Whanganui Chronicle
  • Whanganui Chronicle home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Taranaki
  • National Park
  • Whakapapa
  • Ohakune
  • Raetihi
  • Taihape
  • Marton
  • Feilding
  • Palmerston North

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • New Plymouth
  • Whanganui
  • Palmertson North
  • Levin

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • What the Actual
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Whanganui Chronicle

Why we love switched-on Wanganui

By Anne-Marie McDonald
Whanganui Chronicle·
30 Jul, 2014 06:33 PM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

People like software engineer Donald Gordon, pictured with his wife Angela and young daughter, who moved from Wellington and is relishing the chance to work from home and enjoy Wanganui's relaxing lifestyle. Photo/Stuart Munro

People like software engineer Donald Gordon, pictured with his wife Angela and young daughter, who moved from Wellington and is relishing the chance to work from home and enjoy Wanganui's relaxing lifestyle. Photo/Stuart Munro

Wanganui's digital strategy is paying dividends, prompting families and businesses to move here.

The spread of ultra-fast broadband in the city has been a key factor in Ben Gunn, Melita Farley and Donald Gordon and their families moving to Wanganui from Wellington recently.

And they are loving the lifestyle - as well as the technological connectivity.

All three have been able to relocate and work remotely, thanks to the availability of ultra-fast broadband.

Mr Gordon, who is a software engineer for a large Wellington-based IT company, moved to Wanganui in December with his wife Angela, their daughter and soon-to-be-born son.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

His company allows him to work remotely, so reliable and fast broadband is a must-have.

"Every house we looked at to buy had fibre for ultra-fast broadband already available," he said.

"Fibre is being rolled out in Wellington, but it's very slow and it will be a long time before it gets to where we lived."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Mr Gordon said the broadband in Wanganui was reliable, and there had been no problem with it.

Mrs Gordon is originally from Wanganui and said the rollout here should attract more professionals "like us who can work from home and enjoy the many benefits that Wanganui has".

When Ms Farley and her husband Kevin Double were looking to leave Wellington, they considered Wanganui, Wairarapa and Kapiti as possible locations for their home and film education business.

Having family here, cheap rental accommodation, and the availability of ultra-fast broadband were the deciding factors in moving to Wanganui.

Discover more

Digital efforts pay off

30 Jul 05:36 PM

Expert praises 'smart' Wanganui

31 Jul 06:49 PM

We need to keep our foot on the pedal in digital race

05 Aug 08:18 PM
CABLE GUY: Chorus technician Cary Pabayo was working on the ultra-fast broadband connection in Wanganui's Parkdale Drive yesterday. He said the whole of the city should be finished and up and running by the end of the year. PHOTO/STUART MUNRO
CABLE GUY: Chorus technician Cary Pabayo was working on the ultra-fast broadband connection in Wanganui's Parkdale Drive yesterday. He said the whole of the city should be finished and up and running by the end of the year. PHOTO/STUART MUNRO

Ms Farley and Mr Double produce films and educational materials and since they arrived in November they have employed one part-time permanent employee and five short-term staff to work on a project.

"It's been easy to find good people to work for us here," Mrs Farley said. "We're passionate about Wanganui and, over time, would love to be able to provide employment for more people.

"It is just the kind of work the council is doing with ICF that will make this possible and attract others like us to the city."

She and her husband had been able to have a lifestyle in Wanganui that would have been out of their reach in Wellington, she said.

Ben Gunn bought a rental property on Durie Hill in 2002, and visited Wanganui regularly to keep up the maintenance. Two years ago, he decided to retire to the property.

He has spent a lot of time in Vietnam, and now teaches English to Vietnamese people via Skype.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"There were a lot of things I liked about Wanganui, but if it didn't have fast broadband, I wouldn't have been able to move here."

Mr Gunn said he was thinking about other business links with Vietnam. "None of this would be possible if there was not a good internet connection."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

Whanganui Chronicle

‘Anger, integrity and passion’: Whanganui protest joins nationwide backlash

09 May 05:24 AM
Whanganui Chronicle

Caution urged over cryptic USBs planted in public spaces

09 May 03:00 AM
Whanganui Chronicle

South Taranaki town to host National Basketball League

09 May 02:21 AM

One tiny baby’s fight to survive

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

‘Anger, integrity and passion’: Whanganui protest joins nationwide backlash

‘Anger, integrity and passion’: Whanganui protest joins nationwide backlash

09 May 05:24 AM

Demonstrators were opposing the pay equity legislation passed under urgency on Wednesday.

Caution urged over cryptic USBs planted in public spaces

Caution urged over cryptic USBs planted in public spaces

09 May 03:00 AM
South Taranaki town to host National Basketball League

South Taranaki town to host National Basketball League

09 May 02:21 AM
Sanctuary hunts funding for stretched education programme

Sanctuary hunts funding for stretched education programme

09 May 02:07 AM
Connected workers are safer workers 
sponsored

Connected workers are safer workers 

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Whanganui Chronicle e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Whanganui Chronicle
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP