Te Aro#Te Aro Pā

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.{{Cite web|date=4 Jun 2021|title=Ngā Kaimanaaki o te Waimapihi / Polhill Protectors focus on stream health|url=https://www.epa.govt.nz/community-involvement/open-waters-aotearoa/newsletter/nga-kaimanaaki-o-te-waimapihi-polhill-protectors-focus-on-stream-health/|url-status=|access-date=15 Oct 2021|website=Environmental Protection Authority}} The name means "the stream (or bathing place) of Mapihi, a chieftainess of those iwi".{{Cite web|title=Te Aro Pā and Matairangi|url=https://www.wcl.govt.nz/maori/wellington/ngawaahiaro.html|url-status=|access-date=15 Oct 2021|website=Wellington City Libraries}} Te Aro Pā 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 or lagoon that was used by Māori for food (eels and shellfish) and flax gathering.{{Cite book |last=Adkin |first=G. Leslie |title=The great harbour of Tara |publisher=Whitcombe and Tombs |year=1959 |location=New Zealand |pages=97}} The stream flooded in heavy rain. Periodically the shingle beach that created the lagoon would collapse, draining the lagoon. This happened in spectacular fashion in March 1853:

On Thursday evening it commenced raining heavily and continued to do so without intermission during the whole of Thursday night and the greater part of yesterday. About four o'clock yesterday afternoon the large additional body of water which had accumulated in the swamp at Te Aro, in consequence of the rain, caused to burst the narrow bank which separated it from the sea with a loud noise which was heard to a considerable distance, and a thick turbid stream of mud poured forth with great rapidity into the harbour. From the head of the swamp, winding through its whole length, a regular channel has been cut of the average width of ten or twelve yards, and during the afternoon masses of earth, and small islands of flax were hurried with amazing swiftness by the stream and force of the current into the harbour, the surface of which was covered to a considerable extent with masses of floating mud and flax. The opening which has been made to the sea by this sudden eruption of the swamp extends over several of the town acres with water frontage at the head of Lambton harbour.{{Cite news |date=5 March 1853 |title=[untitled] |url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZSCSG18530305.2.3 |work=New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian |pages=2}}

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.{{Cite news|last=Menzies|first=Erin|title='Progress' v 'Preservation': A History of Te Aro, Wellington|url=https://www.nzta.govt.nz/assets/projects/wicb/resources/pdf/Te-Aro-History.pdf|access-date=19 Oct 2021}}{{Cite book|last=Yska|first=Redmer|title=Wellington: Biography of a City|publisher=Reed|year=2006|isbn=978-0-7900-1107-3|location=Auckland, New Zealand}}{{Rp|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.{{Cite news |date=8 January 1887 |title=A Danger to the Public Health |url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP18870108.2.12 |access-date=19 Oct 2021 |work=Evening Post |via=Paperspast}}{{Cite news|date=6 Aug 1887|title=Dens of Infamy in Wellington|work=Evening Post|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP18870806.2.37|access-date=19 Oct 2021|via=Paperspast}}{{Rp|67}} Typhoid was prevalent in the city in the early 1890s and most deaths from the disease occurred in the slums of Te Aro.{{Rp|73}} Almost half of Wellington's deaths in the 1918 influenza pandemic occurred in Te Aro.{{Rp|128}} The situation gradually improved as new suburbs such as Newtown, Miramar and Karori opened up and city infrastructure was developed.{{Cite news|date=13 Nov 1925|title=Clearing Out the Slums|work=New Zealand Times|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZTIM19251113.2.61|access-date=19 Oct 2021|via=Paperspast}}{{Cite news|date=29 Sep 1936|title=Exhibition Site: Plea for Te Aro: "Wipe Out the Slums"?|work=Evening Post|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19360929.2.61|access-date=19 Oct 2021}} In 1945 Wellington City Council held a conference to discuss the slums of Te Aro, which led to the widening of Taranaki Street.{{Cite news|date=1 Mar 1945|title=Te Aro Flat: Council's Plans: Criticism Invited|work=Evening Post|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19450301.2.119|access-date=19 Oct 2021}}{{Rp|166}}

A war party of Te Āti Awa and others migrated from Taranaki to Wellington and established the pā in the 1820s.{{Cite web|last=Cornish|first=Sophie|date=8 Feb 2021|title=Our Truth, Tā Mātou Pono: Wellington's Te Aro Park, a small wedge of land with a big history|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/pou-tiaki/our-truth/124016283/our-truth-t-mtou-pono-wellingtons-te-aro-park-a-small-wedge-of-land-with-a-big-history|url-status=|access-date=15 Oct 2021|website=Stuff |language=en}}{{Cite web|title=Te Ara o Nga Tupuna|url=https://www.wcl.govt.nz/maori/wellington/TeAra1.html|url-status=|access-date=2021-10-15|website=Wellington City Libraries}} Members of the New Zealand Company arrived in Wellington in 1839 and laid out a town plan which paid no regard to the several pā in the area.{{Rp|16}} In 1844 six rangatira (chiefs) from the settlement signed the 1844 deed, bringing Te Aro Pā into the New Zealand Company purchase of 1839. William Anson McCleverty was tasked with swapping Māori land around Wellington Harbour for land further away, which resulted in less-convenient food-growing areas.{{Rp|30}}

