Tīrau Starbucks and Port Waikato erosion: The big stories of July 2024

Coastal erosion at Port Waikato's Sunset Beach is causing more houses to become uninhabitable. Photo / Mike Scott

As the year draws to a close, Waikato Herald is taking stock of 2024. What moved readers most? As part of a 12-day series, Waikato Herald reporter Danielle Zollickhofer looks at the top stories each month. Welcome to day 7: July.

July 2024 was a busy month, nationally and regionally.

Nationally, the long-awaited report of the Abuse in Care Royal Commission was released, concluding that from 1950 to 2019, an estimated 200,000 children, young people and adults in state care were abused and even more were neglected.

The abuse included rape, sterilisation, use of weapons, electric shocks and the drug paraldehyde. The use of those as punishment met official definitions of torture, the report said.

A group of former Gloriavale Christian Community members filed a multimillion-dollar class-action lawsuit against Gloriavale and five government agencies, alleging members had been subject to modern slavery from childbirth.

The Olympics kicked off in Paris with around 200 New Zealand athletes taking part.

The Government’s new boot camp pilot for youth offenders opened in Palmerston North and human remains believed to be those of missing Christchurch real estate agent Yanfei Bao were uncovered.

Parliament passed legislation reinstating the referendum requirement for Māori wards in local councils and SkyCity Auckland casino admitted breaching the Gambling Act and announced it would close for five consecutive days.

However, in the Waikato, news of a proposed Starbucks and Burger King in Tīrau polarised the community, some seeing it as a threat and others as an opportunity.

Tahua Properties Ltd is seeking a resource consent from the South Waikato District Council for a Starbucks and a Burger King with drive-through facilities. The proposal is causing a commotion in the town, which is known for its quirky corrugated iron architecture, boutique cafes and shops.

Artist impression of what the proposed Starbucks and Burger King in Tīrau could look like.

Also, an innocent motorist died in a suspected road-rage incident between two other drivers in Gordonton near Hamilton.

Coastal erosion caused significant damage to Sunset Beach in Port Waikato, with residents saying they felt “powerless” in the face of the erosion moving closer to their homes. Years of erosion have caused the coastline to move steadily inland, taking chunks out of sections and putting homes at risk.

New Zealand’s largest fenced ecological bird and wildlife reserve, Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, revealed it was struggling financially and could be forced to close.

And Matamata-Piako District Council was fined $67,500 for unlawfully discharging at least 2.8 million litres of wastewater and untreated human effluent into the Mangawhero Stream.

Also, a woman accidentally reversed her car into a pond on the University of Waikato’s Hamilton campus, the story spreading quickly on social media.

Danielle Zollickhofer is a multimedia journalist based in Hamilton. She joined NZME in 2021 and is writing for the Waikato Herald.

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