi is the River Park. Personally I would like to see BOTH Puhoi’s unique Bohemian history and it’s charming rural nature preserved. Is that too much to ask?

River Park Use Survey

Sarah Churchouse has kindly donated the results of the independent survey she circulated on our use and aspirations for the Puhoi River Park. The survey received a large number of responses (125). Here are the summarized results and the full (anonymized) replies.

The survey by Puhoi Community Forum looking asking for ideas for small, locally resourced projects for the park  is still open. Please take the time to respond to this to help prioritise our community efforts.

 

 

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