Around 200 people lived at the pā in the 1840s, but numbers decreased after that. An 1850 survey stated that there were 186 people at Te Aro Pā 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 kūmara, 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.{{Cite book|last=Ward|first=Louis|url=|title=Early Wellington|publisher=Whitcombe and Tombs Ltd|year=1928|isbn=9780909053130|location=Auckland, New Zealand|pages=154–158|chapter=Native Population, Etc.|chapter-url=http://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-WarEarl-t1-body-d13-d17.html|via=Electronic Text Collection}} 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 Pā decreased and by the 1880s almost all had left. Some Māori at the pā had been given Crown Grants to the land{{Cite news|date=19 Aug 1871|title=[untitled]|work=Evening Post|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP18710819.2.10|access-date=15 Oct 2021|via=Paperspast}}{{Cite news|date=30 Jul 1867|title=Crown Grants|work=Wellington Independent|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/WI18670730.2.26.3|access-date=15 Oct 2021|via=Paperspast}} which meant they could not sell it, so they leased parcels of land to European settlers.{{Cite news|date=10 Aug 1871|title=[untitled]|work=Evening Post|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP18710810.2.4|access-date=15 Oct 2021|via=Paperspast}} By the 1870s most of the pā's remaining land was sold to Wellington Council{{Cite news|date=12 Jul 1873|title=News of the Week|work=New Zealand Mail|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZMAIL18730712.2.48|access-date=15 Oct 2021}} who wished to extend Taranaki Street to the waterfront through pā lands.

In 2005 archaeologists discovered the remains of three structures from the pā during redevelopment of a site at 39–43 Taranaki Street.{{Cite web|title=Toenga o Te Aro (remains of Te Aro Pā)|url=https://www.heritage.org.nz/the-list/details/7771|url-status=|access-date=19 Oct 2021|website=Heritage New Zealand }}

Haining Street and Frederick Street are short streets which run between Taranaki Street and Tory Street. This area became the centre of Wellington's Chinese community in the late nineteenth century, after miners migrated to the city from goldfields in the South Island.{{Rp|pages=100–101}} Haining Street became known by its Chinese residents as Ton Yung Gaai ("Chinese people's street").{{Cite web|last=Weber|first=Adriana|date=28 August 2013|title=Opium dens, gambling and murder|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/local-papers/the-wellingtonian/features/8565483/Opium-dens-gambling-and-murder|url-status=|access-date=30 December 2021|website=Stuff |language=en}} Haining Street developed a bad reputation for its gambling houses, brothels and opium dens, and the street's notoriety increased in 1905 when white supremacist Lionel Terry shot dead an elderly Chinese man named Joe Kum Yung. Terry was anti-Asian and told authorities he killed Joe to bring public attention to his views. In 2006 a memorial plaque to Joe Kum Yung was installed on the footpath in Haining Street.{{Cite web|title=Racist killing in Wellington's Haining St|url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/page/racist-killing-wellingtons-haining-st|url-status=|access-date=29 December 2021|website=New Zealand History|language=en}} Some other reminders of the area's time as Wellington's Chinatown are the Chinese Mission Hall at 40 – 46 Frederick Street, designed by Frederick de Jersey Clere and built in 1905,{{Cite web|title=Chinese Mission Hall|url=https://wellingtoncityheritage.org.nz/buildings/1-150/124-chinese-mission-hall?|url-status=|access-date=29 December 2021|website=Wellington City Council }}{{Cite news|date=3 May 1905|title=Chinese Mission: The work in Wellington|work=New Zealand Times|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZTIM19050503.2.60|access-date=30 December 2021|via=Paperspast}} the Wellington Chinese Masonic Society building at 23 Frederick Street, built in 1925,{{Cite web|title=Wellington Chinese Masonic Society Building|url=https://wellingtoncityheritage.org.nz/buildings/1-150/123-wellington-chinese-masonic-society-building|url-status=|access-date=29 December 2021|website=Wellington City Council }}{{Cite news|date=12 October 1925|title=Chinese Masons: Wellington branch opened|work=Evening Post|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19251012.2.120|access-date=30 December 2021|via=Paperspast}} and the Tung Jung Association building at 2 Frederick Street, built in 1926.{{Cite web|title=Tung Jung NZ {{!}} A Brief History of the Tung Jung Association|url=https://tungjung.nz/history/|access-date=2021-12-30|website=tungjung.nz}}

