Renaming of Calliope Park
Most recent update regarding this consultation
Consultation status: Submissions closed on 24 June 2022 and decision made.
DECISION
The proposal was deliberated at the Te Puna Kōrero meeting on Thursday 18 August 2022; approval was sought to rename Calliope Park in Cannons Creek to Matahourua Park. Te Puna Kōrero considered all of the submissions as part of their deliberations and agreed to:
- Receive the report.
- Approve the renaming of Calliope Park to Matahourua Park.
- Agree under s 16(10) of the Reserves Act 1977, that the new name, Matahourua Park, will be notified in the New Zealand Gazette.
Meeting minutes including the minutes of this meeting can be found here.
Reports:
If you’d like to view the livestream recordings of the hearings or deliberations, you can do so via the YouTube channel using the links below:
Hearings (refer to 1.51 minutes)
Deliberations (refer to 2.35 minutes)
The Proposal
Porirua City Council were approached by its’ partners Ngāti Toa around the name of Calliopoe Crescent and Calliope Park. This place name has a significant negative association for Ngāti Toa and they have requested for the name of the Street and Park to be replaced.
Calliope is the name of the 26-gun frigate which transported Te Rauparaha (Ngāti Toa Tupuna who led the migration of Ngāti Toa from Taranaki to the Parirua area) from his capture at what is now Ngāti Toa Domain to Auckland. He was subsequently held without trial for 18-24 months before being returned to Ōtaki. Due to this relationship the name Calliope, currently used for the park, is not respectful to Ngāti Toa.
Ngāti Toa has gifted another name to Porirua City Council for the park – Matahourua. Matahourua is the name of the sailing vessel which Kupe (famous Polynesian explorer, who is said to have discovered Aotearoa) used to sail to Aotearoa. It is said that it was Kupe’s wife Kurumarotini who saw a large land mass shrouded in cloud and called “He Ao! He Aotea! He Aotearoa!” “A cloud! A long white cloud!” As a result, the land became known as Aotearoa, land of the long white cloud. This theme is appropriate given the journeys of many Polynesian groups that currently reside in the suburbs of Eastern Porirua, and particularly within Cannon’s Creek, where the park is located.
The name of Calliope Crescent has already been changed to Matahourua Crescent and this renaming follows on from that to rename the park to Matahourua Park. This supports Council’s relationship with Ngāti Toa and celebrates the current multicultural communities in Eastern Porirua.
Supporting Documents
Key Dates
| When | What |
|---|---|
| Friday 10 June 2022 | Submissions open |
| Friday 24 June 2022 | Submissions close |
| 14 July 2022 | Te Puna Kōrero receive submissions and hear submitters who wish to be heard |
| 18 August 2022 | Te Puna Kōrero deliberates and makes a decision |
Have Your Say
Go online
- The easiest way to have your say is to complete an online submission here.
Write to us
- You can find copies of this proposal at all Porirua City libraries, at our Customer Services Centre at 16 Cobham Court, Porirua 5022, and also on the public consultation page of our website.
You can have your say in a number of ways:- Download a submission form here.
- Email your submission to: [email protected], with "Renaming Calliope Park” in the subject line.
- Hand in your submission to our Customer Services Centre at 16 Cobham Court
- Post your submission to:
Calliope Park Renaming
Porirua City Council
PO Box 50218
Porirua 5022 - Give us a call
If you don’t have access to a computer, please call our contact centre on 04 237 5089 to request that a hardcopy be posted out to you.
Submissions close on Friday 24 June 2022.
The hearing will be held on Thursday 14 July 2022 (if required).
Have your say online here
Want to know more
If you have any questions, or would like a little more information, please email Dylan Cliff at [email protected] or call on 04 237 1219.
Privacy
To support our drive to be as transparent as possible all submissions will be publicly available but without your contact details. If you don’t want your name made public please tick “Withhold my details” on the submission form. Please note you won’t be able to withhold your name if you choose to speak at the hearing or if you are representing an organisation.
