Tēnā koutou katoa
I’m pleased to announce that we have welcomed a new Board Member, Kirsten Andrews, who will be representing Auckland Council on the Board. Kirsten started with us on 1 July and will be visiting some of our villages in the near future and introducing herself, as she learns more about us. Some of you may also have caught up with Stephen Titter, one of our long-standing Board Members, who visited villages in the North and West this month. Stephen has asked me to pass on this thanks to tenants for all their hospitality during his visits.
You might have seen some of the advertisements for our new subsidised rent option in your local newspaper or on Facebook. This rent option enables eligible seniors to rent selected units for 50% of market rent. I’m delighted to say that this offer is starting to be taken up, and tenants may have already welcomed some new neighbours into their village communities.
In the office, the annual visit by our auditors is currently underway, and the repairs and maintenance plan for the new financial year has begun. We’ve also started preparations for our annual report and, this year, we wish to invite tenants to share their housing story in the 2025 publication. If you would like to get involved in this way, please do let your Community Manager know.
Earlier this month, I participated in Lifewise’s ‘Big Sleepout’ initiative by sleeping outdoors on the ground on a chilly, rain-soaked night. This important event aims to raise awareness as well as vital funds for Auckland’s homeless whānau. At Haumaru, we are passionate about every older person having a place to call home that is warm and dry. The Big Sleepout experience has therefore left a real impact on me and underlined the importance of Haumaru continuing to grow its housing stock so that we can meet the housing needs of more older Aucklanders who are in need of a permanent, stable tenancy.
Next month will be the official opening of our new Greenslade village which will offer 52 warm, dry rental homes for seniors in the heart of the thriving, revitalised community of Northcote. Our new tenants are getting ready to move in, so it’s an exciting time for them. We’ll bring you more details of the opening celebrations in our next edition.
Should any tenants wish to join our tenant advisory group, do let us know via the Helpdesk. This group meets four times a year, and its input on a wide range of tenant-related matters is invaluable. Transport is provided, and the meetings also offer a chance to connect over a cup of tea with other tenants from across the Haumaru portfolio.
Finally, while the team at Haumaru have our own Haumaru karakia (prayer), we’re learning other karakia and I would like to share this one with you:
Kia hora te marino, Kia whakapapa pounamu te moana, Hei huarahi mō tātou i te rangi nei, Haumi ē, hui ē, tāiki ē!
May peace be widespread, May the seas be as flat as pounamu, To provide a path for us today, Join, group, and affirm!
Ka kite anō au i a koutou. Until next time.
Gillian Schweizer, Chief Executive Officer
All invited to ‘Westview Wednesdays’
‘Westview Wednesdays’ is a wonderful new tenant-led initiative to boost social connection and contact between neighbours which has recently got underway at Glen Eden’s Westview Village. Tenants are invited to go along every Wednesday morning to the village community house to have a chat with their fellow villagers, enjoy a cuppa or take part in a board game or game of cards in the friendly and sociable environment. Everyone is welcome, and tenants’ ideas for how they might like to spend their future Westview Wednesdays together are also warmly received, so that there’s always something for everyone. It's all about conversation, fun and companionship, so – Westview villagers – do come along next time and be part of something special in your village community.
Community and connection at Waimana Court
Nestled in a quiet, leafy residential area, Waimana Court in Conifer Grove is just steps away from Waiari Reserve and Waimana Reserve. With 21 units and 23 tenants in total, Waimana Court offers a welcoming environment where tenants can enjoy independent living while feeling part of a caring community. While each resident values their privacy, there’s also a strong sense of neighbourly connection. Whether it’s a friendly wave across the courtyard or a shared moment sitting under the village pergola enjoying the sunshine, tenants look out for one another in small but meaningful ways.
In August 2024, Waimana tenants celebrated an upgrade to the village pergola, with more seating space enabling greater opportunity to come together for social games and activities, chats and shared meals while enjoying each other’s company. 
This communal space has also welcomed many visitors from various community groups such as the Wastewise education team from Auckland Council, FENZ and the Community team from Te Ora Puāwai just to name a few.
With its warm sense of community and now an even more inviting shared space, Waimana Court continues to thrive as a place where friendships flourish and neighbours feel right at home.
Waimana Court tenants enjoying the shade offered by the pergola on a sunny day
New community house for Hutchinson Village
Tenants of Hutchinson Village in New Lynn are looking forward to many neighbourly get-togethers, following the opening of their new community house. Tenants and Haumaru staff came together for the formal opening ceremony on 22 July, with blessings led by Matua Dane and Willis from Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei. The new communal space, which has been converted from a village storage room, is now fitted out and furnished, providing a comfortable venue for villagers to socialise with one another and also enjoy with whānau.
Celebrating the opening of Hutchinson Village’s new community house.
Out and about
Haumaru Housing Board member Stephen Titter is pictured with Val Beachman of Takapuna’s Peggy Phillips Village during his day out visiting villages on the North Shore and in West Auckland with Community Manager Trudi.
Community Managers Tony, Nicky and Trudi recently spent a Saturday morning promoting our new subsidised rentals at Auckland’s Ōtara Markets.
Haumaru CEO Gillian Schweizer experienced a glimpse of life without shelter when she took part in Lifewise’s Big Sleepout fundraising event on 10 July.