The area around Marion Street, Vivian Street and Cuba Street was the heart of Wellington's red light district for much of the 20th century.{{Cite web|title=Queer nightlife in Wellington|url=https://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/topic/10131|url-status=|access-date=5 January 2022|website=Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa}}{{Cite web|last=Carlisle|first=Talia|date=6 December 2013|title=Vivian St's gritty history of brothels and murder|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/capital-life/9478774/Vivian-Sts-gritty-history-of-brothels-and-murder|access-date=5 January 2022|website=Stuff |language=en}} Carmen Rupe, a transgender woman prominent in Wellington in the 1970s, ran Carmen's International Coffee House at 86 Vivian Street where sexual services were available.{{Cite web|last=McBride|first=Kerry|date=26 March 2013|title=Teacups talked at Carmen's coffee lounge|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/capital-life/6640746/Teacups-talked-at-Carmens-coffee-lounge|url-status=|access-date=5 January 2022|website=Stuff |language=en}} Carmen is remembered with themed traffic lights in Cuba Street.{{Cite web|last=Bootham|first=Laura|date=8 August 2016|title=Carmen's silhouette lights up Cuba St again|url=https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/310452/carmen%27s-silhouette-lights-up-cuba-st-again|url-status=|access-date=5 January 2022|website=RNZ |language=en-nz}} In Marion Street is a trompe-l'oeil mural of a prostitute leaning on a wall. It was painted by Michael Benseman and Michael Ting in 1990, and references the area's history of prostitution.{{Cite web|title=Tag: Benseman and Ting mural » PrideNZ.com|url=https://www.pridenz.com/tags/7488.html|url-status=|access-date=5 January 2022|website=www.pridenz.com}}{{Cite web|last=Weber|first=Adriana|date=28 August 2013|title=Street history: Marion St|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/capital-life/7396623/Street-history-Marion-St|url-status=|access-date=5 January 2022|website=Stuff |language=en}} A television documentary produced in 1989 explored the red light district, interviewing prostitutes, strippers and business owners.{{Cite web|last=Gibson|first=Dave|date=1989|title=The Night Workers|url=https://www.nzonscreen.com/title/the-night-workers-1989|url-status=|access-date=6 January 2022|website=via NZ on Screen|language=en}} In 2018 Wellington City Council installed a rainbow-coloured pedestrian crossing at Dixon Street where it bisects Cuba Mall, and in October 2022 two memorial benches were unveiled at the corner of Cuba Street and Vivian Street. The benches commemorate Carmen Rupe and Chrissy Witoko, another transgender businesswoman in the area, and resulted from a collaboration between PrideNZ, the Chrissy Witoko Memorial Trust and the Cultural Heritage team at Wellington City Council.{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2022-09-16 |title=Chrissy Witoko & Carmen Rupe Seat Unveiling |url=https://gayexpress.co.nz/2022/09/chrissy-witoko-carmen-rupe-seat-unveiling/ |access-date=2022-10-20 |website=express Magazine |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=McCallum |first=Hanna |date=2022-10-14 |title=Wellington's transgender icons celebrated for creating 'safe havens' at a time there was nowhere else to go |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/130147190/wellingtons-transgender-icons-celebrated-for-creating-safe-havens-at-a-time-there-was-nowhere-else-to-go |access-date=2022-10-20 |website=Stuff |language=en}}

The population of Te Aro roughly doubled between 1991 and 1996 and has increased rapidly since then.{{Cite web |last=Winter |first=Chloe |date=2017-07-21 |title=Keen interest surrounds 1920s Wellington building with penthouse, rooftop |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/94963479/keen-interest-surrounds-1920s-wellington-building-with-penthouse-rooftop |access-date=2023-01-24 |website=Stuff |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Stewart |first=Matt |date=2016-10-21 |title=New apartments to bring 1000 new residents to downtown Wellington |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/85624567/new-apartments-to-bring-1000-new-residents-to-downtown-wellington |access-date=2023-01-24 |website=Stuff |language=en}} 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. In October 2021 Wellington City Council released its draft District Plan which would allow new buildings in Te Aro to reach 42.5 metres or 12 storeys, to cater for projected population growth in the area.{{Cite web |last=MacManus |first=Joel |date=2021-10-14 |title=Buildings up to 12 storeys part of major new Wellington housing plan |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/wellington/126677014/buildings-up-to-12-storeys-part-of-major-new-wellington-housing-plan |access-date=2023-01-24 |website=Stuff |language=en}} Public feedback following release of the draft plan showed many residents were worried about loss of sunlight and privacy.{{Cite web |date=21 June 2022 |title=New housing plans being debated, again, today |url=https://wellington.scoop.co.nz/?p=145381 |access-date=2023-01-24 |website=Wellington Scoop |language=en}}

