The modest price land there was sold by the Queen to those folks. You will need to buy it from a current owner.
That island still has the bulk of its mangroves. You are safer there than on the South Island, some might argue.The area in danger is between Oceanside and the Iquana Reef. Water blows completely through there fron one side of the island to another, even when a hurricane misses.
In hurricane Keith the North Island sustained less damage than the South.