A new face at Far North District Council is taking a pawsitive approach, with plans to visit every school in the district to teach young people how to stay safe around dogs.

The lights were on early at the Far North District Council’s Kaikohe headquarters on 14 October, as a handful of dedicated staff arrived in the dark for Exercise Pacific Wave.

Cass Street in Kororāreka-Russell will close to vehicles from 9 to 13 November as work gets under way on the new Russell Placemaking project.

Far North District Council is seeking suitable housing providers to take over its 12 pensioner housing villages, in a move that aims to provide more affordable rents, improved services and wraparound support for tenants.

A dedicated group of detainees at the Northland Region Corrections Facility at Ngāwhā are putting the fun into the new Kaikohe Library and Civic Hub, building a collection of play equipment for the community to enjoy when the premises opens next week.

After months of often complex work, new stormwater pipelines have been installed and nearly all pavements reinstated in a major project to reduce flooding risk in central Kaitāia.