Te Aro

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Te Aro
Suburb of Wellington City
Dixon Street, looking towards Courtenay Place, in the heart of Te Aro
Dixon Street, looking towards Courtenay Place, in the heart of Te Aro
CountryNew Zealand
CityWellington City
Electoral wardPukehīnau/Lambton Ward
Area
[1]
 • Land128 ha (316 acres)
Population
 (June 2021)[2]
 • Total15,020
Kelburn Wellington Central
Aro Valley
Te Aro
 Oriental Bay
Mount Cook Mount Victoria

Te Aro (formerly also known as Te Aro Flat) is an inner-city suburb of Wellington, New Zealand. It comprises the southern part of the central business district including the majority of the city's entertainment district and covers the mostly flat area of city between The Terrace and Cambridge Terrace at the base of Mount Victoria.

Geography and history[edit]

Waimapihi Stream is now mostly culverted, but formerly ran from the area around Zealandia and down Aro Valley then past what is now the western end of Te Aro Park and on to the sea.[3] The name means "the stream (or bathing place) of Mapihi, a chieftainess of those iwi".[4] Te Aro Pa was east of the stream near what is now lower Taranaki Street. Waitangi stream flowed from Newtown, past the Basin Reserve and down to the shore at the eastern side of Te Aro, forming a large swamp that was used by Māori for food (eels and shellfish) and flax gathering. The 1855 Wairarapa earthquake uplifted Te Aro and drained the swamp. The area around the former swampy foreshore was redeveloped and opened in 2006 as Waitangi Park.

The Te Aro Reclamation Act of 1879 made possible reclamation of 40 acres of land on the foreshore as far as what is now Cable Street. Early European settlement in Te Aro was centred on commerce and working-class people, as opposed to Thorndon which was the centre of official business.[5][6]: 32  By the 1880s Te Aro was packed with working-class houses and businesses catering to the workers, and the area had gained a reputation for being poorly-drained, dirty and disease-ridden.[7][8][6]: 67  Typhoid was prevalent in the city in the early 1890s and most deaths from the disease occurred in the slums of Te Aro.[6]: 73  Almost half of Wellington's deaths in the 1918 influenza pandemic occurred in Te Aro.[6]: 128  The situation gradually improved as new suburbs such as Newtown, Miramar and Karori opened up and city infrastructure was developed.[9][10] In 1945 Wellington City Council held a conference to discuss the slums of Te Aro, which led to the widening of Taranaki Street.[11][6]: 166 

Haining Street, between Taranaki and Tory Streets, was the heart of Wellington's Chinatown around 1900. It was a run-down area notorious for gambling houses, opium dens and brothels.

Te Aro Pa[edit]

A war party of Te Āti Awa and others migrated from Taranaki to Wellington and established the pa in the 1820s.[12][13] Members of the New Zealand Company arrived in Wellington in 1839 and laid out a town plan which paid no regard to the several pa in the area.[6]: 16  In 1844 six rangatira (chiefs) from the settlement signed the 1844 deed, bringing Te Aro Pa into the New Zealand Company purchase of 1839.[12] William Anson McCleverty was tasked with swapping Maori land around Wellington Harbour for land further away, which resulted in less-convenient food-growing areas.[5][6]: 30 

Around 200 people lived at the pa in the 1840s, but numbers decreased after that. An 1850 survey stated that there were 186 people at Te Aro Pa who were mostly Christian. People lived in traditional "huts" (whare) and there were two "churches or chapels". The people had 26 acres cultivated in potatoes and also grew small amounts of kumara, wheat and maize. They had seven canoes, 20 horses and two carts, some cattle and tame pigs and had half a ton of flax prepared for export.[14] As a result of losing resources provided by the land they had sold, combined with loss of food- and flax-producing swamp land uplifted by the 1855 earthquake and the return of many people to Taranaki in 1860, the population of Te Aro Pa decreased and by the 1880s almost all had left. Some Māori at the Pa had been given Crown Grants to the land[15][16] which meant they could not sell it, so they leased parcels of land to European settlers.[17] By the 1870s most of the pa's remaining land was sold to Wellington Council[18] who wished to extend Taranaki Street to the waterfront through pa lands.

