Waikato Times

‘I’m just a normal person’

Newly minted Dame Susan Hassall says she’s “just a normal person” but is deeply proud that her role in education has been recognised. Hassall, who led Hamilton Boys’ High School for decades and has spent almost 50 years in education, said being named...

Consent carrot helpful, but not huge: councils

Budget 2026 may not have been a lolly scramble, but Waikato councils were pleased to find a financial carrot aimed at supporting growth. The $400 million, four-year Housing Growth Incentive Fund has been dubbed “small change”, but will essentially pay...

Fiscal goals v coalition reality

All Budgets are balancing acts. This one was no different. What was different was that it is an election year and yet there were no blatant sweeteners for the median voter. Instead, this was a document designed to confer on the coalition parties both...

Woman who took $823k jailed

A woman working for a charitable organisation who stole the best part of a million dollars from it can now be named – although the organisation itself must remain shrouded in secrecy. Melanie Sarah Raumiria Kingi, 46, was jailed for five years and...

Homegrown’s $10m haul for city

Jim Beam Homegrown boosted Hamilton’s coffers to the tune of $10 million in its first year back in the city – and organisers say the festival is set to get bigger from here. After glowing reviews from attendees and residents alike, the success of the...

Stars’ tributes to Dame Jools

A cultural institution, a consummate entertainer, a tireless political activist and a powerful ambassador of goodness. Jools Topp was all of these things and a lot more besides, say those who worked with her and alongside her in New Zealand’s...

Dad backs bike crackdown

The father of a girl hospitalised after being smashed into by a dirt bike rider in Taupō is backing a police crackdown on “anti-social road users”, saying the men who hurt his daughter should be made examples of. Illegal dirt bike riding across the...

Will surfing’s big show return?

A week of small swell has done little to diminish the chances of the world’s premier surfers returning to compete in Raglan next year and beyond. Actually, in an ironic kind of way, the run of lay days at the historic New Zealand Pro could have even...

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City could get 815 more homes

Hamilton could get 73 hectares bigger if a major new housing development gets the tick to restart growth in the city’s north east. An application for 815 residential lots and a 4000m² neighbourhood centre near Reynolds Rd, eight minutes from Rototuna...

Street racer activity ‘relentless’

Residents in the north Waikato town of Waiterimu fear someone will be seriously hurt as ongoing street racer activity plagues the area with sleepless nights, dangerous driving and property damage. The rural settlement, northeast of Huntly, was...

Businesses ride surf wave

Raglan businesses are already feeling the good vibes from the WSL event with the town’s population swelling to summer highs and cafes doing record numbers. After a cracking start to the World Surf League Corona Cero NZ Pro event, the town was still...

Pull out or pay up – mayor

The company behind a controversial Te Awamutu waste-to-energy plant has been given a blunt ultimatum from the district’s mayor: “pull out or pay up”. The message from Waipā mayor Mike Pettit comes almost a year after hearings into the proposed $200...

Waikato towns to benefit from trainee doctors

Waikato’s smaller towns are set to benefit from an influx of student doctors with at least four training hubs as part of a $20 million network of “satellite campuses”. Tokoroa, Te Kūiti, Thames and Taupō all seem set to become homes for students...

City’s billion-dollar debt

Hamilton City Council’s rising debt has exploded past $1 billion, making the city one of the nation’s most indebted. As of March 31, the council’s external debt now sits at $1.088 billion and is expected to reach $1.134 billion by the end of...

Parents assault kids at match

Parents punched two children and put another in a headlock at an under-14 school rugby match between two Hamilton high schools. The shocking sideline fracas at a St John’s College and Fraser High School match on Saturday left one player with a black...

Dad speaks out over crash

The father of a 13-year-old Taupō girl seriously hurt in a hit-and-run crash with a dirt bike says the rider should “man up”, and take responsibility for his actions by handing himself into police. David “Chunkz” Vincent said his daughter’s life would...

Firefighters’ daring rescue

In an unfamiliar house filled with toxic smoke blacker than the already dark night, George Meade worked his way along the wall by feel alone. Somewhere inside the Chartwell house lay a couple depending on Meade and his fellow firefighters – armed only...

Meet the nation’s recidivists

Meet our worst shoplifters. There are 19 of them in Waikato and 917 nationwide, men and women aged between 27 to 37, and they favour perfume, chocolate, meat and electronic devices . These are the people designated by police as New Zealand’s high...

Huge payoff from World Surf League

Surfing doesn’t get any bigger than this. Millions of surf fans from Brazil, the US, Australia and Europe will be glued to their phones and screens as the World Surf League entourage drops in to Raglan on May 15 to pit the world’s top 36 men and 24...

City Hall mulls next move

How big is too big and how fast is too fast? that’s the quandary Hamilton’s city leaders were left in after the Government’s shock demand that all councils look to form unitary authorities. Speaking at a Hamilton City Council meeting yesterday, Mayor...

City’s growth to surpass Welly

Forget Wellington – Hamilton is on track to overtake the capital within 14 years. New University of Waikato projections show the city’s population could climb to 242,716 by 2040, cementing its status as New Zealand’s fastest-growing city. Hamilton’s...

Chip in and help, say mayors

The Government is giving the Waikato’s 11 councils three months to amalgamate their organisations - or it will do it for them. However, mayors and chairs in the Waikato say the largest reform of local government in 40 years will cost ratepayers even...

The science to stronger hair

Jenny-May’s reinvention Why she’s focused on physical transformation and mental wellbeing. Hair damage is a common struggle. For those of us who love to colour, style, or use heat tools, the battle against split ends, breakage, and dullness can feel...

Cheers for the vote of conf idence

Winner of the most trusted retirement village brand. Thank you to everyone in New Zealand who voted for us. A special shout-out to our residents too, for making Summerset communities warm and welcoming. Come and see for yourself what makes Summerset...

Waikato Hospital parking crisis

Finding a park at Waikato Hospital has become increasingly difficult, with patients and visitors searching surrounding streets and staff facing a waitlist of more than two years. While Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora (Health NZ) says it is working to...

Trolley issue trundles on

A new report into Hamilton’s problems with abandoned shopping trolleys has been ordered, following an impassioned plea from the Hamilton Central Business Association. A 15-page Hamilton City Council report was prepared recently after councillors asked...

Father’s ‘loss upon loss’

The father of a boy killed by his sister after she smoked cannabis and drove one of SH1’s most dangerous stretches overtaking at speed has left the country to avoid the constant reminders of his loss. The tragic details were revealed at the sentencing...

Employee rips off charity

A Waikato woman working for a taxpayerand donation-funded charitable organisation that helps vulnerable people in the community systematically stole the best part of a million dollars from it. The 46-year-old woman pleaded guilty to a single charge of...

Homegrown’s future sealed

It’s official: Homegrown will return to Hamilton next year and it’s set to be bigger than ever. “People didn’t think that Hamilton could pull it off, but now they’re saying we did,” Jim Beam Homegrown chief executive Andrew Tuck said. He’s confirmed...

Long wait for water connection

Property developers in Te Awamutu, Kihikihi and Pirongia will be unable to obtain new water connection consents for at least three years. It follows the closure of Te Tahi water treatment plant after suffering extensive damage in February’s weather...

Top Aussie songwriter Barnett heading to BNZ Theatre

Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett is the latest in a growing list of top-level musicians to book dates at Hamilton’s new BNZ Theatre. Known for her performances that are part intimate storytelling, part indie rock with bursts of raw,...

Boat owner still to surface

A sunken ship has been salvaged from the bottom of Thames Wharf, but the truth about who owns it has yet to surface. The MV Gleaner – or Rewa Rules as locals know it – sunk as Cyclone Vaianu swept over Thames-Coromandel. Depending on who the Waikato...

From paddocks to suburb

A half-billion-dollar project to unlock one of Hamilton’s biggest future suburbs has wrapped up early and under budget – paving the way for thousands of new homes south of the city. After eight years of construction, 243 hectares in Peacocke is now...

Homeless issue frustrates

It felt like Groundhog Day for one city councillor and another reported crying in frustration as they once again grappled with responding to homelessness. “Streeties” have been under the spotlight in Hamilton, with talk of closing off an inner-city...

Heartbreak for Ōhura locals

Ōhura locals are burying lambs and scraping mud off their floors in the wake of floods that forced many to evacuate in the night. The floods came without warning, locals say, but the isolated community has a ‘get stuck in’ attitude as it takes stock...

Kiwi trio confirmed for world surf event

A dramatic showdown at Manu Bay has locked in New Zealand’s representatives for next month’s World Surf League Championship Tour event in Raglan, with Alani Morse and Tom Butland joining Billy Stairmand after a close fought qualifying battle. Crowds...

Meth in the suburbs

Anna* is sitting at the lunch table on her first day in rehab, her hands never still as she talks – fingers picking at each other, tapping lightly on the surface, shifting her mug from one hand to another and back again. She hasn’t been sleeping, she...

