Lynfield, Auckland

It's a little thing!

It's a little thing!

Update your profile photo so neighbours can recognise you and start chatting!

1597 days ago

Auckland drought: Taps will be turned off over summer if dry weather continues

Brian from New Lynn

Auckland Mayor Phil Goff says without enough rain in winter and spring, the city's water supply will plummet to 200 million litres of water a day at the height of summer when usage peaks at 600 million litres a day. Since May 16, outdoor water restrictions across the city have set water usage … View moreAuckland Mayor Phil Goff says without enough rain in winter and spring, the city's water supply will plummet to 200 million litres of water a day at the height of summer when usage peaks at 600 million litres a day. Since May 16, outdoor water restrictions across the city have set water usage targets for 410 million litres a day or less. Aucklanders have also been encouraged to limit showers to four minutes. The dams were 44.8 per cent full yesterday when normally they would be 78.4 per cent full. Goff said planning has started for a worst case scenario, which includes options for turning off water for part of the day and reducing water pressure to a trickle in homes, which use 70 per cent of the city's dwindling water supply. Businesses would also face disruption in the post-Covid economic recovery phase "which we desperately want to avoid", he said. The shortage of water in Auckland's nine dams is due to a significant lack of rain, including 78 days with less than 1mm of rain from January 20 to April 6. The region has recorded less than half of its normal rainfall since November last year. This week, Watercare invoked emergency power to take an extra 15 million litres of water a day from the Waikato River to increase production from the river to 165 million litres a day and reduce demand on the region's drought-hit dams. The council-owned water company has brought a dam in Papakura and a bore in Pukekohe back into service that will add 11 million litres of water a day. Watercare is also negotiating with Hamilton City Council to use 25 million litres a day of the council's allocation on a temporary basis, and has had a resource consent application before the Waikato Regional Council since 2013 to take a further 200 million litres of water a day.
Watercare chief executive Raveen Jaduram said the situation was becoming critical. "This week we received a seasonal weather forecast suggesting the rest of winter and spring will be drier than normal," said Jaduram, adding that as well as Watercare increasing water sources, Aucklanders need to do their bit and reduce their water use by at least 20 litres a day per person. Goff said the use of emergency power highlighted the urgency of the situation and the need to explore every single source of water supply to head off the crisis. He too urged people to reduce water usage. The mayor had some stern words for Watercare, saying it provided high quality water and wastewater but had not planned adequately for exceptional weather conditions and severe drought.
"That is what we are facing at the moment. I think this is a wake-up call for them," he said. Goff also wants Watercare to consider temporary or long-term desalination, recycling of wastewater and making it easier for people to install water tanks in urban areas. He said a report is coming from council strategy chief Megan Tyler to look at scrapping resource consents for water tanks and providing incentives for people to use rainwater to water the garden, wash the house and car, and feed through the toilet system. Rainwater tanks are compulsory on most new houses in Sydney to meet a mains water saving target of 40 per cent. Auckland councillor Daniel Newman, who has worked for Watercare, said dealing with consenting issues to install water tanks is a modest suggestion.
The bigger issue, he said, has been the planning failure to address water security and transport while tackling the housing crisis. "Packing in housing, whether townhouses, apartments, greenfield subdivisions and infill housing has triggered more and more demand for services that we simply do not have. "Warning of chronic infrastructure deficits were ignored when preparing the Auckland Unitary Plan," Newman said.
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1598 days ago

Inorganics Collections are back

The Team from Auckland Council

Inorganic collections were paused due to COVID19. But we are now resuming the service on 1 July 2020, so don’t delay book your inorganics collection today.

On your collection day, please check:
• There is no more than one cubic metre of material
• Items are easy to access … View more
Inorganic collections were paused due to COVID19. But we are now resuming the service on 1 July 2020, so don’t delay book your inorganics collection today.

On your collection day, please check:
• There is no more than one cubic metre of material
• Items are easy to access within the boundary of your property
• Items can be easily lifted by two people (less than 55kg)
• There are no hazardous items in your load.

