407 days ago

Senior Constable Don Allan's monthly newsletter

Colleen from Onehunga

Hi Neighbours,
Don has lots of excellent information to promote your wellbeing and safety.
I'm going to email Don about the rather disturbing & very dangerous posts on Neighbourly of people chasing "strangers off their property " I feel that sooner or later there's going to be an ambulance required by a resident , I've had prowlers on my property many years ago, I know how the adrenalin kicks in to chase them ! I personally would recommend, lock your doors & windows , try to get a description of the person, what they're wearing, height, gender etc and call 111. I believe from past information from Police that if you call 111 and the dog squad is available they have a good chance of tracking the person, whereas not so much if you have been chasing the person up/down the road.
Regards
Colleen
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In the newsletter there's an article of fraudulent/counterfeit bank notes , particularly the $50 & $100 notes. ( see page 4)

Here's Don's latest update for us and the full newsletter is attached below : On 6 October police dealt with another dirt bike rider tearing up our residential streets. He was arrested on other matters in addition to his motor cycle being pink stickered. This person has been issued with a number of traffic offence notices and has a cancelled drivers licence. ( see page 3)
Please notify police immediately on 111 if you observe activity of this nature.
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Onehunga Crime Summary for incidents during August 2023 ( see page 6)
Last month, resident on Onehunga reported a twenty-one percent increase in property crime compared to incidents reported throughout August 2023.
This increase was associated to an increase in vehicle related crime with eleven additional incidents of vehicle theft and four more thefts from cars.
The streets with multiple reported incidents were:
Onehunga Mall (12 incidents) 5 x burgs, 5 x stolen motor vehicles 2 x theft ex-cars
Church St (7 incidents) 1 x burg, 2 x stolen motor vehicles, 4x theft ex- cars
Princes St (4 incidents) 4 x theft ex-cars
Mays Rd ( 3 incidents) 3 x burgs
Arthur St ( 3 incidents) 1 x burg, 2 x stolen vehicles Symonds St (3 incidents) 2 x burgs, 1 x stolen vehicles Pleasant St (3 incidents) 2 x burglaries, 1 x stolen vehicles Trafalgar St (3 incidents) 1 x burg, 2x stolen vehicles Selwyn St (2 incidents) 2 x burgs
Namata Rd (2 incidents) 2 x burgs
Mariri Rd (2 incidents) 2 x burgs
Mt Smart Rd (2 incidents) 1 x burg, 1 x theft ex-car Normans Hill Rd (2 incidents) 1 x burglary 1 x stolen vehicle Captain Springs Rd (2 incidents) 2 x stolen vehicles
Rawhiti Rd (2 Incidents), 2 x theft ex-car,
Alfred St (2 incidents) 2 x stolen vehicles

October Newsletter 2023.pdf Download View

More messages from your neighbours
16 minutes ago

THE ORNAMENTAL BRICK COTTAGE (corner Trafalgar & Manukau)

Cyril Skilton from Onehunga Fencible & Historical Society Inc.

Corner called Robin's Corner after grocers shop there.

Passengers on all types of conveyances, Horse drawn bus from the late 1870's, then Electric trams from 1903 to 1956, and Diesel and Trolley buses from 1956, down to the present day, evinced an absorbing interest in the brick cottage which stood in Trafalgar Street, adjacent to Manukau Road, Onehunga.

The neat appearance, clean and wholesome, looking as though it was hosed down every day of its existence, was the subject of much speculation of latter day viewers. There were to be found in the ranks of the historians of Onehunga, some who said that the pretty little cottage had been built by a New Zealand Royal Fencible in the 1847-56 period. Others, however, considered it was erected by a discharged Fencible in the 1860s. Some said it was erected by the Government for the senior-sergeant of Fencibles stationed in Onehunga.

All conjectures of the would-be-pundits led to a private investigator delving into the old records to answer an inquiry directly submitted to the Onehunga Borough Council by an Arts Diploma holder of the Elam School of Arts. The Town Clerk, the late Mr. Norman L. Norman ascertained from a reliable source that the brick cottage stood on a part allotment of land which belonged to John Beattie, a Fencible, ex¬ Royal Marines, who came to New Zealand with the Fifth Division of pensioners on the troopship "Berhampore" arriving at Auckland on June, 16th, 1849. The original grant of a contracted area of land, something greater than one acre, situated at the corner of Manukau Road and Trafalgar Street, was issued to John Beattie in 1856. The corner, thereafter, was known as Beattie's Corner, and retained this appellation until Mr. J. Robins built his store in the late 1880's on a site opposite to John Beattie's acre, when the name was Robin's corner, supplanting Beattie's Corner.

The purchaser of the section on which the cottage stood was Thomas Henry Massey, believed to be a Midlander from England. Massey was noted for his flair for artistic construction in brick and it is said that he was responsible for the design of the facades of the Branches erected by the Auckland Savings Bank in Newmarket and Onehunga in 1885.

The house in Trafalgar street, with a chimney at either end, its slate roof and white stone ornamental facings, was an object of interest to local residents and horse drawn bus passengers as well, while it was being erected.

The bricks were made at Avondale to Massey's specifications, and any that did not measure up to the standard required by the builder were rejected.

The actual year in which the cottage was built is not recorded in archives of the Borough Council. But two residents who were asked about 30 years ago, (1934) to fix a year which would be approximately correct, said that the cottage was occupied by Thomas Massey in 1878.

The edifice being finished off at the present moment is a bit different from what was originally there as described above.

8 hours ago

Live Q&A: Garden maintenance with Crewcut

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

This Wednesday, we're having another Neighbourly Q&A session. This time with John Bracewell from Crewcut.

John Bracewell, former Black Caps coach turned Franchisee Development Manager and currently the face of Crewcut’s #Movember campaign, knows a thing or two about keeping the grass looking sharp—whether it’s on a cricket pitch or in your backyard!

As a seasoned Crewcut franchisee, John is excited to answer your lawn and gardening questions. After years of perfecting the greens on the field, he's ready to share tips on how to knock your garden out of the park. Let's just say he’s as passionate about lush lawns as he is about a good game of cricket!

John is happy to answer questions about lawn mowing, tree/hedge trimming, tidying your garden, ride on mowing, you name it! He'll be online on Wednesday, 27th of November to answer them all.

Share your question below now ⬇️

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6 days ago

Poll: When should the tree go up? 🎄

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

From what we've heard, some Christmas trees are already being assembled and decorated.

What are your thoughts on the best time to get your Christmas tree up?

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When should the tree go up? 🎄
  • 4.6% Second half of November
    4.6% Complete
  • 43.5% 1st December
    43.5% Complete
  • 17.5% A week before Christmas
    17.5% Complete
  • 33.3% Whenever you wish
    33.3% Complete
  • 1.1% Other - I'll share below
    1.1% Complete
2338 votes