In 2005 archaeologists discovered the remains of three structures from the pa during redevelopment of a site at 39-43 Taranaki Street.[19]

Demographics[edit]

The population of Te Aro roughly doubled between 1991 and 1996 and again between 1996 and 2001. The rapid growth rate of population in the area become particularly evident at the beginning of the 21st century as apartment buildings were erected (or converted out of former office buildings) all over the suburb. Particularly characteristic are new rooftop apartments on existing buildings. These can be attributed to the relaxation of city by-laws governing commercial building-zones in the early 1990s. As of 2016 there are many apartment blocks planned for the area, some of which are at least 15 floors high.

Te Aro, comprising the statistical areas of Dixon Street, Vivian West, Courtenay and Vivian East, covers 1.28 km2 (0.49 sq mi).[1] It had an estimated population of 15,020 as of June 2021, with a population density of 11,734 people per km2.

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
20067,386—    
201310,227+4.76%
201811,823+2.94%
Source: [20]

Te Aro had a population of 11,823 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 1,596 people (15.6%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 4,437 people (60.1%) since the 2006 census. There were 4,968 households. There were 5,799 males and 6,021 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.96 males per female, with 378 people (3.2%) aged under 15 years, 6,738 (57.0%) aged 15 to 29, 4,113 (34.8%) aged 30 to 64, and 600 (5.1%) aged 65 or older.

Ethnicities were 72.7% European/Pākehā, 8.0% Māori, 2.5% Pacific peoples, 22.4% Asian, and 4.0% other ethnicities (totals add to more than 100% since people could identify with multiple ethnicities).

The proportion of people born overseas was 42.9%, compared with 27.1% nationally.

Although some people objected to giving their religion, 63.4% had no religion, 20.6% were Christian, 4.3% were Hindu, 1.1% were Muslim, 1.9% were Buddhist and 4.4% had other religions.

Of those at least 15 years old, 5,292 (46.2%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 318 (2.8%) people had no formal qualifications. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 6,744 (58.9%) people were employed full-time, 1,710 (14.9%) were part-time, and 726 (6.3%) were unemployed.[20]

Individual statistical areas
Name Population Households Median age Median income
Dixon Street 4,185 1,629 25.9 years $26,500[21]
Vivian West 3,483 1,362 25.8 years $30,400[22]
Courtenay 1,761 831 31.4 years $50,400[23]
Vivian East 2,394 1,146 30.7 years $49,000[24]
New Zealand 37.4 years $31,800

Entertainment district[edit]

Te Aro is New Zealand's largest entertainment district and thrives at night when the business district to the north closes down. Much of the nightlife is in the north of the suburb around Courtenay Place, Dixon Street, and lower Cuba Street. Saturdays are the biggest nights when most bars and clubs stay open to at least 3am.

Movies were historically a popular pastime in Te Aro, but in recent years some cinemas have closed. The Paramount in Courtenay Place opened in 1917 and closed in 2017.[25] The 10-screen Reading complex in Courtenay Place closed in November 2016 after suffering damage in the Kaikōura earthquake.[26] It reopened in March 2017 but closed again in January 2019 after further assessment.[27] The iconic Embassy Theatre, symbolic home of The Lord of the Rings film series, is still open.

Te Aro is home to several small theatres, including Circa, BATS, The Hannah Playhouse and Griffin. Larger venues include The Opera House on Manners Street and the St. James Theatre on Courtenay Place.

Te Aro Park[edit]

Photo of paving tiles
Detail of the hand-made tiles at Te Aro Park

Te Aro Park (formerly commonly known as Pigeon Park) is a small public park situated on a triangular piece of land between Manners Street and Dixon Street. Te Aro Pa was close to this location but by the 1880s very few Māori remained at the site.[28] The Council bought the land in the 1870s, and it became known as Market Reserve and then Manners Street Reserve.[28] In 1910 buildings on the site were demolished and a park created, with public toilets at the western end. An electrically operated clock was installed at the eastern end of the park in 1927 by the Tramways Department,[29] but has since been moved further along to a pedestrian area in Courtenay Place. In 1939 a memorial and drinking fountain were installed by Taranaki Street Wesleyan Church to commemorate the centenary of Wesleyan missionaries landing in Wellington and preaching to Māori at Te Aro Pa.[30][31][32] The memorial was retained in the redeveloped park.

In 1988 Wellington City Council approved a design by Shona Rapira Davies for redevelopment of the park as a symbolic waka (canoe). The project ended up costing over $800,000, more than three times the amount agreed with Davies, and was finished a year later than agreed.[33] A documentary was made about Davies' work on the park and the controversy that surrounded the project.[34] The redeveloped park was opened in May 1992. A tiled upright structure forms the prow of the canoe, and trees planted at intervals along the sides represent paddlers. Paving at the park is formed from 30,000 clay tiles handmade by Davies and imprinted with plants and names. Triangular shapes throughout the park evoke Māori weaving, and flowing water in the park's pools represents cleansing and renewal.[35] A piece of pounamu (greenstone) was buried under the prow at the opening ceremony.[33] Warning signs had to be installed when it was discovered that the tiles become extremely slippery when wet.[36]

From around 2018 anti-social behaviour at the park has increased, and in August 2020 a police report on the area was submitted to Wellington City Council for review.[37] The report identified problems including gang members and vulnerable people in nearby emergency housing, easy availability of alcohol from numerous outlets near the park and problems in and around the public toilets at the park. The police report led to publication by the Council of Te Aro Park - Assessing Harm in September 2020.[38][39] Proposed changes to the park include increased camera surveillance and better sightlines, better lighting, increased patrols by Police and Māori Wardens and possible removal of the toilet block. The report also identified a need to increase awareness of and mana of the artwork formed by the park's design and tiles.[38]

Waterfront[edit]

Te Papa, The Museum of New Zealand

Te Aro is a coastal suburb, and has a popular publicly accessible waterfront area that includes the Museum of New Zealand and Clyde Quay Wharf. Clyde Quay Wharf was completed in 1910 by the Wellington Harbour Board but was never used as much as other wharves in the harbour.[40] In 1961 the wharf was closed. The Overseas Passenger Terminal was built on the wharf by the Wellington Harbour Board, opening in 1964 to cater for an expected increase in passenger shipping[41] which never eventuated. The building was also used as a function venue.[40] The Overseas Passenger Terminal was demolished in 2012[42] to make way for a new apartment complex called Clyde Quay Wharf, which opened in 2014.[40]: 3  It has 75 apartments, but the area at ground level around the wharf has been left accessible to the public.[43] The spire and four wall mosaics from the old building were used in the new one.[40]: 6 

A new outdoor recreation area, Waitangi Park, opened in 2006. The Wellington waterfront west of Taranaki Street, including Frank Kitts Park and Civic Square, is part of Wellington Central, not Te Aro.

The popular beach at Oriental Bay is five minutes' walk from the northeastern edge of Te Aro. Positively Wellington Tourism divides Te Aro into smaller areas – Courtenay Quarter, Courtenay Place, Waitangi Park – to help visitors find their way.

Politics[edit]

Te Aro is part of the Wellington Central general electorate and Te Tai Tonga Māori electorate.[44] As the heart of the capital city, Te Aro is a highly politicised suburb. A number of issues in Te Aro have garnered national attention. The long-proposed and much-protested Wellington Inner City Bypass through Te Aro was a news story for decades, but is now accepted.

Former Wellington Mayor Kerry Prendergast was accused of nepotism for allowing high-rise development by her husband to go ahead in the predominantly low-rise area of southern Te Aro.[45]

Transport[edit]

Te Aro is served by buses, which have taken the place of trams.

The Wellington tramway system served Te Aro from 1878 to 1964, with a number of routes to other Wellington suburbs. For over two decades, Te Aro was also served by the Te Aro Extension, a railway line from the New Zealand Railway's former Lambton station (not to be confused with the current Wellington station on Bunny Street) to Te Aro station. It opened in 1893; at its peak approximately 30 trains daily used the line, but local businesses complained of the dirt and noise of steam locomotives and the trains caused delays to traffic on important city streets. This led to the line's closure in 1917 and subsequent removal.