Te Aro, comprising the statistical areas of Dixon Street, Vivian West, Courtenay and Vivian East, covers {{Convert|1.28|km2||abbr=on}}.{{Cite web|title=ArcGIS Web Application|url=https://statsnz.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=6f49867abe464f86ac7526552fe19787|access-date=27 June 2021|website=statsnz.maps.arcgis.com}} It had an estimated population of {{Decimals|{{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2023 SA2|Dixon Street West|y}}|R}}+{{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2023 SA2|Dixon Street East|y}}|R}}+{{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2023 SA2|Vivian West|y}}|R}}+{{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2023 SA2|Courtenay|y}}|R}}+{{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2023 SA2|Vivian East|y}}|R}}|0}} as of {{NZ population data 2023 SA2|||y|||,}} with a population density of {{Decimals|({{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2023 SA2|Dixon Street West|y}}|R}}+{{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2023 SA2|Dixon Street East|y}}|R}}+{{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2023 SA2|Vivian West|y}}|R}}+{{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2023 SA2|Courtenay|y}}|R}}+{{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2023 SA2|Vivian East|y}}|R}})/1.28|0}} people per km².

{{Historical populations|2006|7,386|2013|10,227|2018|11,823|percentages=pagr|align=left|source=}}

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, comprising 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% Pasifika, 22.4% Asian, and 4.0% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.

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

Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 63.4% had no religion, 20.6% were Christian, 0.3% had Māori religious beliefs, 4.3% were Hindu, 1.1% were Muslim, 1.9% were Buddhist and 4.1% had other religions.

Of those at least 15 years old, 5,292 (46.2%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 318 (2.8%) people had no formal qualifications. 2,688 people (23.5%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. 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.{{NZ census 2018|Dixon Street (251600), Vivian West (251700), Courtenay (251800) and Vivian East (252100)}}

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.{{Cite web|last=Swinnen|first=Lucy|date=25 Sep 2017|title=100 years on, curtain finally comes down as Paramount holds last ever screening|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/film/97193142/100-years-on-curtain-finally-comes-down-as-paramount-holds-last-ever-screening|url-status=|access-date=13 Oct 2021|website=Stuff |language=en}} The 10-screen Reading complex in Courtenay Place closed in November 2016 after suffering damage in the Kaikōura earthquake.{{Cite web|last=Williams|first=Katarina|date=10 Mar 2017|title=Reading Cinemas confirms quake damage as complex prepares to reopen|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/nz-earthquake/90291093/reading-cinemas-confirms-quake-damage-as-complex-prepares-to-reopen|url-status=|access-date=13 Oct 2021|website=Stuff |language=en}} It reopened in March 2017 but closed again in January 2019 after further assessment.{{Cite web|last=Chumko|first=Andre|date=5 Jan 2019|title=Reading Cinemas confirms quake damage as complex prepares to reopen|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/109746515/reading-cinemas-in-wellington-closed-immediately-due-to-quake-risk|url-status=|access-date=2021-10-12|website=Stuff |language=en}} 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.

There are several galleries and museums in the area. The National Tattoo Museum Of New Zealand opened in its current location in 2011.{{cite web |title=National Tattoo Museum Of New Zealand |url=http://mokomuseum.org.nz |publisher=National Tattoo Museum Of New Zealand}}{{cite web |title=National Tattoo Museum Of New Zealand on NZ Museums |url=https://nzmuseums.co.nz/collections/3264/the-national-tattoo-museum-of-new-zealand |website=nzmuseums.co.nz |publisher=Te Papa}}{{cite news |title=The art people wear for life |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/4454467/The-art-people-wear-for-life |publisher=stuff.co.nz |date=14 December 2020}}

