Te Aro Pa - Maori Pa Site Opens in Wellington
Wellingtonians can now get a rare glimpse into the city’s past right in the middle of town following the opening of the Te Aro Pa visitors’ centre in lower Taranaki Street. The centre contains the preserved foundations of two ponga buildings – or whare ponga – dating from the 1840s from the Maori settlement of Te Aro Pa.
The centre opened in the early hours of Saturday morning
(11 October) with over 200 people attending the ceremony. Kaumatua Sam Jackson, supported by iwi from Wellington and Taranaki, undertook the cultural rituals required to re-awaken the site and the ceremony was followed by breakfast at the Town Hall and speeches from dignitaries including Associate Minister of Arts, Culture and Heritage Hon Mahara Okeroa, Sir Paul Reeves and Mayor Kerry Prendergast.
Wellington City Council's Arts and Culture Portfolio Leader, Councillor Ray Ahipene-Mercer, says Te Aro P is unique. "It's the only 1840s Mori site found in the city and contains the only known whare ponga to have survived from that period. What makes this site even more amazing is that it's right in the heart of downtown Wellington."
The remains from Te Aro P were uncovered during construction of a new apartment building and the visitors' centre has opened on the ground floor to display the whare ponga remains. The public can visit the site free of charge, seven days a week from 9.00am - 5.00pm, and interpretive signage explains the history of the site and how it has been preserved.
Construction work on the building was halted in November 2005 when the remains of Te Aro P, occupied between the 1820s and 1880s, were uncovered. The New Zealand Historic Places Trust, developer Washington Ltd, the City Council and the Wellington Tenths Trust – which administers Mori land around the city – then considered options for preserving the structures.
Wellington Tenths Trust CEO Liz Mellish says this is a great example of organisations with very different interests all working together to find a solution that worked for everyone.
"Having a site like this on one of Wellington's busiest downtown streets is a fantastic asset for the city – Wellingtonians and visitors can see a little of what life was like for people of the Taranaki iwi who settled in this spot as far back as 1820," she says.