Northland news in brief: Basketball great Tom Abercrombie coming; Jazz and Blues Fest line-up

Kiwi basketball great Tom Abercrombie will be in Northland next week.

Basketball ace to hold court

Northland basketball fans can go one-on-one with NZ legend Tom Abercrombie next weekend. The Mangakahia Sports Complex is celebrating the opening of its new community basketball court with an afternoon of action from 1.30pm on August 14.
In conjunction with Northland Basketball there will be a 3X3 comp, slam dunk comp, 3 point comp and a chance to take on Abercrombie.

Music fest a hot ticket

Pre-sales for the upcoming Bay of Islands Jazz and Blues Festival are well ahead of the same time in previous years, organiser Shirley May says. So far 600 tickets had been sold for the August 13-15 event, compared to the usual 300-400 a little more than a week from opening night. May told Thursday's Bay of Islands-Whangaroa Community Board meeting that people were ''starving'' for musical experiences after more than a year of Covid disruption and the cancellation of last year's festival. Australian bands had to pull out after the travel bubble was put on ice but that still left plenty of Kiwi talent, including big names such as Nairobi Trio, Kokomo, Midge Marsden and Chet O'Connell, Lex Pistols and Dreams: The Fleetwood Mac Experience.

Pupils to vie in cross country

Up to 350 children from four Whangārei schools – Tikipunga Primary, Totara Grove Primary, Ōtangarei Primary and Kaurihohore School - will race in the Denby Golf Course Cross Country event later this month. Tikipunga High School pupils along with Whangārei Golf Club volunteers will be assisting with marshalling, a barbecue, games etc for the multiple races between 9am and 2pm on August 25. There will be races for girls and boys aged 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12.

Malay harvest festival

Whangārei Malayalee Association is hosting Onam festival celebrations at Forum North in Whangārei on August 17. The annual harvest festival is celebrated in the southern Indian state of Kerala. A variety of dances, food served on banana leaves and indoor games are on the programme and everyone is invited to the Forum North event from 5pm-10pm.

Tikipunga trust AGM

The Tikipunga Community Trust, operating as Tiki Pride, will hold its AGM on Monday from 7pm at the Hope Church, on Kiripaka Rd. The guest speaker is Alicia Lawrie, from Whangārei District Council, who will be presenting the draft placemaker plan for Tikipunga.

Character Hunt family fun

The annual Character Hunt at Whangārei Central Library will be held on Sunday, August 15 at 10.15am. Bring the family along – dress up if you fancy - and search the nooks and crannies of the library for real-life storybook characters. This will be followed by a parade at midday.

Woodhill sewer upgrade starts

A Whangārei District Council project to improve the sewer network in Woodhill has begun. About 700 metres of new sewer line will be constructed to supplement the existing sewer pipe on Kauika Rd, which was built in the 1950s. The $997,000 job will involve constructing a new bypass line through the middle of the road along Kauika Ave and First Ave and replacing the section through Carruth Park. The work will enable more sewage to be carried and reduce the risk of overflows, which have been an issue in the area for some time.