File:Wellington (6793553239).jpg

File:Te Aro Park prow, Wellington.jpg

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 Pā was close to this location but by the 1880s very few Māori remained at the site.{{Cite web|last=Cornish|first=Sophie|date=8 Feb 2021|title=Our Truth, Tā Mātou Pono: Wellington's Te Aro Park, a small wedge of land with a big history|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/pou-tiaki/our-truth/124016283/our-truth-t-mtou-pono-wellingtons-te-aro-park-a-small-wedge-of-land-with-a-big-history|url-status=|access-date=12 Oct 2021|website=Stuff |language=en}} The Council bought the land in the 1870s, and it became known as Market Reserve and then Manners Street Reserve. 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,{{Cite news|date=22 Dec 1927|title=The Time at Courtenay Place|work=Evening Post|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19271222.2.101.1|access-date=12 Oct 2021|via=Paperspast}} but has since been moved further along to a pedestrian area in Courtenay Place.{{Cite web |date=2022-05-31 |title=The timeless tale of the Courtenay Place clock |url=https://wellington.govt.nz/news-and-events/news-and-information/our-wellington/2024/03/the-timeless-tale-of-the-courtenay-place-clock |access-date=2024-03-19 |website=Wellington City Council |language=en-NZ}} 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 Pā.{{Cite news|date=10 Jun 1939|title=Wesleyan Memorial|work=Evening Post|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19390610.2.169.6|access-date=12 Oct 2021|via=Paperspast}}{{Cite news|date=12 Jun 1939|title=Pioneer Missionaries: Memorial Presented to City|work=Evening Post|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19390612.2.27.1|access-date=12 Oct 2021|via=Paperspast}}{{Cite book|last=Irvine-Smith|first=F. L.|title=The Streets of My City|publisher=A H & A W Reed|year=1949|edition=2nd|location=Wellington, New Zealand|pages=90}} 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, named Te Waimapihi,{{Cite web |title=Te Waimapihi {{!}} Te Aro Park Memorial – Drain Magazine |url=https://drainmag.com/te-waimapihi-te-aro-park/ |access-date=2025-06-11 |language=en-US}} ended up costing over $800,000, more than three times the amount agreed with Davies, and was finished a year later than agreed.{{Cite book|last=Yska|first=Redmer|title=Wellington: Biography of a City|publisher=Reed|year=2006|isbn=978-0-7900-1107-3|location=Auckland, New Zealand|pages=245–246}} A documentary was made about Davies' work on the park and the controversy that surrounded the project.{{Cite web|last=Meekings-Stewart|first=Pamela|date=1992|title=A Cat Among the Pigeons|url=https://www.nzonscreen.com/title/a-cat-among-the-pigeons-1992|url-status=|access-date=12 Oct 2021|website=NZ On Screen |language=en}} 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. Warning signs had to be installed when it was discovered that the tiles become extremely slippery when wet.{{Cite news|date=21 June 2015|title=Art for Art's Sake|work=Sunday Star-Times |via=Proquest Australia & New Zealand Newsstream}} Triangular shapes throughout the park evoke Māori weaving, and flowing water in the park's pools represents cleansing and renewal.{{Cite web|last=Amery|first=Mark|date=20 May 2021|title=Not keeping issues buried: Why troubled Te Aro Park is special|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/arts/300310664/not-keeping-issues-buried-why-troubled-te-aro-park-is-special|url-status=|access-date=12 Oct 2021|website=Stuff |language=en}} A piece of pounamu (greenstone) was buried under the prow at the opening ceremony.{{Cite web|last=Weber|first=Adriana|date=27 August 2013|title=Opium dens, gambling and murder|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/local-papers/the-wellingtonian/features/8565483/Opium-dens-gambling-and-murder|url-status=|access-date=29 December 2021|website=Stuff |language=en}}

From around 2018 anti-social behaviour at the park increased, and in August 2020 a police report on the area was submitted to Wellington City Council for review.{{Cite web|last=Cornish|first=Sophie|date=14 Aug 2020|title=Gang members in nearby emergency accommodation linked to anti-social issues in Wellington's 'Pigeon Park'|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/wellington-top-stories/122410565/gang-members-in-nearby-emergency-accommodation-linked-to-antisocial-issues-in-wellingtons-pigeon-park|url-status=|access-date=13 Oct 2021|website=Stuff |language=en}} 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.{{Cite web|date=Sep 2020|title=Te Aro Park – Assessing Harm|url=https://wellington.govt.nz/-/media/community-support-and-resources/community-safety/files/te_aro_park_project.pdf|url-status=|access-date=13 Oct 2021|website=Wellington City Council }}{{Cite web|date=7 April 2021|title=Making Te Aro Park safer|url=https://wellington.govt.nz/community-support-and-resources/safety-in-wellington/community-safety/making-te-aro-park-safer|url-status=|access-date=13 Oct 2021|website=Wellington City Council |language=en-NZ}} Proposed changes to the park included 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. In early 2021 the City Council, in partnership with police and other organisations, launched 'The Pōneke Promise', an initiative to make people feel safer in the inner city.{{Cite web |date=2022-06-02 |title=The Pōneke Promise |url=https://wellington.govt.nz/community-support-and-resources/safety-in-wellington/the-poneke-promise |access-date=2022-10-22 |website=Wellington City Council |language=en-NZ}} As part of this initiative, in 2022 the City Council removed car parks along one side of Te Aro Park and replaced them with a $600,000 timber boardwalk and planter boxes.{{Cite web |last=Hunt |first=Tom |date=2022-10-16 |title=Crime-fighting boardwalk marks part of mission to make Wellington's CBD safer |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/wellington/130179176/crimefighting-boardwalk-marks-part-of-mission-to-make-wellingtons-cbd-safer |access-date=2022-10-22 |website=Stuff |language=en}} The stated aim was to increase visibility around the park, make it look nicer, slow traffic and create more pedestrian space.{{Cite web |date=2022-05-31 |title=New and improved Dixon Street open for business |url=https://wellington.govt.nz/news-and-events/news-and-information/our-wellington/2022/10/new-and-improved-dixon-street |access-date=2022-10-22 |website=Wellington City Council |language=en-NZ}} The changes to the park did not address the issue of problems with people loitering in the park. The Council demolished the public toilets in the park in November 2022, saying this would lead to increased vibrancy in the area. The Council announced that permanent replacement facilities would not be built for over a year, probably in 2024, but that it intended to place some temporary toilets in a nearby street within a few months.{{Cite web |last=Hunt |first=Tom |date=2022-11-14 |title=Demolition of public toilets plagued by crime gets under way |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/wellington/130470794/demolition-of-public-toilets-plagued-by-crime-gets-under-way |access-date=2022-11-14 |website=Stuff |language=en}}