Some Wellington City Councillors have proposed re-extending rail services back to Courtenay Place and further, either as light rail or underground.[46]

Education[edit]

There are three state primary schools bordering the Te Aro area. Mount Cook School at 160 Tory Street takes children from year 0–8 and has a school zone that encompasses Te Aro.[47] The school had a roll of around 260 in 2021.[48] To the west is Te Aro School, located in Kelburn at 360 The Terrace, and to the east is Clyde Quay School, a year 0–8 school in Elizabeth Street in Mount Victoria. Both of these schools have zones which exclude the Te Aro area.[49][50] The nearest state secondary schools are Wellington Girls' College (single-sex – girls) in Thorndon, Wellington College (single sex – boys) and Wellington East Girls' College (single sex – girls) at the Basin Reserve, and Wellington High School (co-ed) in Mount Cook. Wellington Girls' College's enrolment zone excludes Te Aro[51] but the other three schools have zones that include Te Aro.

Neighbouring suburbs[edit]

A panorama of Wellington centred on Te Aro, taken from the Kelburn campus of Victoria University. The high-rises on the left are in Wellington Central
  • Wellington Central, the city's high-rise office district, is to the north. The boundary between the two halves of the central business district is at Civic Square where the ridge to the west comes closest to the sea.
  • Kelburn is on the hills to the west, accessible via The Terrace and a few streets climbing from it, such as Salamanca Road and Bolton Street, and separated from Te Aro by Victoria University's main (Kelburn) Campus.
  • Aro Valley lies beneath Kelburn to the southwest, and the turn into Aro Street marks the transition from Te Aro.
  • Mount Cook is the low hill south of Te Aro; it contains the National War Memorial and Carillon, visible from much of southern Te Aro. Te Aro's southern boundary runs along Webb and Buckle Streets.
  • Mount Victoria, the suburb on the western slope of the hill of the same name, is divided from Te Aro by the twin roads of Kent Terrace and Cambridge Terrace. The land for these roads was initially planned to be a channel into an inner harbour at the Basin Reserve. The plans were dropped when the 1855 earthquake lifted the land by several metres.
  • Oriental Bay is the capital's inner-city beach suburb, accessible from Te Aro via Oriental Parade to the northeast.

