Most of us in Tāmaki Makaurau remember the rain of early 2023. We remember the sound of it on the roof, the anxious checks of the weather app, and the mornings after when whole streets were counting the cost. In Northcote, a neighbourhood that had flooded for years, something different happened when Cyclone Gabrielle arrived. The water had somewhere to go.
That didn't happen by chance. It was the result of years of planning, planting and people working together, and it all centred on a stream most locals had never seen.
Since the 1950s, the Awataha Stream had been hidden in an underground pipe and built over by roads, homes, a sports field and the town centre. Out of sight, it lost much of its mauri, its life force, and every heavy downpour reminded the neighbourhood that the water still needed a path. Flooding in homes was a persistent problem, and in some streets it was so severe you could almost have kayaked down the road.
Regeneration working bees
The turning point came when the community started imagining something better. Mana whenua gifted the greenway its name, Te Ara Awataha and in 2017 and 2018 local schools and community groups shared their ideas for what it could become. Mana whenua, Eke Panuku and Healthy Waters (both part of Auckland Council), Kaipātiki Local Board and Kāinga Ora came together around a shared vision: a 1.5km green corridor that would bring the stream back into the light and connect the town centre, schools and homes. A few years later, sections of the stream were flowing in the open again.
Our part of the story began in March 2019, right where the stream begins. Its puna, or spring, rises in Papa ki Awataha (formerly known as Jessie Tonar Scout Reserve) at the end of Kākā Street, and that's where we started leading community regeneration days. Our first big job was tackling a large stand of running bamboo. Then came monthly working bees for weeding, planting and water quality monitoring, guided by Take Mauri Take Hono, the mauri framework developed by mana whenua.
What happened next is the part we love most. Neighbours started turning up, and some have come to every single regeneration day since 2019 and are still coming today. Schools, community groups, business teams and the Street Guardians, supported by Auckland City Mission and Tomorrow Inc, all joined in. Slowly, the reserve came alive with tuī, kererū, kōtare and tauhou, and then a kākā, the first seen locally in more than 30 years. After a year of monitoring, we found our first tuna | eel in the stream, followed by banded kōkopu and kōura.
Flood resilience in action
Further downstream, Te Kaitaka | Greenslade Reserve reopened in December 2022 as a sports park that doubles as a stormwater detention area, designed to hold floodwater safely during big storms. Just weeks later, Cyclone Gabrielle put it to the test, and together with the greenway, it worked exactly as it was meant to.
Flood resilience is only part of the picture, though. When we give a stream room to breathe, we also bring back homes for birds and fish, safe off-road paths for kids walking to school, and green spaces where neighbours can meet. That's why the mahi has been recognised with a Collaboration Award at the 2020 Mayoral Conservation Awards, a Kūmara Award in 2021 and several more along the way.
Photo: Courtesy of OurAuckland
Celebrating the completion of Te Ara Awataha
In 2026, the final town centre part of Te Ara Awataha came to life. In August, we joined the Northcote Intermediate students and Glasgow Contractors to plant 280 native grasses and plants. Then on 11 September, Mana Whenua blessed the section at dawn before it opened to the public, with more than 5,000 new native plants where a grass mound and car parks used to be. The full greenway will be complete when the upgraded Puāwai Cadness Reserve opens in late 2027.
None of this happened alone. It took Mana Whenua, council teams, Kāinga Ora, schools, community organisations, contractors and neighbours who kept showing up, month after month and year after year. Ngā mihi nui to everyone!
So next time heavy rain rolls over Northcote, take a moment to think about the stream quietly doing its job, and the many hands that made room for it. Those hands are still at work, and we'd love for you to add yours.
Make Your Mark nature event for all to join
Come and make your mark. On Saturday 14 November, from 10am to 1pm, we're gathering on Te Ara Awataha for a free morning of nature, creativity and community, and there really is something for everyone. You can get your hands in the soil at our regeneration working bee, see how flooding happens (and how to reduce it) at our interactive stream table, or join a streamside rubbish clean-up. There's nature journaling with botanical artist Lesley Alexander, bike skills with BigFoot Adventures (bikes provided), and a marbling workshop with Northart where you can design your own Guardian Creature, inspired by the ones Northcote Intermediate students created for the greenway. Come for one activity or stay for them all, and bring the whole whānau. A big thank you to Kāinga Ora, Kaipatiki Local Board and Auckland Council for supporting this event!