It's as easy as that.

With your help, we can all participate to make Auckland zero waste to landfill by 2040.
Find out more

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1598 days ago

Free 2 Seater Blue Couch/Sofa

Manoj from Avondale

2 Seater Blue couch from pet and smoke free home.
Pick up from Avondale

Free

1601 days ago

Cable Bay Adventure Park's Skywire ride takes you flying over treetops

Trupti Biradar Reporter from Stuff Travel

Nelson is home to the world's longest flying fox. Would you give it a go?

1598 days ago

Tools

John from Blockhouse Bay

Urgent sale need to get to South Island.john 0276615983

Negotiable

1599 days ago

Last chance small business owners!

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

It’s your final chance to grab our 3-month Premium Business Listing for FREE.

Usually $150, your 3-month Premium Listing enables you to reach thousands of people who live around your business! Find friendly locals who want your services, introduce your team and share what makes you stand out… View more
It’s your final chance to grab our 3-month Premium Business Listing for FREE.

Usually $150, your 3-month Premium Listing enables you to reach thousands of people who live around your business! Find friendly locals who want your services, introduce your team and share what makes you stand out from the rest.

There's no catches and no hidden fees. It's just our small way of saying thank you for playing such an essential part in our communities.

Grab a FREE 3 Month Premium Business Listing now. (Feel free to share the news with your fellow small business owners too!)

*offer ends 30th June.
Get 3 Months Free

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1599 days ago

Children Holiday Art Workshops (5 to 12 years)

Leilani from Art with Leilani

Wondering what activities to do with your children over the July holidays? Bring them to our Mini Masters workshops to do creative art activities of famous artists.
Contact Leilani on 022 680 5389 for more information and bookings.

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1601 days ago

Rental Properties ??

Peter from New Lynn

Please does anyone know of any reasonably priced one or two bedroom houses\flats\units available for rent in West Auckland?? My home suffered a fire on Sunday afternoon and is uninhabitable for up to twelve months while the insurance carries out necessary repairs, so am homeless, I don't meet … View morePlease does anyone know of any reasonably priced one or two bedroom houses\flats\units available for rent in West Auckland?? My home suffered a fire on Sunday afternoon and is uninhabitable for up to twelve months while the insurance carries out necessary repairs, so am homeless, I don't meet the criteria for help from any of the emergency accommodation agencies simply because I am in full time employment

1602 days ago

Many Kiwis have lost jobs or taken pay cuts. So why are MPs still on full salaries? Jacinda Ardern's promised pay cuts for MPs yet to kick in