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "ArcGIS Web Application". statsnz.maps.arcgis.com. Retrieved 27 June 2021.
  2. ^ "Population estimate tables - NZ.Stat". Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  3. ^ "Ngā Kaimanaaki o te Waimapihi / Polhill Protectors focus on stream health". Environmental Protection Authority. 4 June 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  4. ^ "Te Aro Pa and Matairangi". Wellington City Libraries. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  5. ^ a b Menzies, Erin. "'Progress' v 'Preservation': A History of Te Aro, Wellington" (PDF). Retrieved 19 October 2021.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Yska, Redmer (2006). Wellington: Biography of a City. Auckland, New Zealand: Reed. ISBN 978-0-7900-1107-3.
  7. ^ "A Danger to the Public Health". Evening Post. Retrieved 19 October 2021 – via Paperspast.
  8. ^ "Dens of Infamy in Wellington". Evening Post. 6 August 1887. Retrieved 19 October 2021 – via Paperspast.
  9. ^ "Clearing Out the Slums". New Zealand Times. 13 November 1925. Retrieved 19 October 2021 – via Paperspast.
  10. ^ "Exhibition Site: Plea for Te Aro: "Wipe Out the Slums"?". Evening Post. 29 September 1936. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
  11. ^ "Te Aro Flat: Council's Plans: Criticism Invited". Evening Post. 1 March 1945. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
  12. ^ a b Cornish, Sophie (8 February 2021). "Our Truth, Tā Mātou Pono: Wellington's Te Aro Park, a small wedge of land with a big history". Stuff. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  13. ^ "Te Ara o Nga Tupuna". Wellington City Libraries. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  14. ^ Ward, Louis (1928). "Native Population, Etc.". Early Wellington. Auckland, New Zealand: Whitcombe and Tombs Ltd. pp. 154–158. ISBN 9780909053130 – via Electronic Text Collection.
  15. ^ "[untitled]". Evening Post. 19 August 1871. Retrieved 15 October 2021 – via Paperspast.
  16. ^ "Crown Grants". Wellington Independent. 30 July 1867. Retrieved 15 October 2021 – via Paperspast.
  17. ^ "[untitled]". Evening Post. 10 August 1871. Retrieved 15 October 2021 – via Paperspast.
  18. ^ "News of the Week". New Zealand Mail. 12 July 1873. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  19. ^ "Toenga o Te Aro (remains of Te Aro Pā)". Heritage New Zealand. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
  20. ^ a b "Statistical area 1 dataset for 2018 Census". Statistics New Zealand. March 2020. Dixon Street (251600), Vivian West (251700), Courtenay (251800) and Vivian East (252100).
  21. ^ 2018 Census place summary: Dixon Street
  22. ^ 2018 Census place summary: Vivian West
  23. ^ 2018 Census place summary: Courtenay
  24. ^ 2018 Census place summary: Vivian East
  25. ^ Swinnen, Lucy (25 September 2017). "100 years on, curtain finally comes down as Paramount holds last ever screening". Stuff. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  26. ^ Williams, Katarina (10 March 2017). "Reading Cinemas confirms quake damage as complex prepares to reopen". Stuff. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  27. ^ Chumko, Andre (5 January 2019). "Reading Cinemas confirms quake damage as complex prepares to reopen". Stuff. Retrieved 12 October 2021.
  28. ^ a b Cornish, Sophie (8 February 2021). "Our Truth, Tā Mātou Pono: Wellington's Te Aro Park, a small wedge of land with a big history". Stuff. Retrieved 12 October 2021.
  29. ^ "The Time at Courtenay Place". Evening Post. 22 December 1927. Retrieved 12 October 2021 – via Paperspast.
  30. ^ "Wesleyan Memorial". Evening Post. 10 June 1939. Retrieved 12 October 2021 – via Paperspast.
  31. ^ "Pioneer Missionaries: Memorial Presented to City". Evening Post. 12 June 1939. Retrieved 12 October 2021 – via Paperspast.
  32. ^ Irvine-Smith, F. L. (1949). The Streets of My City (2nd ed.). Wellington, New Zealand: A H & A W Reed. p. 90.
  33. ^ a b Yska, Redmer (2006). Wellington: Biography of a City. Auckland, New Zealand: Reed. pp. 245–246. ISBN 978-0-7900-1107-3.
  34. ^ Meekings-Stewart, Pamela (1992). "A Cat Among the Pigeons". NZ On Screen. Retrieved 12 October 2021.
  35. ^ Amery, Mark (20 May 2021). "Not keeping issues buried: Why troubled Te Aro Park is special". Stuff. Retrieved 12 October 2021.
  36. ^ "Art for Art's Sake". Sunday Star-Times. 21 June 2015 – via Proquest Australia & New Zealand Newsstream.
  37. ^ Cornish, Sophie (14 August 2020). "Gang members in nearby emergency accommodation linked to anti-social issues in Wellington's 'Pigeon Park'". Stuff. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  38. ^ a b "Te Aro Park - Assessing Harm" (PDF). Wellington City Council. September 2020. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  39. ^ "Making Te Aro Park safer". Wellington City Council. 7 April 2021. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  40. ^ a b c d "Clyde Quay Wharf and Apartments" (PDF). Greater Wellington Regional Council. May 2020. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  41. ^ Gateway to New Zealand: Official Opening of Overseas Passenger Terminal. Wellington, New Zealand: Wellington Harbour Board. 1964 – via Wellington City Libraries.
  42. ^ Schouten, Hank (27 April 2012). "Wellington Overseas Terminal almost gone". Stuff. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  43. ^ "Clyde Quay Wharf". Athfield Architects. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  44. ^ "2020 General Election electorates". Vote NZ. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  45. ^ "Local body elections: Race for the top". Stuff. 24 July 2010. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
  46. ^ "Councillors signal light rail battle lines". Stuff. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  47. ^ "Starting school". Mt Cook School. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  48. ^ "About Us". Mt Cook School. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  49. ^ "Starting School – Te Aro School". Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  50. ^ "Enrolment | New Zealand | Clyde Quay School". clydequayschool. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  51. ^ "Wellington Girls' College". Education Counts. Retrieved 14 October 2021.

Further reading[edit]

Kerr, Pete. 'Downtown discovery'. Heritage New Zealand. Autumn 2008. Issue 108, p. 4-9. Gives the history of Te Aro pa and the archaeological excavations in 2005.

Wellington City Council map of Te Aro with old map of Te Aro pa overlaid.

Coordinates: 41°17′38″S 174°46′37″E / 41.294°S 174.777°E / -41.294; 174.777

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