Middle Auckland

GEOFF AND Sarah Smith live in a quiet Howick street with their daughter Natalya, 18, and son Joshua, 15. They have lived there for 10 years and say they have seen huge growth over the decade, particularly around Botany.

Despite being enveloped in the new Auckland, they still feel very much that they belong only to Howick. "I consider myself Howick. We don't use Auckland as other Aucklanders do," says Mr Smith, a teacher at King's College.

Sarah says they tend to stick to their community and prefer to go to South Auckland to shop.

"We love the shops out there, more than when you go into central," she says. "It's so relaxed, the shopkeepers are really friendly. There's a certain flavour because of the cultures. I don't think arbitrary lines will change that."

As far as noticing changes in things like their rates bills, the couple say they have barely noticed.

"Perhaps an accountant might say it has gone up but we haven't noticed," says Mr Smith.

"It's actually better now because we used to pay our normal rates then rates to the whole of Auckland. It was two separate things, now it's easier because it's just one.

"What I am looking forward to is more decisions on things like transport - like the tunnel and getting rail to the airport," says Mr Smith.

He feels the new structure has not been explained well enough and there is not enough information available. They have not been notified as to who is on their local board, where the board's office is or how they can get in touch with it.

"I would want to know about the [weed] spray that's used down on the kerbs by Eastern Beach," says Mrs Smith. "It smells really strong like some sort of poison, and there are a lot of elderly who go down there to do their tai chi. And there was an issue with not mowing the grass as often [at Macleans Park] so it grew up really high.

"There are little things like that that you should be able to control within your community."

Watching their Manukau City mayor Len Brown move on to bigger pastures, they say his extended role has little changed the man and his leadership style.

"Obviously he's more high-profile, he's on television a lot more," says Mr Smith.

"I remember when he used to visit the schools around here," adds his wife.

The couple say they have seen little change under a unified Auckland but are interested to see what the next few years will hold.

Across the sprawling city, Jose and Sally Fowler have lived in their traditionally restored Mt Eden villa for 12 years. From England, the couple are proud to be Aucklanders, raising their three children - George, 14, Estafana, 12, and Prudence, 8 - and running a Spanish catering company and IT business between them.

A year on from the amalgamation of Auckland's eight councils, the Fowlers say they have seen some changes but think they still get a pretty good deal.

"We have a property up in Russell and when you compare how much we pay up there compared to here, and what we get, Auckland rates seem pretty good.

"Up there we pay for Kawakawa's sewage problem, it's pitch-black in the dead of night and we have to deal with our own rubbish," adds Mrs Fowler.

As residents of the old Auckland City Council, they still feel like Aucklanders but say it doesn't seem to be the case for some others outside the old boundaries. "I'll send an invoice and note it as Auckland and I've had people come back to me and say, 'No, we're the North Shore'," says Mr Fowler.

The couple say compared to what they experienced in the UK, the council here seems to have much more power and influence.

"Auckland Council seems to run itself as its own little totalitarian thing," says Mr Fowler.

He's pleased to see fewer councillors, noting the "more militant ones are gone", but says the local board's presence is yet to be felt in his community.

"I didn't even know the Eden Albert board was just up the road," says Mr Fowler of the Albert-Eden Local Board's refurbished Dominion Rd offices. "And I'm on the residents' association. That almost implies their effectiveness is zero."

Since his discovery he's been in touch with board members who, he says, are willing but seem powerless to affect change.

"This street is a very family-orientated street with lots of teens and young kids. But we believe there's an accident waiting to happen. Someone's going to get killed. People speed down here, we've had two cats run over in broad daylight, in front of children playing on the street.

"So you go to the local board and they lend an ear and seem to want to sort it out. Then you get this fishy story back from council - our street has been earmarked but there are other priorities they need to deal to first."

While they were fans of John Banks, they've been impressed with Len Brown too.

"Len Brown's always there. We went to the Stardome, he was there," says Mr Fowler.

"There was a big mess in the [Mt Eden] area after a league game and Len came and met with the neighbours, we met in a neighbour's house and he took it upon himself to sort it out."