Transcript of the New Lynn – safety through community empowerment video

Back to community safety and support. 

[video: upbeat pop guitar music plays. A busy road in New Lynn on an overcast day. A silver steel fence blocking a night view of a train driving away, city lights in the distance. Karen Fletcher standing in front of the same fence during the day . Karen watching a train go quickly past. A dark underpass with train tracks on the left and a footpath on the right, separated by a fence. ]

Karen: So, there’re quite a lot of rough sleepers sleeping here under the bridge, and also people coming only to deal drugs. So, for the residents it was a very unsafe place to be part of.

[video: Cars driving past a town centre. Text “New Lynn, Safety through community empowerment”. The background blurs.]

[video: a large, tile collage, sign for “Ambrico place”. The street sign for Briar Way, there is clear sky behind it. Ten white terraced houses with green roller garage doors. There are rubbish and recycling bins outside their doors and two cars parked amongst them. Karen sitting at a park bench in front of a small green bush and a beige and red building. Text: “Karen Fletcher, Community Resident”. Karen picking up a glass kettle that has just finished boiling, making a cup of tea and looking concernedly out her kitchen window.]

Karen Fletcher: One year ago there was a sense of fear, the main problem was around safety. I guess the most concerning was around drug dealing and criminality. I felt unsafe to walk by myself, and my neighbours were having the same problem.

[video: Karen sitting at a wooden table in her house, with her cup of tea, writing an email on her laptop. Pepe Reweti sitting in a simple room, there are bowls, mugs and plates in various earthy colours behind her in two display cabinets. Text: “Pepe Reweti, Strategic Broker, Community Empowerment Unit”. Karen looking out over train tracks in the later afternoon. A train travelling along the tracks and disappearing behind a tree.]

Pepe: An email came across my desk, and when I read it, I could see that this person was wanting an answer, was wanting some action.

[video: Clay Polamalu, Pepe, Karen and John Maeva sitting around a table in the same room, surrounded by display cabinets looking at and brainstorming plans. Pepe writing on a large piece of paper with a red marker. Each member of the group is talking in turn and writing on the paper.]

Pepe: So it was great being able to talk to our maintenance team, the Police, the Salvation Army, Generation Ignite, and all also Kāhui Tū Kaha in regard to the housing.

[video: Clay sitting in front of a large, dirty, glass window looking out over two cars and a playground. Text “Clay Polamalu, New Lynn Community Constable”. Clay and Karen looking intently at a drawn brainstorm outlining how they can empower their community. The four discussing the brainstorm. Smiling and laughing.]

Clay: The positive outcome was we were coming together, and we clearly had a belief that this situation had to be approached differently and go forward all on the same line, and all looking for the same outcomes.

[video: Karen outside the locked gates of the underpass, looking through the fence at it. Karen walking down a footpath, on her left a bank of flax bushes and her right a line of trees. Karen’s feet walking along the footpath. Karen smiling as she closes the cover of her phone continuing to walk down the path. Karen continuing to walk past the white terraced houses.]

Pepe: Then within about three weeks, big fence up, and then the trees got all cleared and cut back. That really put a smile on Karen’s face, but also the residents, they could see some action.

[video: Karen putting up a green A4 poster on a glass door that says “Help make New Lynn safer” in yellow capital letter surrounded by light green and yellow leaves on vines. Karen sitting on a bench outside of the same building.]

Karen: Tonight, in partnership with the council, we organised a meeting.

[video: The exterior of the building at nigh time. Light is coming out of the large glass windows. Inside the building members of the community are gathered talking to one another. Pepe standing and addressing the group of people. A woman from the community taking notes on a sticky note.]

Pepe: It’s our time to look at some ways that we can work together and get some ideas from you.

[video: John Maeva talking to a girl drinking from a mug inside the building. They laugh and smile at one another. Another group of community members are talking in a circle. Some are sitting, others are standing. John sitting in front of the large glass window during the day. Text: “John Maeva, Outreach Worker, The Salvation Army”. Pepe talking to a female community member inside the building.]

John: We had a good result today, for the local rough sleepers from in this area, got housed. To see them all housed, smiling; that’s all I want to see.

[video: A man sticking a pink sticky note on a wall below other pink sticky notes. Other notes of various colours, blue, yellow, pink stuck on the wall. Karen standing outside the building, through the large glass window are two silhouetted female figures. Community members standing in groups discussing ideas. Karen is talking and gesturing with emphasis. The same community members laughing and smiling.]

Karen: I think this meeting, and this event, makes me think more about how to be a better citizen. I believe it to be the first meeting of many meetings, and yeah, makes me feel very hopeful.

[video: Text: “Brought to you by The Community Empowerment Unit at”, Auckland Council logo (Auckland Council text next to a pōhutukawa flower over water) “aucklandcouncil.govt.nz” “Search: community empowerment” fade in over a white background. Music fades out.]

Duration: 2 minutes