Project seeks to signal entry into a very special place

They are the gatekeepers to Northland and now they want to drive home the message that travellers are entering a very special part of Aotearoa New Zealand.

The members of the Te Hana Community Development Charitable Trust believe that after several years of planning, they are now on the road to fulfilling a longheld ambition.

That is to see the entranceway to Northland marked with a major cultural and tourism centre, including a theatre, retail facilities, a café, arts and crafts studio and fortified pa and village.

Alongside those facilities, the trust is seeking to reintroduce tour boats on the nearby Kaipara harbour. Ways of utilising the Te Hana stream - which is tidal and runs alongside the site of the proposed development - are also being considered.

Te Hana is 65 kilometres north east of Helensville and marks the point where the Rodney and Auckland region converges with the Kaipara district and Northland region.

As a first step toward the development, the trust has been successful in having the Rodney District Council reclassify an area alongside the state highway at Te Hana as a special purpose reserve so that the marae complex can be built.

The marae, Oruawharo, is intended as an educational tourism facility. The Te Hana Community Development Trust involves members of the Ngati Whatua iwi (tribe), particularly descendants of Ngati Mauku, Ngati TeHana and Te Uri-o-Hau.

Project co-ordinator Thomas de Thierry says his team is looking at using the natural resources of the area as much as possible, such as manuka for the pallisades on the fortified pa.

“This project is designed to create job opportunities for the residents of the Te Hana area as well as providing community and tourism education and a platform for nurturing Maori culture and history,” Thomas says.

“This is also about unity - uniting and strengthening the bond between Maori and European.”

The total cost of the project is expected to be around $5.2 million to $5.5 million, and the trust’s representatives are now looking at a number of opportunities for funding.

Resource consents for the development have already been granted, opening the door for the project to take a big step forward. Thomas says it is anticipated that the Te Hana gateway project will be undertaken in stages. “We’re very hopeful that we can get a start in 2006,” he says.

Further to the north, a new tourism facility is to be developed in Kaikohe, with the objective of showcasing important artifacts from that region.

The Hone Heke marae took a step toward reality after space was allocated in the town centre. David Rankin, whose grandfather Hone Heke Rankin donated the land originally, says the new facility is expected to become a major attraction for local tourism.