Point Chevalier

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Point Chevalier is a suburb and peninsula in the west of the city of Auckland in the north of New Zealand. It is located five kilometres to the west of the city centre on the southern shore of the Waitemata Harbour. The 2001 New Zealand census registered Point Chevalier's population at 8934 people.

Contents 1 Geography, Natural Features and Parks 2 Early history 3 As a summer destination 4 Architecture and landmarks 5 References

[edit] Geography, Natural Features and Parks

The suburb is situated to the north of State Highway 16 and the campus of Unitec New Zealand and to the west of the suburb of Western Springs. It is largely sited on the triangular peninsula, which extends north into the harbour for 1800 metres. The soil is mostly clay without the overlay of volcanic material which covers much of the Auckland isthmus; this means the vegetation of the area is less lush than some of the other suburbs of Auckland.

Visible from Coyle Park is Meola Reef, which is situated just to the east of the Point Chevalier peninsula. Meola Reef is an outcrop of black basalt rock which extends some distance north into the Waitemata Harbour. This is the end of the lava flow emanating from Three Kings, a volcano several miles south of this area. Formerly a landfill site, it has now been rehabilitated as a park and nature reserve. Other parks in the suburb include Walker Park, Eric Armshaw Reserve and Coyle Park. The latter is located at the northern tip of the peninsula.

[edit] Early history

Point Chevalier lies on what was the main land route out of Auckland; the Great North Road. Because of this, a military encampment was located here during the New Zealand Wars of the 1860s. The name 'Point Chevalier' comes from Captain G.R. Chevalier, a musketry instructor stationed at this camp. The area had a largely rural character up until the period between the two World Wars. On the corner of Alberta Street and Point Chevalier Road is "the old homestead", a 19th-century farmhouse now used as a community centre.

[edit] As a summer destination

Coyle Park and Point Chevalier Beach were popular destinations for family outings during the interwar period, particularly in summer. Tramlines ran down Point Chevalier Road to Coyle Park, near the beach; during summer, special trams were laid on during summer to transport people from Grey Lynn, while buses brought others from Mount Albert and other suburbs in West Auckland. Following the Second World War, the combination of increased car ownership and the Auckland Harbour Bridge (1959) resulted in a complete reversal of this activity. The once crowded beach was deserted, and the various businesses that had prospered on the summer trade closed down or relocated. Whilst the tramlines were removed during the 1950s, the broadness of Point Chevalier Road - otherwise atypical for a fairly small suburb - and the paved-over roundabout terminus near Coyle Park both remain as evidence of their presence.

[edit] Architecture and landmarks

The houses of the area are predominantly 1920s Californian Bungalows and 1930s & 1940s Art Deco, which gives the suburb an interesting pre-war atmosphere. Rising real estate values have spurred gentrification and subdivision in recent years, particularly north of Meola Road and in locations near to the water. Towards the northern end of the peninsula there are many houses from the postwar period, and a number of larger architect-designed homes have recently appeared close to Point Chevalier Beach.

The main shopping area at the intersection of Point Chevalier Road and Great North Road was developed during the interwar period; the most notable of the buildings here is the former cinema, (1920s designed by Sinclear O'Conner) later known as the 'Ambassador' theatre (currently the Ambassador Bar). The current Point Chevalier Public Library was opened nearby in 1989. There is a certain amount of light industry located in the area, especially close to Great North Road.

To the south of Great North Road, across State Highway 16, lies the former Whau Lunatic Asylum. This imposing brick Italianate/Romanesque structure was the largest building in the colony when it was built. Construction began in 1865, supervised by James Wrigley using plans from Great Britain. Dr Pollen's brickworks supplied the bricks. Following a fire in 1877 the reconstruction and extension of the hospital was supervised by Philip Herepath. Notorious as the "Oakley Mental Hospital" and "Carrington Hospital", it was decommissioned during the early 1990s and is now part of the campus of Unitec New Zealand.

[edit] References

• Pictures from the Past, Auckland & Northland, Terence Hodgson & A.M.Ringer. Whitcoulls, 2002.