The people and vision shaping Waipiko Landing
As Stage 2 of Waipiko Landing takes shape in Te Awamutu, Dave Strachan and Merv Johnston reflect on the personal connection, design thinking and long-term vision behind the new neighbourhood. With Veros as development managers since 2022, the project has moved from vision into an established and growing residential community.
Waipiko Landing has always been more than lines on a plan.
For Dave Strachan and Merv Johnston, the directors behind the development, it is a place with a much deeper connection. Long before Waipiko Landing began taking shape as a new neighbourhood, this land was part of their own story.
A personal connection to the land
The two have known each other since primary school. Merv grew up on the land that is now becoming Waipiko Landing, while Dave lived nearby on Golf Road.
“Merv and I go back a long way, right back to primary school,” Dave says. “He was on his parents’ farm, which is where we are now, and I was just up the road.”
For Dave, growing up in Te Awamutu meant experiencing the kind of country-town childhood that stays with you. He remembers jumping over to the golf course, eeling in the Mangaohoi Stream, mucking out cowsheds, and later returning to the farm to do building work after completing his architecture and building studies.
That history has shaped the way Waipiko Landing has been approached.
This is not a development created from a distance. It is being created by people who know the land, understand its history, and care about what it becomes next.
From farmland to future neighbourhood
From the beginning, the vision for Waipiko Landing has been to create a neighbourhood that respects the landform and connects people to the wider landscape. The masterplan has been shaped around the creeks, wetlands, views, contours and rural outlook that make the site distinctive.
“When we looked at making it a residential place, the question was: what are the important things to do?” Dave says. “One is to respect the landform, including the creeks, the views to the mountains, those kinds of things.”
That thinking can already be seen on the ground.
Stage 1 has brought the first step of the neighbourhood to life, with homes completed, streets formed, planting flourishing, cycleways in place and the wetland all being enjoyed by new residents. What began as an idea is now becoming a real place, with homes, lawns, gardens, paths, seats and a growing sense of community.
For Dave, that is one of the most rewarding parts of the process.
“You start with lines on a page, and now it’s very real,” he says.
Stage 2 takes shape
As Waipiko Landing moves into Stage 2, that original vision continues to take shape.
Stage 2 will build on the same principles that have guided the neighbourhood from the start, while introducing a new part of the site with its own character. The land is more elevated, offering stronger outlooks and views towards the surrounding landscape and mountains.
For Dave and Merv, Stage 2 is an exciting next step. It is a chance to continue the thread of Waipiko Landing while opening up a new part of the neighbourhood for future residents.
“Stage 2 is in the slightly higher, more elevated land,” Dave says. “It has the advantages of having more elevation and outlook, particularly looking into the mountains that we can see from this site.”
While the land brings some complexity, the approach remains the same: work with the natural contours, respect the landscape, and create places where people can live well.
That practical understanding has been important from the beginning. Merv brings the experience of a builder, while Dave brings the lens of both a builder and an architect (Design Director, Strachan Group Architects). It gives them a shared passion for quality and a clear understanding of how small decisions can make a meaningful difference to the people who will live there.
“Merv was a tradie who became a builder,” Dave says. “I was a builder who became an architect. We’ve had that common language for quite some time.”
That shared background has helped shape a neighbourhood where design is not just about how things look, but how they work.
Designed for everyday living
A key part of that has been the focus on better housing. Waipiko Landing has been planned to support quality homes that make the most of sun, orientation and everyday liveability.
“We all know there are a lot of cold, draughty, mouldy houses around,” Dave says. “To be able to offer people homes that are warm, dry, low maintenance and facing the right way is really important.”
The neighbourhood has also been designed with movement and connection in mind. Walkways and cycleways link residents through the development and towards the shops, cafés, supermarket, Mitre 10 MEGA and other services nearby.
For future residents, that means convenience is close at hand, while the wider setting still offers a strong connection to Te Awamutu’s rural edge.
“To come down here and realise you can walk to the shops, the café, the supermarket – that’s pretty amazing,” Dave says.
Delivering the vision
Veros manages developments across New Zealand and have been involved with Waipiko Landing from the beginning, helping guide the project through each phase, from funding, design, consenting and sales, to the practical work required to turn a long-term masterplan into a real, staged neighbourhood.
For Sean Haynes, Development Director at Veros, that work is about taking Merv and Dave’s passion and big-picture vision and helping convert it to reality.
The Stage 1 wetland is one example. Built to service Stages 1 and 2, it treats and manages stormwater, but it has also been integrated into the design of the neighbourhood, with a cycleway and walkway looping around it so residents can use and enjoy the space.
Stage 2 is now nearing completion. Sean says the team has put a lot of thought into the details that may not always be obvious at first glance, but will matter to future residents.
“All those little things mean a whole lot more to our purchasers once they’re here and ready to make this place home,” Sean says.
A long-term community for Te Awamutu
That balance is central to the appeal of Waipiko Landing. It offers the space, outlook and openness of a new neighbourhood, with the benefit of an established town right beside it.
It is also a neighbourhood being planned for the long term.
What people see today is only the beginning. As future stages unfold, Waipiko Landing will continue to grow into a much larger community, with different types of homes, open spaces, cycleways, walkways and, in time, a neighbourhood centre that could bring more amenity and activity into the heart of the development.
For Dave and Merv, that future matters.
Their connection to the land is personal, but their vision is about the people who will one day call Waipiko Landing home. Families, couples, downsizers, retirees and first-home buyers will all bring their own lives and stories to the neighbourhood.
The aim is to create a place that feels considered, connected and grounded in its setting.
A place with character.
A place with a sense of belonging.
And, as Stage 2 takes shape, a place where the next chapter of Waipiko Landing is beginning to come to life.
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