An incredible amount of growth and change has happened in Wānaka over the past decade, and it has been a privilege for the Wānaka App team to cover it all.

In March 2016 - the Wānaka App’s debut - Three Parks was largely paddocks, the Wānaka Recreation Centre hadn’t been built, people were still debating whether the Wānaka Watersports Facility was a good idea or not - and ‘that Wānaka Tree’ was largely unnoticed.

In our first week we covered hearings on the planned watersports facility, medals for snow sports star Adam Hall, and local takes on the nation-wide flag referendum.

Few people were anticipating a global pandemic, and the risks of the Alpine Fault were not as well understood or discussed as they are today.

Since then, we’ve seen the district expand, subdivisions mushroom, the shopping centre shift, the Upper Clutha’s role in the wider district come under scrutiny, and our representation change. 

The Wānaka App has been a voice in covering issues as diverse as the health of our deep lakes, the fight for a local birthing unit, and the Education Review Office report which led to major changes at our only secondary school.

Our editorial on the McDonald’s debate, which drew attention to health service inequities in the district, helped spark community advocacy for improved access to health services - which is now beginning to bear fruit.

There have been contentious issues which we’ve done our best to report on fairly and impartially, while keeping the community informed - and finding time for light-hearted, personal stories too.

We’re grateful to all the people in the community who have taken the time to share their stories with us. 

Delivering news and information has been a constant journey of innovation, from the early days of a simple mobile app, to a full platform development to deliver a sophisticated mobile app experience along with an online experience at wanakaapp.nz. 

The weekly Wānaka Newsletter was added in 2021 providing another way for readers to keep up to date with what’s happening in the community.

Today the Wānaka App’s channels record more than 130,000 reader sessions every month and around 800,000 page views.

Despite all the changes around us, the Wānaka App team has remained constant. 

Our owners, Tony and Pip O’Regan, continue to innovate and serve the community. Caroline Harker, our first editor, set us on course for the first year, when I took the helm. Maddy Harker has been reporting from the beginning, and Diana Cocks joined the team soon after (she is now focusing her time on helping preserve Wānaka’s history). Melanie Cusens - a new recruit to the team - has recently joined us as a casual reporter.

We look forward to being witness to (as well as part of) the next decade. Thank you so much for reading.

PHOTO: Wānaka App