Photo from the Te Horo Hall website
Otaki TodayThe Te Horo Hall is a taonga – a treasure – for our community.
The land it sits on was gifted by local farmers in 1914. They saw it as a meeting place for the growing area. The piles were built from local tōtara. Over the years various alterations and upgrades have occurred.
Now, 110 years on, the hall requires significant seismic strengthening to bring it up to earthquake code compliance, which will cost $320,000. It is planned to undertake this work in the third quarter of 2024.
An extensive fundraising programme is under way. The impressive events include Sunday farm walks, quiz evenings, alfresco lunch, a Tour de Te Horo cycle ride, and a Kāpiti Brass Band concert. In November, it’s hoped to run the popular country garden tour again, which last occurred in 2019.
One of the wonderful additional benefits to the fundraising, is how it is helping connect and build community. With the new State Highway 1 expressway cutting right through rural Te Horo, we now have a safe overbridge crossing between Hautere and the beach area. This is often a mental division and some beach residents might not have ever visited the hall. I hope folks use this opportunity to meet locals they don’t know and see some of the amazing experiences right here.
The hall is owned by the community, not Kāpiti Coast District Council. It is the only community facility in Te Horo and is included in the council’s schedule of historic heritage buildings. The Hall Society is an incorporated society and a registered charity.
The hall hosts more than 200 events a year. It is also our emergency hub for a civil defence emergency. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to strengthen the hall, and I encourage everyone to get behind this wonderful project. Everything is on the website: TeHoroHall.org.nz
Electricity infrastructure upgrade
Te Horo Beach has had consistent electricity supply incidents. Electra has installed a remotely controlled 11kV switch that allows for a high-voltage line to be reconfigured providing an alternate feed to supply the beach village.
The backup line would be used in the event of a fault in the network between Te Horo Beach Road and the zone substation in Ōtaki. The remote automation allows control centre operators to begin restoration while fault crews are travelling to the site, saving about 20 minutes in travelling time.
When the power goes off at Te Horo Beach, residents lose power to water pumps, meaning no power, no water, or even flush the loo! The village has been subjected to isolation from flooding on the Beach Road, with no public transport and numerous lengthy power outages.
It’s great to see this investment into what the rest of the region has.
Next Waikanae Community Board meeting 7pm Tuesday, May 21, Waikanae Community Centre, 28 Utauta St.
Michael is deputy chair of the Waikanae Community Board.
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