Southland

Tuatapere's 110-year-old railway station is open again — this time as a café, bakery and visitor hub. The refurbished station was officially reopened on Saturday, with Southland District Mayor Rob Scott, Tuatapere Te Waewae Community Board chair Anne Horrell and Tuatapere Railway and Heritage Trust member Wayne Edgerton cutting

Judy Geary has spent 28 years volunteering at the Wyndham and Districts Community Rest Home. On Saturday, Southland District Council made it official. Mayor Rob Scott presented Geary with a Community Service Award from the council and the Waihōpai Toetoe Community Board, recognising what amounts to roughly 330 board meetings

Stan Larsen spent 37 years teaching engineering at SIT. Last Wednesday, his colleagues finally said goodbye. Larsen, who is "comfortably into my 80s", was farewelled at a staff morning tea on June 10 after retiring from the Southern Institute of Technology, where he has taught pre-trade engineering, apprentices

A factory in Riverton is selling around one million pāua shells a year to Chanel, Cartier and the Sultan of Oman — and still can't keep up with demand. Ocean Shell Ltd, based on a quiet street in the small Southland town, processes and exports pāua shells alongside mother

More than 8,600 native plants are in the ground near Waituna Lagoon, part of a long-term push to restore health to one of Southland's most ecologically fragile wetlands. Whakamana te Waituna Charitable Trust planted 8,625 plants at Webster Block on May 8 — a 48-hectare property it

Farmers across Invercargill and Southland are delivering the goods for our province, with New Zealand export revenue set to reach record levels. In the year to 30 June 2026 export revenue is forecast to reach $64.3 billion - up six percent - and driven by healthy demand for dairy

When Southlanders talk about looking after our own, we're often thinking about the here and now, the clubs, services, and programmes that make a difference today. The Southland Foundation adds another layer by encouraging and connecting local generosity with causes in our community, whether through creating an endowment

Vandals have stripped the toilet seats from the Taramea Bay public facilities and smashed glass throughout the building — leaving visitors with nothing between them and cold stainless steel. Southland District Council crews have been on site to clean up and make the facility safe. The glass is gone. The seats