Trailer death driver jailed

The man driving an unwarranted, rust-weakened trailer that snapped and sent a boat hurtling into another car, killing a young mother, has been jailed for two years and four months. Roger Sydney Samson, 19, was sentenced at Te Kūiti District Court...

Sweet success, despite the cost

Raglan Chocolate Available via raglanchocolate.co.nz and at select grocery stores The price of a choccy bar has jumped in the last few years, but the couple behind Raglan Chocolate haven’t let costs stop them. Mike Renfree, who co-owns Raglan...

Expressway forces family out

A final meal of fish and chips on the floor marked the end of nearly four decades in a Tirau Rd home for Serena and Geoff Fletcher. The property, opposite the Karāpiro Cafe, had been in Geoff Fletcher’s family since 1920 but is set to be demolished to...

Commuters hit pedal power

Rising fuel prices have got more people riding bikes in Hamilton CBD and also pushed up public transport use. Hamilton City Council data showed a 14% increase on expected cycling rates in March compared to 12 months prior (adjusted for weather), a...

Cyclone ‘no walk in the park’

About 20,000 sandbags were used to protect Thames-Coromandel from Cyclone Vaianu. And while there were reports of some “crazy” behaviour, overall the mayor is happy with how it went. The Coromandel Peninsula is set to enter recovery mode after the...

Last time a storm came

As the North Island braces itself for Cyclone Vaianu, one farmer says he is still cleaning up about $100,000 of damage from the last storms. In February, Tim Brittain, co-owner of Storth Oaks Angus, got caught in the Ōtorohanga floods, forcing him to...

Get your bike, mate Big boost for city's electric builder

A world-wide fuel crisis, cheaper pricing and growing demand for alternative modes of transport have seen Hamilton’s electric motorcycle manufacturer FTN Motion break sales records both here and across the Tasman. The company is now looking to cash in...

Surf mecca spruce-up

It has been a tough few years for long-time goat farmer Chris Savage, but for the first time since the downturn, he is looking forward to a rise in payout next season. In three years, the Dairy Goat Co-operative (DGC) lost half of its sales when their...

Iran war threat to rates?

The first impacts of the Iran war on Waikato ratepayers’ pockets are about to hit, with the conflict set to wreck council budgets and push up rates if it carries on. A delay in striking rates and councils needing more to cover rising inflation,...

Why this new SPF is a busy person's best friend

If you’ve ever looked at a 10-step skincare routine and thought, love the idea, simply don’t have the time, you’re not alone. Between work, school drop-offs, getting to the gym or just getting out the door, the ‘perfect’ morning routine can feel like...

Te Awa Lakes hits milestone

It has been 10 years in the making, but the first homes at Te Awa Lakes are finished and have hit the market, marking a major milestone for a city gateway suburb. It’s all go at Te Awa Lakes after the Government’s recent announcement of a special levy...

Easter double tragedy

Easter travel hangs in balance

Rising fuel prices are casting a shadow over Easter travel to parts of the Coromandel, with businesses reporting cancellations and concern about the months ahead. One business that would usually be fully booked in the popular tourist region is at 16%...

Easy Easter baking

EASTER SPECULOOS cupcakes Makes: 125g brown sugar 2 large free-range eggs 1 cup sunflower oil 1 cup cream 1½ cups speculoos cookie butter (such as Biscoff), melted 200g self-raising flour 250g cream cheese 100g icing sugar In a bowl, beat the...

Gardens fee hike on cards?

After netting over $4 million from its visitor attractions this summer, Hamilton City Council is eyeing hiking the entrance fee for its top-earner, Hamilton Gardens. In the last six months Hamilton Gardens was the stand-out in city-owned attractions,...

‘We’re not going to go back’

Six weeks after torrential rain devastated parts of Ōtorohanga, Kane Wharepouri is still coming to grips with the aftermath – and he won’t be going back to his flood-stricken home. When Wharepouri last spoke to the Waikato Times, his family –...

Father to son

The Jackson family has been farming in Te Akau for almost eighty years, and now they are continuing the tradition of passing the farm from father to son. John Jackson says that farming along almost six kilometres of coastline is a privilege, which he...

Swamped with visitors

After months of speculation it’s now official – visitor numbers at Putāruru’s Blue Spring – Te Waihou Walkway have more than doubled to 100,000 – leaving authorities grappling with the impact of over-tourism. A new report to the South Waikato District...

Changed man

It was code-hopping All Black Sonny Bill Williams who helped Tana Umaga realise he had to make some important personal changes to become a more effective rugby coach. That frank admission came during a reflective discussion with media at Moana...

