The shop re-opened in July and has never been more popular, with plans to expand it to a community hub. Photo: Supplied
A year after a fire tore through it, an essential recycling centre on Aotea/Great Barrier Island is thriving like never before.
A blaze in December 2024 at the Aotea Community Recycling Centre damaged most of the contents of the Anamata shop, its main shed and the solar power system.
"It was the opportunity to rebuild better, and change some systems for the better," said Brett O'Reilly who co-manages Anamata with his wife Jo.
"We were able to ask ourselves, what would we do differently? We involved staff in decisions and redesigned the site to future-proof and improve safety."
The shop, a critical hub for the island's recycling efforts, helps significantly reduce the environmental impact and the need to ship waste back to Auckland.
The rebuild included relocating the power system to a separate container shed, creating dedicated spaces for washing machines and dryers, and moving sorting activities out of the shop to improve health and safety.
"It's just risen from the ashes, better than what it was before."
Inside the shop, the layout was transformed into a clean, welcoming space with no storage. A fresh coat of paint and attractive displays inspired by other Auckland recycling centres has helped create a more inviting space.
Funding from the Auckland Council and the Aotea/Great Barrier Local Board paid for a heat-triggered alarm system with cameras, new washing machines, a dryer and dishwasher, an extra container, and parts of the electrical fit-out for its solar power system.
The Anamata Shop, a recycling centre on Aotea/Great Barrier Island, was damaged by fire last December, destroying most of the shop's content. Photo: Supplied
The new shop re-opened in July, and the community is loving it.
"Every time I walk into the shop now, I think wow," Jo said.
"It wouldn't look like this without us having been forced to make that change."
She said the refurbishment couldn't have been possible without the backing of the community.
"Many people went above and beyond, including our dedicated team. When someone's down, this community comes to your aid ... that's one of the things that makes Aotea special."
The O'Reillys have managed Anamata since it opened six years ago. The couple, who are also volunteer firefighters, were gutted when they got the call a year ago that the shop was on fire.
"It was tricky not just for us, but for everybody. There was a lot of genuine passion that had gone into the shop," Brett said.
"It was just a sickening feeling ... some of our shop staff in particular were just so gutted."
Brett and Jo O’Reilly have co-managed Anamata for more than six years. Photo: Supplied
Seeing the big changes in the shop has made them love what they do more.
Brett said the biggest challenges to the rebuild was cleaning smoke damaged items and the constant decision-making.
"We focused on safety, functionality, and economics, and what's going to work for the community."
Despite the adversity, there were highlights. The working bee was a powerful show of community support. The reopening of the transformed reuse shop and the unexpected funding provided a boost for morale and operations.
The O'Reillys said Anamata plans to improve its existing services, like composting, and expand its role as a community hub.
They would like to add a tool library, a learning lounge for waste minimisation education and more workshops.
The team has also been exploring collaborations with local trades and mainland suppliers to source reusable materials for construction.
"Long term, waste minimisation will always be at the heart of what we do. But we also see Anamata as a platform for building island resilience.
"Everything we've achieved this year strengthens our ability to reduce waste, reuse resources, and create sustainable solutions for Aotea. It's been a journey, and we're proud of what we've achieved together," Jo said.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