File:CubaSt.JPG

The wide end of the wedge formed by Cuba, Dixon and Manners Streets and adjacent to Te Aro Park was formerly occupied by the Royal Oak Hotel, but this was demolished in 1979{{Cite web|title=Royal Oak Hotel (Wellington, NZ)|url=https://natlib.govt.nz/records/22414058|url-status=|access-date=27 December 2021|website=National Library of New Zealand}} and replaced by the Oaks complex, which was completed in 1981.{{Cite book|last=Kernohan|first=David|title=Wellington's New Buildings|publisher=Victoria University Press|year=1989|isbn=0864730853|location=Wellington, New Zealand|pages=113}} The building is made of painted steel, glass and tiles and originally had an airy, plant-filled central atrium.{{Cite web |title=Cuba Mall, The Oaks Complex [photograph] |url=https://archivesonline.wcc.govt.nz/nodes/view/867450 |access-date=2022-07-17 |website=Archives Online}} Architects Warren and Mahoney won the overall prize in the Steel Awards of 1982 for their attempt "to recreate a contemporary meeting place using the light indoor/outdoor structure". The building was considered a temporary structure. Tenants in the building have included retail shops, cafes, bars and restaurants, and in 2004, an illegal casino.{{Cite news|last=Kay|first=Martin|date=1 June 2004|title=Eight arrested in Cuba St 'casino'|page=A1|work=Dominion Post|via=Proquest Australia & New Zealand Newsstream}}

File:Oaks Complex, Cuba Street, Wellington.jpg

In 1996 the central atrium area was filled in.{{Cite news|last=Peters|first=Graeme|date=22 June 1996|title=. . . and in with the new; Budget shoe store coming to Capital|page=16|work=Evening Post|access-date=|via=Proquest Australia & New Zealand Newsstream}} A pedestrian overbridge originally joined the complex to James Smiths department store, but it was removed in the late 1990s.{{Cite news|last=Green|first=Suzanne|date=13 March 2001|title=Hopes Shed 39 will be drawcard|page=13|work=Evening Post|via=Proquest Australia & New Zealand Newsstream}} In 2011 Wellington City Council published the Wellington 2040 City Strategy, which among other things suggested that the Oaks could be demolished to make way for a grassed area that would link Te Aro Park to Cuba Mall.{{Cite news|last=Burgess|first=Dave|date=16 June 2011|title=Smart Green City|page=A1|work=Dominion Post|via=Proquest Australia & New Zealand Newsstream}} The Council's manager for research, strategy, and urban design later clarified that there were no immediate plans to demolish the complex, stating "the land is held by the owner under a lease in perpetuity from the council".{{Cite news|last=Hannah|first=Brian|date=13 July 2011|title=Hold your horses|page=B4|work=Dominion Post|via=Proquest Australia & New Zealand Newsstream}} In 2015, the Council's Transport and Urban Development Committee chairman Andy Foster suggested that the Oaks could be turned into a covered market.{{Cite web|last=Chapman|first=Katie|date=2 August 2015|title=Wellington's Oaks building eyed for inner city park|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/wellington/70655757/wellingtons-oaks-building-eyed-for-inner-city-park|url-status=|access-date=27 December 2021|website=Stuff |language=en}} In 2019 the Council released Planning for Growth, a strategic plan for higher density living in the city. Councillor Nicola Young suggested that the Oaks complex was an eyesore that could be demolished to make way for a better building.{{Cite web|last=Desmarais|first=Felix|date=2019-06-20|title=Wellington growth plan 'golden opportunity' to get rid of 'eye-wateringly ugly' buildings|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/wellington/113563270/wellington-growth-plan--golden-opportunity-to-get-rid-of-eyewateringly-ugly-buildings|url-status=|access-date=2021-12-27|website=Stuff |language=en}} The Oaks building is owned by Zadimas Properties. Zadimas leases the land under the complex on a 21-year perpetual lease. The rent is updated only every 21 years when the lease comes up for renewal.{{Cite web |last=Hunt |first=Tom |date=5 March 2024 |title='Messy legacy': Cuba St 'eyesore' echoes controversial Reading deal |url=https://www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/350199791/messy-legacy-cuba-st-eyesore-echoes-controversial-reading-deal |access-date=2024-03-04 |website=The Post}}

{{Main|Cuba Street, Wellington}}

Cuba Street runs north to south through Te Aro, stretching from the Michael Fowler Centre near the harbour to Webb Street, between the Basin Reserve, Mt Cook and Brooklyn areas. Cuba Street is known for its bohemian atmosphere and old architecture. Part of Cuba Street is pedestrianised as Cuba Mall, home of the Bucket Fountain.

