Hasn’t it been a lovely summer? We’re right back into the swing of things in Parliament this month, and as good as it is to be back in Wellington, I love the feeling of coming back to the Tāmaki community each week and feeling the warmth of people in our neighbourhoods as well as the sun (it seems to evade windy Welly!).
This month, I had the pleasure of re-visiting Remuera Gardens Village. I spoke with residents at the Village during the 2023 campaign and as I visited again to officiate the opening of new apartments this week it struck me how quickly time passes! The new Avenue Apartments are now open and they’re spectacular. Well done to all the team (architects, builders, and project managers) as I understand it was delivered under budget and well before time, this will come as welcome news to current residents too! Impressive.
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It was great to be out and about this week hosting a coffee catch up at Cigana in St Heliers. Thanks to all the locals who attended to have a catch up about issues on the mind. I heard a lot about dogs in parks and the council’s consultation to remove dogs from local parks, welfare and jobseeker support benefit issues, procurement, and a range of other topics. I appreciate all the feedback and information shared to me too. Let’s keep these informal catch ups coming!
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Outreach in St Heliers has been the focus of our electorate office for the month and we’ve loved seeing people in the community. We popped in to say hi to the new owner Suzelle at Cornerstone Jewellers and we’re pleased to see the business thriving. We also spent time bucket collecting for the Heart Foundation outside the library. Thank you to those who came past to give us friendly feedback as well as a few coins for a good cause. We also discussed local crime issues with the Police. Reminder: if you see something, say something. Call 105 to report any non-emergency concerns.
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We’re lucky to live in a lovely place in the world and it’s no surprise that many people choose to make Tāmaki home. Tāmaki is host to the Japanese Consulate-General and I spoke at the celebration of the Emperor’s Birthday at the residence in Glendowie. Not only was there great hospitality, I was asked to smash open the barrel of sake! Kampai!
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This week, we are hosting the Australian High Commissioner to speak about the NZ-Australian relationship on Friday 7 March from 1:30-2:30pm. Please do come along and RSVP to either mptamaki.parliament.govt.nz or by following this link. https://www.brookevanvelden.nz/070325 If you have any questions for the High Commissioner, please send them through. See you there!
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We say our last farewells to one of our volunteers Neil Kennedy who had a lovely send off at All Souls Chapel at Purewa on Wednesday. I have many memories of Neil out sign waving in frosty mornings with us. He always came along with a smile. It is a pleasure to get to know members of our community and they all touch our lives in unique ways. Go well Neil.
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Brooke van Velden
ACT Deputy Leader | MP for Tāmaki
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