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Puhoi residents are being asked for their ideas and images of what’s important for the community’s future, as part of the post-2023 flood recovery process.
The historic riverside community was inundated three times when the Auckland Anniversary floods, Cyclone Gabrielle and other storms hit the town two years ago and now Auckland Council is spearheading local-led recovery planning in the worst-affected places.
Resilient Puhoi residents had already started an emergency group, which has now morphed into Puhoi Vision & Action, with the aim of engaging the community in a wider discussion of future needs as well as disaster resilience.
Three local women – Sarah Churchouse, Fran Endemann and Pip Stocking – are the driving force behind the new group, which they say is dedicated to engaging and connecting the community to shape a shared vision, support growth and take meaningful action.
Their first major event, Love Puhoi – Share Your Vision, takes place at the Puhoi Centennial Hall on Saturday and Sunday, May 24 and 25, from 10am to 2pm.
This will feature a major photo competition and exhibition with seven categories: Community; Environment; Friends & Family; 2023 Floods; Businesses, Clubs or Groups; Under-16s; and People’s Choice – with a $50 gift card for the winning shot.
The group has also distributed a survey to residents and asked what people would like to see for Puhoi in future via community social media pages. Future activities will include pizza nights, visiting groups and organisations, and a mail drop in the Puhoi postal boxes.
Council is funding a facilitator, Denise Bijoux, to help Puhoi Vision & Action get thoughts and ideas from as wide a section of the community as possible and sort through all the responses.
“It’s not just disaster resilience but open engagement and future development,” Bijoux said. “We’re looking at what people love about Puhoi, what they want to keep and what they want to change to make it all better.
“The photo competition is just a really visual way we can see what’s important to people and what they want to save. It’s not about great photography, but the community and what the community values.”
She says after extensive consultation, her business will analyse all the data gathered, looking for themes and priorities, before presenting back to the community in July so everyone can work out what’s most important to do next.
A council spokesperson stressed that the process would be community-led throughout.
“Auckland Council’s role will be to support this planning, with a focus on building community capability, strengthening networks and communication, and enabling local leadership,” they said.
“Once communities have identified their recovery aspirations, council will support them to implement their ideas and link them into opportunities, with a focus on building their capacity.”
Info: Puhoi Vision & Action on Facebook. Anyone wanting to enter the Love Puhoi photo competition should email a JPEG image and their name to puhoivisionandaction@gmail.com
