Iconic Whangārei park hugely popular with kids

Tenaya Gamble and sister Lexah Gamble from Onerahi enjoying the new water feature at the newly-opened Putahi Park. Photo / Michael Cunningham

Kids frolicked on the water feature the whole day and the bounce on the tramps was also hugely popular as families turned up en masse to the newly-opened Pūtahi Park on the Town Basin.

The new Whangarei landmark opened after a dawn blessing by Te Parawhau on Friday and the water feature, bounce on the tramps and the slack-line are among facilities on offer in the former car park area.

The project kicked off under the Sense of Place Programme which came out of the Whangārei District Growth Strategy "Sustainable Futures 30/50" in 2010 as identified by the community and supported through various rounds of consultation.

Users who tried on the new facility took to social media to give the park a thumbs-up.

"Just walked past this and the delight on some many kids faces as they played, much to the delight of the adults watching wishing we were kids again!"

Another wrote: "Kids loved it last night. I had one kid doing breaststroke on the ground."

Pūtahi means "a place where everyone can gather and enjoy themselves" and was one of the top five selected by the Whangārei District Council from suggestions given by the public last year.

"Pūtahi Park has been a dream for so many people for such a long time now, and I know there is much quiet rejoicing going on," Mayor Sheryl Mai said.

A working party was formed in 2017, to oversee and implement the project and those who went on to work with the Hundertwasser Art Centre with Wairau Māori Art Gallery (HWMAG) project team.

Mai made special mention of the hapū history supported by Te Aranga Māori concept design principles that has been woven through the design to incorporate cultural narratives into the park's layout, paving patterns, artwork, tree selection, materials and colours.

"It has created a richer experience for all who will use the park now and into the future. It reflects the previous uses of the site, early European and Māori history, changes to the rivers and landform over time, and the Whangārei landscape.

"I also want to recognise that this outstanding landscape design was completed in-house by talented staff. Themes of pathways to the sea, people coming together, where fresh and salt water meet, the connection between harbour and inland to access food sources, the flight path of the kōtuku (white heron), early Māori and European settlements, buildings and orchards, flag signalling between hills and wharf when ships were arriving – are all part of the DNA of the park."