Surveying and development expert

Mike Elrick

Mike Elrick, goodGround’s surveying and land development expert always knew that he wanted to work outside with the land.

Growing up in Rotorua, he spent his after school hours hunting, shooting and fishing. A weekend job in a service station convinced him that he didn’t want to work the weekends (prime fishing time!) and so a school guidance counselor suggested surveying.

Stints as a ‘bum-boy’ for various surveying firms provided the start that he needed, and led him to a cadetship with the Maori Affairs department in Rotarua, who saw him through a Diploma in Land Surveying at the University of Otago (on one of the first such courses in New Zealand).

Mike came to Whangarei for the Maori Affairs Department, which eventually merged with the government Lands and Survey Department.

In 1972 Mike went in to private practice, starting his own firm and did so well that he and his partner bought out the government department (by this time known as ‘Terralink’) in 1999.

When Mike first started out in Surveying and planning management, he spent a large proportion of his day tramping around measuring land with steel rules and tape measures – today his staff of 20 use very different equipment, but the principles remain the same. Accurate measurements and a thorough knowledge of the council regulations are essential.

Mike has watched the rise in Lifestyle Blocks and has helped many first time owners overcome the pitfalls and paperwork involved in the development of blocks of land. As the trend has continued Mike says that more and more people are looking for ‘manageable’ sized blocks of land from where to live their own dream, and there is now so much more available in terms of assistance in order to help them do just that.

So if you have any questions about engineering surveying, planning and resource management, building construction or the development of your land for commercial or residential use, then please email Mike HERE for a swift reply!

Mike Elrick, Dip.Surv. MNZIS
Registered Surveyor - Partner
Licensed Cadastral Surveyor