Tōtara Park is a suburb of
Upper Hutt
Upper Hutt ( mi, Te Awa Kairangi ki Uta) is a city in the Wellington Region of New Zealand and one of the four cities that constitute the Wellington metropolitan area.
Geography
The Upper Hutt city centre lies approximately 26 km north- ...
, New Zealand, located 2 km northeast of the city centre. It is accessed via the Tōtara Park Bridge which crosses the
Hutt River, connecting it to State Highway 2 and the main Upper Hutt urban area. It was popular in the 1970s and 1980s for families moving into the
Upper Hutt
Upper Hutt ( mi, Te Awa Kairangi ki Uta) is a city in the Wellington Region of New Zealand and one of the four cities that constitute the Wellington metropolitan area.
Geography
The Upper Hutt city centre lies approximately 26 km north- ...
area.
Most of the streets in Tōtara Park are named after
states,
town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an o ...
s and
cities
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
of the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
, with the main road running through the suburb being California Drive.
Tōtara Park is built on
alluvial gravel. The
Wellington Fault
The Wellington Fault is an active seismic fault in the southern part of the North Island of New Zealand. It is a dextral (right-lateral) strike-slip fault with variable amounts of vertical movement causing uplift to the northwest, as expressed b ...
runs through the suburb—one section of California Drive straddles the fault, and the road lanes are built on either side of the fault with a large central reservation between them. This was designed so houses would be offset at least 20 metres from the fault, hopefully limiting damage if the fault were to rupture.
The
Māori
Māori or Maori can refer to:
Relating to the Māori people
* Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group
* Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand
* Māori culture
* Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...
names for this area are Te Hau-karetu and for the
Hutt River itself; Heretaunga, and Awa Kaiangi. In December 2019, the approved official geographic name of the suburb was gazetted as "Tōtara Park".
Demographics
Totara Park statistical area covers .
It had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km
2.
Totara Park had a population of 2,901 at the
2018 New Zealand census
Eighteen or 18 may refer to:
* 18 (number), the natural number following 17 and preceding 19
* one of the years 18 BC, AD 18, 1918, 2018
Film, television and entertainment
* ''18'' (film), a 1993 Taiwanese experimental film based on the short ...
, an increase of 27 people (0.9%) since the
2013 census, and an increase of 48 people (1.7%) since the
2006 census. There were 1,041 households. There were 1,410 males and 1,488 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.95 males per female. The median age was 36.8 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 624 people (21.5%) aged under 15 years, 531 (18.3%) aged 15 to 29, 1,362 (46.9%) aged 30 to 64, and 387 (13.3%) aged 65 or older.
Ethnicities were 87.5% European/Pākehā, 15.4% Māori, 4.3% Pacific peoples, 5.2% Asian, and 2.1% other ethnicities (totals add to more than 100% since people could identify with multiple ethnicities).
The proportion of people born overseas was 17.4%, compared with 27.1% nationally.
Although some people objected to giving their religion, 56.2% had no religion, 32.7% were Christian, 0.6% were Hindu, 0.1% were Muslim, 0.4% were Buddhist and 2.2% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 318 (14.0%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 441 (19.4%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $38,700, compared with $31,800 nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 1,269 (55.7%) people were employed full-time, 309 (13.6%) were part-time, and 87 (3.8%) were unemployed.
Points of interest
Tōtara Park was the name for the entire eastern side of the upper valley, due to the
Tōtara trees that grew there.
Was the western side to an ornate
suspension bridge
A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck is hung below suspension cables on vertical suspenders. The first modern examples of this type of bridge were built in the early 1800s. Simple suspension bridges, which lack vertical ...
opened in 1917. Maoribank Bridge, originally being able to carry automobiles and trucks, eventually was used for pedestrians only, and finally collapsing in a medium flood in the early 1990s. A new modern type suspension bridge was then built on the northern side towards Brown Owl.
The river surrounding the original suspension bridge was a popular picnic and swimming spot for the entire region.
Cannon Point Walkway
The
Cannon Point Walkway is a loop of in length, ascending along the western side of the valley to the Cannon Point
trig at , and with a total elevation gain of . The walkway is mostly within the Akatarawa Regional Park. It was named for an old fallen tree resembling a cannon that was once there. Walking routes, cycle tracks and logging roads connect Cannon Point to Akatarawa, Moonshine and other areas to the west.
California Park
California Park is a large neighbourhood park including a playground, the Upper Hutt Municipal Brass Band club rooms and open space. The park provides a readily accessible place to see the crush zone of the
Wellington Fault
The Wellington Fault is an active seismic fault in the southern part of the North Island of New Zealand. It is a dextral (right-lateral) strike-slip fault with variable amounts of vertical movement causing uplift to the northwest, as expressed b ...
.
Transport
Metlink
Metlink was the marketing body and umbrella brand for public train, tram and bus transport operators in Melbourne, Australia. On 2 April 2012, the operations of Metlink were transferred to the newly created public transport planning and manag ...
bus route 111 connects Tōtara Park with central Upper Hutt and
Upper Hutt Railway Station
Upper Hutt railway station is a suburban railway station serving central Upper Hutt, New Zealand. The station is on the Wairarapa Line, north of Wellington, and is served by Transdev Wellington on behalf of the Greater Wellington Regional ...
.
Education
Totara Park School is a co-educational state primary school for Year 1 to 6 students,
with a roll of as of .
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Totara Park
Suburbs of Upper Hutt
Populated places on Te Awa Kairangi / Hutt River