104 | Mangawhai Heads Surf Club COMMUNITY Phone: 09 378 0619 Email: info@earthstability.co.nz www.earthstability.co.nz REQUEST A FREE CONSULTATION • Land Slip Repairs • All types of NHC/EQC work • Cliff & Slope Reinforcement / Strengthening • Retaining walls • Soilnails • Ground Anchors • Micropiles • Shotcrete/Sprayed concrete • Rope Access • Restricted Access • Cliff top property maintenance • Piling T T Anne Boswell New era for Mangawhai Heads Surf Club The reopening of the MHVLS clubhouse not only marks the end of a difficult journey but also signals the continuation of a vision to protect the thousands of swimmers and beachgoers who visit Mangawhai Heads each year. Two months on from officially reopening its doors, the Mangawhai Heads Volunteer Lifeguard Service (MHVLS) clubhouse is once again fulfilling the role it was built for — serving as the operational and social heart of one of Northland’s busiest surf beaches. For club members, the return to their clubhouse marks the end of a long and often frustrating three-year journey that began when a devastating landslip, caused by extreme weather during the Auckland Anniversary floods of 2023, severely damaged the clubhouse and surrounding headland. The official reopening of the clubhouse in May was a celebration of not only the completion of the repairs but also the collaborative effort between Surf Life Saving New Zealand (SLSNZ), Kaipara District Council (KDC), central Government, Te Uri o Hau and the Mangawhai community that made the project possible. While the building damage itself was mostly covered by MHVLS insurance, stabilising the slip was estimated at $1.9 million, with no provision in KDC budgets to fund the repairs. Questions over KDC responsibilities and future use of the KDC-owned reserve created over a year of uncertainty. A breakthrough came in mid-2024 when Grant McCullum (Northland MP) provided support which led to a SLSNZ-secured central Government fund to cover the slip remediation. Geotechnical specialist consultancy Tonkin + Taylor led the early concept of the slip repair. This concept was then tendered out to the slope stabilisation market by MHVLS under a Design and Construct (D&C) model, best used to adapt to site conditions as the rubble was removed. Earth Stability Limited, a family-owned New Zealand business, came up with the best overall solution which led to their engagement by MHVLS. Earth Stability utilised LDE engineering for design and construction monitoring and the slip repair was undertaken between late 2024 and mid-2025. Following the slip repair, Sedgwick Building consultancy, an insurance claim specialist, managed the building repair process including building consent, asbestos removal, a detailed repair design and the management of the building repair itself. Adron Construction Limited was awarded the building repair contract and worked quickly and efficiently in getting the best solution completed from mid-2025 to early 2026. The reopening of the MHVLS clubhouse not only marks the end of a difficult journey but also signals the continuation of a vision to protect the thousands of swimmers and beachgoers who visit Mangawhai Heads each year. At the club opening, Club Chair Jess Costello highlighted the emotional significance of the day, noting that the clubhouse is more than just a building. “This is a place of mauri, holding the lifeforce of our members,” Jess says. “It is a place where we connect to one another, to the ocean, and to our shared duty of serving Mangawhai. This has been a heavy road for the Board and Committee, but the support we have received from our stakeholders, Surf Lifesaving partners, surf club members, and the wider community has been our strength.”
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