Elected duo embrace people’s ideas for an enhanced Raumati

Bede Laracy and Sophie Handford with Our Vision for Raumati posters.

Since meeting as local body election candidates in 2019, Bede Laracy and Sophie Handford have uncovered a shared interest in the enhancement of Raumati.

Now, more than three years later, the two have teamed up to create a project that looks at what the community wants to see in Raumati and tries to make it happen.

The project is called Our Vision for Raumati and was officially announced on Friday, January 27.

It’s a community-led effort, and Laracy and Handford agreed no idea is too small.

“It’s by the people, for the people,” Laracy said.

They have had a lot of interest in starting ‘yoga in the park’, which is a smaller project that Laracy and Handford want to help facilitate.

On a bigger scale, they are hoping to transform the decommissioned Raumati pool building in Marine Gardens into something the community can enjoy.

“These things need to happen,” Laracy said.

Handford, who is the Paekākāriki-Raumati ward councillor, and Laracy, who’s chairman of the Raumati Community Board, conducted a survey asking what people wanted to see in Raumati about eight months ago, which got about around 80 responses.

They have also spoken to the youth council, which is made up of a group of 14 to 24-year-olds, to get the younger perspective.

“They had some really good ideas,” Handford said.

Our Vision for Raumati.

Laracy and Handford were two of the three candidates for the Paekākāriki-Raumati ward in 2019, alongside Guy Burns, and Handford won with more than half the votes.

After this, Laracy worked to start the Raumati Community Board, which he was elected to in last year’s election and later voted chairman of.

Both Laracy and Handford have a history in the Raumati area, so the project is especially important to both of them.

Laracy’s father moved to Paekākāriki when he was seven, and he said he always loved Raumati.

When he met his wife, Trina, she was living in Raumati South. They now own two clothing businesses in Raumati village - Paperdoll and Holy Smoke.

Handford grew up in Paekākāriki but attended Kāpiti College, so she spent a lot of time in the area.

She graduated in 2018 and noticed a significant problem with the way the council was dealing with climate issues, so she ran for council in 2019, with a young team of friends helping to co-ordinate her campaign.

Their project is gaining popularity around the district, with other community boards wanting to start something similar.

“Maybe we need a broader, overarching vision for Kāpiti,” Laracy said.

It’s also got support from Kāpiti Coast District Council, Kāpiti College’s head students, Kāpiti Coast Chamber of Commerce, and others.

If you want to add any new suggestions, you can do so by going to the Our Vision for Raumati Facebook and Instagram pages or their website, Our Vision for Raumati.

Alternatively, you could make an appointment to meet with Bede Laracy and/or Sophie Handford directly via bede.laracy@kapiticoast.govt.nz and sophiehandford@kapiticoast.govt.nz.