Bite-sized buffet

build-your-own CROSTINI This is a fun way to feed a crowd. You can have some crostini ready in advance to inspire your guests and let them do the rest. It’s also easy to make seasonal adjustments. Prep: 20 minutes plus 15 minutes to rest Cook: 40...

Fuel at $3L and rising

We’re taking the bus or the train and trucking companies are getting slammed with price rises to simply stay on the road. Welcome to the world of $3 a litre plus for fuel. As the average price of 91 octane petrol across the country rose to $3.32L at...

Balloons light up the skies

Stunning weather arrived for the opening day of Balloons Over Waikato and it went off with a bang – namely, an epic fireworks display lighting up the skies at Waikato University. Waikato Times visual journalist Christel Yardley was there to capture...

Vagrant scourge could close plaza

COUNCIL An inner city homeless hotspot notorious for anti-social behaviour is being closed to the public – but Hamilton’s deputy mayor says it will be a “one-off”, not a long-term solution. Hamilton City Council’s central city revitalisation...

Luxury houses on market

More than a hundred $5 million plus properties newly available to well-heeled foreign buyers hit the market last year in Waikato. But one Hamilton real estate expert says Waikato may have to wait to feel the full effects of changes to “golden visa”...

Citrus hot seller

Main Street Cafe Huntly 122 Main St, Huntly Nearly a year after her pie won at the Bakels NZ Supreme Pie Awards, Ellie Linton-Brown says she’s still reaping the benefits. In 2025, her raspberry and rhubarb pie won the Cafe Boutique category at the...

JOE BENNETT

We don’t know his name but we can still feel sorry for him. The man – and it has to be a man, doesn’t it? – has just paid US$15 million for a guitar. It’s a 1969 Fender Stratocaster, nicknamed the Black Strat, which was last auctioned in 2019. Back...

Two hours free back on agenda

Parking pitch

Hospo at heart of milestone

Waikato shoppers spent more on their cards than those in Wellington for the fifth month in a row in February, a shift payments company Worldline says may signal a milestone in regional consumer spending patterns. New data shows retail card spending in...

Doubts, delays plague hotel scheme

DEVELOPMENT Templeton founder Nigel McKenna said in an interview at the time that the new building could possibly be roughly “90-100 metres tall” but might be more or less depending on what the final design includes. In a joint statement with the...

‘Huge opportunity’ in deal

Waikato businesses have a “huge opportunity” to break into one of the world’s fastest-growing markets under a proposed New Zealand-India free trade agreement, Trade and Investment Minister Todd McClay says. Speaking to about 80 people at a Waikato...

Homegrown heroes

The stages are set, the bar is waiting to be stocked, and even the toilets are standing ready. The single biggest entertainment event in Hamilton’s history will get under way at the Claudelands showgrounds at 1pm on Saturday. Sales for the Jim Beam...

Full refund ‘common sense’

The law blocking a full refund for a Hamilton woman who was overcharged rates for 21 years is “illogical”, a city councillor says. Sue Moroney was investigating the possibility of a refund to Progressive Pilates owner Sonia Lidington, who says the...

Side-by-side hustle

For months, Nicola Bradstreet and Will Jackson listed potential side hustles for the rural property they were buying. A couple of years later, one has turned into reality: a three-day walking retreat on the Wharepūhunga farm, south of Te Awamutu. The...

Body find may end mystery

A family member of missing Te Kūiti resident Colin “Col” Heath – who disappeared from home in March 2022 – reckons human remains discovered near State Highway 3 between Ōtorohanga and Te Awamutu are those of their loved one. Although police are yet to...

No buyers – and no help

Three years after Cyclone Gabrielle ravaged their Hamilton section, the Te Wharau family have no home to call their own, unsellable land, and no-one stepping up to help them. After demolishing the house for safety reasons, Michelle and Tepene Te...

Road changes ‘ridiculous’

Changes to a busy road in Hillcrest are being reviewed before they’re even finished after they “horrified” residents and shop owners. Local Murray Brown’s up in arms about the new layout on Cambridge Rd. Parking spaces have disappeared near Hillcrest...

Fight for 21-year rates refund

A pilates studio owner whose rates were overcharged for 21 years is fighting to get the money refunded by the city council. Progressive Pilates owner Sonia Lidington estimated she had paid an extra $20,000 over the years, and said Hamilton City...

Respite care in crisis

Family members caring for loved ones with dementia are having to book up to a year in advance for a day off as a crisis hits respite care availability across the Waikato. Carers with no options to take a break are themselves left facing a breakdown...