Brian from New Lynn

Two months after Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern promised MPs would take a Covid-related pay cut to save millions of dollars they all continue to receive full salaries. Ardern declared in mid-April that she and her Government ministers would surrender parts of their salaries to show solidarity with … View moreTwo months after Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern promised MPs would take a Covid-related pay cut to save millions of dollars they all continue to receive full salaries. Ardern declared in mid-April that she and her Government ministers would surrender parts of their salaries to show solidarity with Kiwi workers who were asked to make the sacrifice and help the economy. At the time, Ardern said the pay cuts for ministers, as well as top civil servants, would save roughly $2.4 million and were designed to "show leadership". However the Herald can reveal that the pay cuts have still yet to kick in - and will not start until July 9. She announced the pay cuts, which were to last for six months, on April 15. Ardern said then that while the fiscal impact was minimal, the pay cuts would show solidarity while other workers were facing pay cuts to get through the Covid-19 hit. "We feel acutely the struggle that many New Zealanders are facing, and so to do the people I work with on a daily basis," she said on April 15. "It stands alongside many actions taken by many people, private sector, citizens, to tackle the health and economic challenges of Covid-19." Around New Zealand, employees in many companies have been asked to take a pay cut – for the vast majority of them that happened almost instantly. But it will take took nearly three months to action due to the bureaucratic process involved in slashing the pay levels. Ardern's pay will drop from the equivalent of $471,049 a year to $376,840 for six months, according to the amended rules around MPs' pay. That represents a 20 per cent pay cut. The Deputy Prime Minister's pay also drops by 20 per cent; Winston Peters goes from the equivalent of $334,734 a year to $267,788. And all ministers go from the equivalent of $296,007 a year to $236,806 – also a 20 per cent reduction. MPs, who are not ministers, party leaders or chairs of select committees, have taken a 10 per cent, $16,000 pay cut –down to the equivalent of $147,565 a year. Act leader David Seymour is critical of how long it took for the pay cuts to come into effect. He said it showed that the Government didn't have a plan to put the idea into practise. "If we were talking about increasing MPs pay, it would have happened by now." Dame Fran Wilde, the chairwoman of the Remuneration Authority which sets MPs' pay and decides on any increases, said the process around pay cuts was complicated and lengthy. The authority was unable to start work on the pay cuts until the bill, which gave the authority the power to make the changes, went through the House. Because of the way MPs' pay works, the Remuneration Authority has the final say on pay levels. The bill made changes to the law governing MPs' pay to make the temporary up to 20 per cent six-month pay cut. That bill was passed unanimously in Parliament last month. Last month in an email to MPs – obtained by the Herald – Wilde said the authority was considering looking at a sliding scale for MPs' pay levels. But the final decision appears to be that MPs take a 10 per cent cut for six months. Asked about the delay, Wilde, a former Labour MP, said putting the pay cuts into effect has been a significant amount of work. The bill related to not just MPs, but also public sector bosses, mayors and councillors. She said that amounted to "many hundreds of people" receiving the pay cut and many members of the Remuneration Authority only work part-time. Seymour said New Zealanders had made extraordinary sacrifices and were feeling the serious economic pain of Covid-19.
"It's crucial that MPs show solidarity and share in those sacrifices."
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1599 days ago

Celebrate Success

NumberWorks'nWords New Lynn

Children love being recognised for their efforts and achievements – and we love to give them that recognition. We celebrate your child’s maths and English achievements, big and small. Tutoring at NumberWorks’nWords is based on success. Each child feels more confident about themselves as a … View moreChildren love being recognised for their efforts and achievements – and we love to give them that recognition. We celebrate your child’s maths and English achievements, big and small. Tutoring at NumberWorks’nWords is based on success. Each child feels more confident about themselves as a learner when they experience success. Tutors provide positive interaction, certificates are awarded and centre-wide celebration is given when students move up a level. You may have been in the centre and heard the clapping and cheering when this happens. It’s so rewarding to see the smiles on the children’s faces and how proud they are of their achievements.

1601 days ago

This small lovely cat needs a home...

Esther from Avondale

THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR YOUR INTEREST IN MABEL! WE THINK WE'VE NOW FOUND HER A SUITABLE HOME.
Mabel is a small black and white cat of 1-2 years of age. She loves people and is extremely affectionate. She has been spayed, vaccinated and microchipped and is in good health. She needs a home.
View more
THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR YOUR INTEREST IN MABEL! WE THINK WE'VE NOW FOUND HER A SUITABLE HOME.
Mabel is a small black and white cat of 1-2 years of age. She loves people and is extremely affectionate. She has been spayed, vaccinated and microchipped and is in good health. She needs a home.
Mabel was abandoned by one of our neighbours when he moved back to Australia just before lockdown. She was malnourished and neglected. We took her to the vet to have her spayed etc and have been feeding her over lockdown, but cannot keep her.
We have let Mabel inside from time to time, and she is not litter trained. She needs someone who is prepared to train her and give her lots of love. Please message me if you are interested in giving Mabel a home or want to find out more. If you're interested, you are very welcome to come and meet Mabel before deciding.
Thank you,
Esther

1599 days ago

Impress your neighbours with this garden feature

The Team from Resene ColorShop New Lynn

A simple yet stylish herb planter that uses four differently sized terracotta pots and a selection of cool Resene colours.

Make the most of this weekend with this easy step by step project idea from Resene. Find out how to create this quick and easy project yourself.

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