{{Main|Courtenay Place, Wellington}}

Courtenay Place is one of the main streets in Te Aro. It runs east to west from Kent and Cambridge Terraces near the base of Mount Victoria to the intersection of Manners, Dixon and Taranaki Streets at Te Aro Park. Courtenay Place is known as an entertainment and nightlife district and has many theatres, bars and restaurants. Formerly it was also the site of large wholesale fruit and vegetable markets. The warehouses holding the markets have been converted into apartments, offices and entertainment venues.

St Mary of the Angels (opened 1922) is a Catholic church in Boulcott Street, built in concrete and brick in a Gothic style.

St John's at 176 Willis Street s a Presbyterian church. It is built of wood in a Gothic style, and opened in 1885.

Further along at 211 Willis Street is St Peter's, another wooden church built in a Gothic style. St Peter's was opened in 1879 for the Anglican community. The first church on the site was opened in 1848.{{Cite web |title=About |url=https://www.stpetersonwillis.org.nz/about-us/about |access-date=2022-03-14 |website=www.stpetersonwillis.org.nz |language=en-nz}}

Wesley Methodist Church at 75 Taranaki Street was opened in 1880.{{Cite web |title=Wesley Church |url=https://www.heritage.org.nz/the-list/details/4422 |access-date=2022-03-14 |website=www.heritage.org.nz}} It is built of wood and combines Gothic elements with Classical and Romanesque features. Wesley Church is currently used by Pacific Island congregations.{{Cite web |title=Wesley Methodist Church and Hall |url=https://wellingtoncityheritage.org.nz/buildings/151-300/283-wesley-methodist-church-and-hall |access-date=2022-03-14 |website=Wellington City Council }}

St John's, St Peter's and Wesley Church were all designed by architect Thomas Turnbull.

The Congregational Church on the corner of Cambridge Terrace and Lorne Street (formerly known as 'Ritson's Corner') was designed by William Fielding and opened in 1917.{{Cite news|date=26 May 1917|title=A new church|work=Dominion|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/DOM19170526.2.56|access-date=5 January 2022|via=Paperspast}}{{Cite book|last=Kernohan|first=David|title=Wellington's Old Buildings|publisher=Victoria University Press|year=1994|isbn=0864732678|location=Wellington, New Zealand|pages=156}} The church is made of brick in a "truncated form of Edwardian Gothic, known in Australia as Federation Gothic".{{Cite web|title=Congregational Church|url=https://www.wellingtoncityheritage.org.nz/buildings/1-150/54-congregational-church|url-status=|access-date=5 January 2022|website=Wellington City Council }} At the rear of the church is an annex used for Sunday School.

File:Welsh Dragon Bar (former Taj Mahal public toilets) 2021-08-21 1.tif

'Taj Mahal' is the nickname of a building on the median strip between Kent and Cambridge Terraces and Courtenay Place and Wakefield Street. The building was constructed in 1928 and opened in July 1929 as public toilets for tram passengers.{{Cite news|date=12 July 1929|title=The new rest room|work=Evening Post|url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19290712.2.121|access-date=26 February 2022|via=Paperspast}} With a dome at each end, the building quickly became known as the Taj Mahal.{{Cite web|date=20 Apr 2017|title=Public Conveniences (Former, 'Taj Mahal')|url=https://www.wellingtoncityheritage.org.nz/buildings/1-150/56-public-conveniences?q=|access-date=26 February 2022|website=Wellington City Council }} In 1966 the toilets were finally closed due to difficulty of access and lack of use. The building was saved from demolition by public protest, and since then has been used successively as storage for Downstage Theatre, an art gallery, and as home to various bars and restaurants.{{Cite web|title='Taj Mahal' Public Toilets (Former)|url=https://www.heritage.org.nz/the-list/details/1434|access-date=26 February 2022|website=Heritage New Zealand }} The Taj was formerly part of the beat for gay men looking for anonymous sex,{{Cite web|title=Taj Mahal Toilet – Wellington waterfront walk tour » PrideNZ.com|url=https://www.pridenz.com/wellington_waterfront_walk_tour_taj_mahal_toilet.html|access-date=2022-02-26|website=www.pridenz.com}} and students have held capping stunts there.{{Cite web|last=O'Neil|first=Andrea|date=2015-06-29|title=Wellington's Taj Mahal toilets declared an independent state – 150 years of news|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/69781043/wellingtons-taj-mahal-toilets-declared-an-independent-state---150-years-of-news|access-date=2022-02-26|website=Stuff |language=en}} Stephen Oliver wrote a poem called 'The ballad of the Taj Mahal' about the building's varying uses.{{Cite web|title=3am Poetry – Poems by Stephen Oliver|url=https://www.3ammagazine.com/poetry/2004/mar/oliver.html|access-date=2022-02-26|website=www.3ammagazine.com}}

Since 2004 it has been home to The Welsh Dragon Bar, the first Welsh pub in the Southern Hemisphere.

