Milford Residents Association News and Events 11 November 2026 onwards

Milford Recovery Plan - Project Implementation - KITS Keeping in Touch in the Street

Remember the Milford Flood Recovery Project carried out in 2025. Maybe you attended the Coffee and Chat at Nile Reserve or the Milford Storyboard Workshop in the Senior Citizens Hall. Thank you for giving your time and contributing your ideas. Those conversations helped shape the Milford Recovery project and we are excited to share its next chapter, where we turn those community ideas into action!  

Ee Ee (literally pronounced E E) Huang is our community coordinator who will be working with the Milford community over the coming nine months to implement the main projects in our plan. The first project is KITS (Keeping in Touch in the Street). To be able to do this, we are looking for street champions to run an informal get together in their street or part of their street. The aim of these gatherings is to help Milford residents work together in local groups to be better prepared and ready to check on each other in an emergency situation. Ee Ee will provide a package of helpful materials that will make this easy to do and there will be a brief training session to explain the project aims and meet other street champions on Saturday, 21 November in the Milford Senior Citizens Hall. Just email Ee Ee: ee@neighbours.nz. Not keen to be a full-on street champion but happy to help? That's great also. Email Ee Ee.

Milford Events in November 

Twilight Christmas by the Lake, Saturday, 14 November, 4.30pm-8.30pm, Carmel College, 108 Shakespeare Road.  Christmas Markets, Food Trucks and Vendors, Carols and Performances. https://www.carmel.school.nz/twilight-christmas-by-the-lake-2026/

Healthy Waters Information Meeting. Update on the Nga Wairau Flood Prevention Project, Thursday, 19 November, 6.00pm, Milford Baptist Church, 3 Dodson Ave. Free sausage sizzle from 5.00pm provided by Grow Collective Forrest Hill.

This is an opportunity to hear from the team working towards solutions for the long term problem of flooding throughout the Wairau catchment. As we all know, there are 138 homes being removed from near the Wairau in Milford/Forrest Hill. This is an important chance to hear from the team about how the different stages of the project are progressing. Nga Wairau Community Meeting Poster.pdf   Nga Wairau Town Hall Flyer 1.pdf

Sunflower Meadow Seed Sowing Pop-Up Event. Saturday, 21 November, 10.30am to 12.30pm, Milford Village Square outside New World.  Seed Sowing Pop Up Milford.pdf

Grow Collective Forrest Hill (located in Seine Road Reserve) is our beautiful, local community garden. And the wonderful people there are leading our community with inspirational ideas for interim uses of land where houses have been removed for the blue-green network. The Sunflower Meadow is the first of their projects and everyone in Milford/Forrest Hill can contribute to each of the stages. The first stage is to sow seedlings and this will be happening on Saturday, 21 November. You don't have to bring anything, just your support for the community and a few minutes to plant a sunflower seed for germination to take place. Further events will include seedling planting at 130 Nile Road (12 December) and a community celebration of the sunflower meadow in bloom on 22 January. Be a part of this lovely project to bring the joy of a summer sunflower meadow to our neighbourhood. If you would like to help out on the day, please email: chairs@milford.org.nz 

PredictWind Matt Mitchell Memorial Sunburst North Island Regatta, Friday to Sunday, 20-22 November,  at Milford Reserve, hosted by Milford Cruising Club. Lots of sailing action to watch. And on Saturday evening, there will be food trucks and a live band in the Reserve. All welcome. The Club would love to have some local volunteers to lend a hand. If you would like to be involved in any way, please email Christine Robertson: manager@milfordcruising.co.nz 

Christmas In Milford, Saturday, 28 November, 10am-3pm. This is the Milford Business Association's Christmas Market Day, with stalls, food trucks and entertainment for the kids. https://www.facebook.com/events/s/christmas-in-milford-2026/1532296365366796/

A Carol Concert with a Difference, Sunday, 29 November, 3.00pm, at Milford Baptist Church, 3 Dodson Ave, Milford.  What-do-you-REALLY-know-about-Christmas-poster-v4.pdf  All Milford families are warmly invited to this fun concert with the theme What do you really know about Christmas? There will be a collection to support the Salvation Army Christmas food parcel programme.

Pupuke Birdsong Project - Local events in November/December. Help restore our parks and reserves alongside other like-minded volunteers. https://pupukebirdsong.org.nz/event-calendar/

The Pumphouse What's on in November.  https://pumphouse.co.nz/whats-on/  Local Russian and Chinese speakers might enjoy Russian comedian Michael Steiner (21 Nov) and Escape from Garcia: the first war-themed production by I-start Chinese Theatre (26-29 Nov). 

Open Circle Markets at Eventfinda Stadium, 17 Silverfield, Wairau Valley. Three North Shore night markets coming up - Thursday, 12 Nov, Thursday 26 Nov, Thursday, 10 Dec. 4-9pm. All free, family-friendly evenings of food trucks, local makers and live music.

December

Ray White Winter Wonderland, 135 Kitchener Road, 2 Dec to 14 December. 

Ray White are excited to be bringing back their Winter Wonderland. The theme is Home for the Holidays, a festive take on Whoville from The Grinch. It's bright, fun and family-friendly. Entry: Free! A Donation Station will be available and all proceeds will go to Ronald McDonald House Charities. Come any time 9am to 5pm but, if you are keen to see Santa, he will be in the building at the following times: Fridays, 4 and 11 December, 5-7pm. Saturdays & Sundays, 5, 6, 12 and 13 December, 12-5pm.

Calendar notes for the January and February

Opera in the Park at Milford Reserve, Saturday, 8 January, 6pm-8pm. Joint event by NZ Opera and Auckland Council Music in Parks.  NZ Opera_2027_A4poster_OitP-Milford.pdf

A summer of music under open skies. Pack a picnic, gather family and friends, and enjoy an evening of glorious singing in our local reserve. Featuring outstanding established and emerging opera artists, these relaxed concerts blend operatic favourites with the simple pleasure of live music in the open air in the summer warmth. Whether you are a lifelong opera-lover or introducing someone to opera for the first time, Opera in the Park is a wonderful way to share the joy of music in your community.

Milford Summer Picnic, Sunday, 28 February 2027, 11am-3pm, Milford Reserve

MILFORD COMMUNITY-LED STORM RECOVERY PLAN.  You can read the document here:

Milford Report on Community Led Recovery at 30 Jan 2026.pdf  

Implementation of the Plan led by Milford Residents Assn and Milford community members will start soon. We are eager to hear your additional ideas for goals and activities to make the Milford community more resilient in the future.

Send us your email details so we can keep you up to date with what's happening and you can get involved in the implementation of the Plan, the Nga Wairau Blue Green Network and making our community prepared for any future emergencies. 

Email to: chairs@milford.org.nz