At the opening ceremony of Te Inuwai Park in Peacocke, a pou made by students from Nga Taiatea Wharekura in Rotokauri was unveiled. Photo / Supplied
At the opening ceremony of Te Inuwai Park in Peacocke, a pou made by students from Nga Taiatea Wharekura in Rotokauri was unveiled. Photo / Supplied
Te Inuwai Park at Peacocke finally received its official opening ceremony acknowledging the community's involvement, after Covid-19 restrictions and wintry weather delayed opening event plans since August last year.
The ceremony on February 26 was also an unveiling for a pou located at the park and carved by students fromNgā Taiātea Wharekura in Rotokauri.
The patterns of the pou, chosen by the students, represent the history of the area as a food bowl, and its new role as a playground for children and their families.
At the ceremony, early learning centre BestStart Dixon Heights was also acknowledged as kaitiaki or guardians for the park and community gardens in the playground. The preschool children help plant, water and gather the kai grown in the planter boxes for the wider community to enjoy.
Chairman of council's Community Committee, councillor Mark Bunting, said: "It is a model I would love to see replicated at all our play spaces. When communities feel like they have some say, or a sense of ownership of their gathering spaces, they really look after them well."
Bunting and council staff thanked the little gardeners and gifted them a trolley, watering cans and other gardening equipment to support their work.
At the ceremony of Te Inuwai Park in Peacocke, council has acknowledged the active involvement of BestStart Dixon Heights kids being guardians of the park. Photo / Supplied
"Kaitiakitanga (looking after the land) is one of the themes that shines through in the He Pou Manawa Ora strategy that's out for consultation now. This is a great example of a concept based in Māoridom that benefits the wider community and is what the document, and this council, is all about," Bunting said.
He Pou Manawa Ora (Pillars of Wellbeing), outlines the council's vision for a city that celebrates its whole history, including its unique Māori heritage, and ensures everyone has a voice in developing its future.
More than 200 members of the neighbourhood, including tangata whenua, residents, developers, elected members and Hamilton City Council staff, attended the opening of the new park Te Inuwai Park which was completed in August last year.
Te Inuwai Park in the south-west of Hamilton also includes a basketball half-court, flat grassed areas and a playground with swings, slides and balance equipment. There's picnic areas, cycle and scooter racks and a drinking fountain for residents to enjoy.
This park is the first of many community facilities planned for Peacocke and its surrounding areas, which will eventually be home for up to 20,000 Hamiltonians.