Image:Wellington Te Papa n.jpg

File:Clyde Quay Wharf Apartments.jpg

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.{{Cite web|date=May 2020|title=Clyde Quay Wharf and Apartments|url=http://www.gw.govt.nz/assets/Proposed-Natural-Resources-Plan/Historic-Heritage-Addendum-Report-Clyde-Quay-Wharf-and-Apartments-May-2020.pdf|url-status=|access-date=13 Oct 2021|website=Greater Wellington Regional Council}} 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{{Cite book |url=https://wellington.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/4958 |title=Gateway to New Zealand: Official Opening of Overseas Passenger Terminal |publisher=Wellington Harbour Board |year=1964 |location=Wellington, New Zealand |via=Wellington City Libraries}} which never eventuated. The building was also used as a function venue. The Overseas Passenger Terminal was demolished in 2012{{Cite web|last=Schouten|first=Hank|date=27 Apr 2012|title=Wellington Overseas Terminal almost gone|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/editors-picks/6822807/Wellington-Overseas-Terminal-almost-gone|url-status=|access-date=13 Oct 2021|website=Stuff |language=en}} to make way for a new apartment complex called Clyde Quay Wharf, which opened in 2014.{{Rp|page=3}} It has 75 apartments, but the area at ground level around the wharf has been left accessible to the public.{{Cite web|title=Clyde Quay Wharf|url=https://athfieldarchitects.co.nz/projects/residential/clyde-quay-wharf|url-status=|access-date=13 Oct 2021|website=Athfield Architects}} The spire and four wall mosaics from the old building were used in the new one.{{Rp|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 north-eastern edge of Te Aro.

Te Aro is part of the Wellington Central general electorate and Te Tai Tonga Māori electorate.{{Cite web|title=2020 General Election electorates|url=https://vote.nz/maps/2020-general-election-electorates/|access-date=2021-10-20|website=Vote NZ|language=en-NZ}} 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.{{Cite web|date=2010-07-24|title=Local body elections: Race for the top|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/sunday-star-times/features/3952090/Local-body-elections-Race-for-the-top|access-date=2021-10-18|website=Stuff |language=en}}

A statue of Queen Victoria sits on a traffic island between Kent and Cambridge Terraces at the western side of Te Aro.{{Cite web|date=23 February 2014|title=Queen Victoria statue courted controversy|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/capital-life/9751824/Queen-Victoria-statue-courted-controversy|url-status=|access-date=2021-12-30|website=Stuff |language=en}} The statue has occasionally featured in protest movements: for example, in 2007 Queen Victoria held a tino rangatiratanga flag,{{Cite web|title=Queen Vic with Maori flag {{!}} Aotearoa Independent Media Centre|url=http://archive.indymedia.org.nz/article/73039/queen-vic-maori-flag|access-date=2021-12-30|website=archive.indymedia.org.nz}}{{Cite web|last=|last2=|first2=|last3=|first3=|date=8 February 2007|title=Images: The Maori Flag Flies On Waitangi Day|url=https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0702/S00080.htm|url-status=|access-date=30 December 2021|website=www.scoop.co.nz}} and in 2020 the statue was blindfolded in a protest against colonialism and racism.{{Cite web|last=Witton|first=Bridie|date=22 June 2020|title=Statues blindfolded in Wellington protest against racism|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/121909329/statues-blindfolded-in-wellington-protest-against-racism|url-status=|access-date=31 December 2021|website=Stuff |language=en}}

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 about 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.{{Cite web|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/4235268/Councillors-signal-light-rail-battle-lines|title=Councillors signal light rail battle lines|website=Stuff |date=14 October 2010 |access-date=2017-09-14}}

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.{{Cite web|title=Starting school|url=http://www.mtcook.school.nz/starting-school/|access-date=2021-10-14|website=Mt Cook School|language=en-NZ}} The school had a roll of around 260 in 2021.{{Cite web|title=About Us|url=http://www.mtcook.school.nz/about-us/|access-date=2021-10-14|website=Mt Cook School|language=en-NZ}} 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.{{Cite web|title=Starting School – Te Aro School|url=https://tearo.school.nz/about-us/starting-school/|access-date=2021-10-14|language=en-NZ}}{{Cite web|title=Enrolment {{!}} New Zealand {{!}} Clyde Quay School|url=https://www.clydequay.school.nz/enrolment|access-date=2021-10-14|website=clydequayschool|language=en}} 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{{Cite web|last=|first=|title=Wellington Girls' College|url=https://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/find-school/school/profile?district=47®ion=9&school=272|url-status=|access-date=2021-10-14|website=Education Counts|language=en-NZ}} but the other three schools have zones that include Te Aro.

Image:WellingtonPano.jpg 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.

{{Reflist}}

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

Wellington City Council map of Te Aro with [https://www.wcl.govt.nz/maori/wellington/tearopa.html old map of Te Aro pa] overlaid.{{Suburbs of Wellington City}}

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Category:Suburbs of Wellington City

Category:Populated places around the Wellington Harbour