Island Bay, Wellington

Island Bay
Basic information
Local authority Wellington City
Date established 1879
Population 6,951 (2006 [1])
Facilities
Surrounds
North Berhampore
Northeast Melrose
East Southgate
Southeast Houghton Bay
South Cook Strait
Southwest Ōwhiro Bay
West Kingston
Northwest Mornington

Island Bay is a suburb of Wellington, the capital of New Zealand, situated 5 km south of the city centre.

Island Bay lies on the bay which shares its name, one of numerous small bays west of Lyall Bay. 500m offshore in Island Bay lies Tapu Te Ranga Motu Island, which forms a natural breakwater and provides a sheltered anchorage for the local fishing boats.

In the early days of European settlement George Hunter II was the chief proprietor of the Island Bay Estate, where he bred stock on his stud farm. The Island Bay portion was subdivided and auctioned in March 1879.[2] In the late 19th century, Island Bay was settled by Italian and Shetlander fishermen. In 1905, Wellington's tramline was extended to Island Bay, increasing the area's popularity, and steadily transforming it into a seaside suburb. Many Island Bay villas, bungalows and shops date from the 1920s, a period of rapid development for the area.[3] This included the subdivision of the Island Bay Racecourse which was once bounded by Clyde Street on the East and Ribble Street on the West. Many streets in Island Bay were named after British and European rivers.

Noted current Island Bay residents include Bruce Stewart, writer and dramatist, at Tapu Te Ranga Marae and Wellington's Mayor, Celia Wade-Brown.[4] Former residents include businessman Victor Cattermole, Middlesbrough F.C. and All Whites striker Chris Killen, rugby player Judd Baker, artist John Drawbridge, poet Alan Brunton and writer Robin Hyde.

Contents

Notable features

Designed by John Sydney Swan and built in 1904-6, The Convent of the Sacred Heart, a Catholic girls' boarding school, was renamed Erskine College in the late 1960s after the former Superior General Mother Janet Erskine Stuart. The adjacent Erskine Chapel of the Sacred Heart, also designed by John Sydney Swan, was built in 1930 in the French Gothic style. Erskine Chapel is considered to have one of the finest chapel interiors in New Zealand, and is listed as Category I in New Zealand's Historic Places Trust.[5] The school closed in 1985 and today the complex is privately owned.[3] Erskine College was used as a location in Peter Jackson's 1996 film The Frighteners. The chapel was refurbished in 2003, and is now a popular venue for weddings and concerts.[6]
The Island Bay Marine Education Centre on the foreshore has a small aquarium and touch tank, and is open to the public on alternate Sundays.
There are four churches in Island Bay. The oldest is the Anglican church [7], which is over 100 years old. It has a traditional brick front design, and some stained glass windows honouring the early settlers. It is named after St Hilda of Whitby, as the early settlers felt the coastline resembled Northumbria. The Baptist[8], Catholic [9] and Presbyterian [10] churches are younger. The churches have facilities that are used for a range of community groups. Church activities include a full range of programmes for all ages, including the annual Teddy Bear's picnic for children which forms part of the Island Bay festival.
A Buddhist monastery is located on the western hills of Island Bay, with the golden Stupa visible from much of the suburb. Saffron-robed Buddhist monks can occasionally be seen drinking coffee in the village's cafes.
The Band Rotunda in Shorland Park near the waterfront was built in 1930. Plaques record the 152 local soldiers who died in World War I and World war II, and the loss of American submarines and their crew in the Pacific. In the 1930s, local brass bands and the Salvation Army frequently played in the rotunda. The rotunda is now used for occasional concerts, notably during the annual Island Bay Festival.
Two diving companies operate in Island Bay, and offer trips within the local Taputeranga Marine Reserve and to the wreck of HMNZS Wellington, a decommissioned Royal New Zealand Navy frigate which was sunk off the coast of Island Bay in November 2005 to create an artificial reef.
Shorland Park is a small public park at Island Bay Beach. The playground includes a mock wooden ship and is a favourite for children's birthday parties.
Situated in 50 acres of replanted native forest on a hill near Rhine Street, Tapu Te Ranga Marae is a living Marae and the home of Bruce Stewart. The 2500 square metre wooden house extends over 10 levels, and was built with recycled materials.
The waters surrounding Island Bay are under the protection of the Department of Conservation since the creation of the 854 hectare Taputeranga Marine Reserve in 2006. The reserve is home to kelp forests, octopuses, blue cod and banded wrasse. Dolphins and whales also frequent the area.
Tapu Te Ranga Motu, the island in the middle of the bay, once served as a refuge of local Maori. Tamairanga, the wife of the Ngati Ira chief Whanake, escaped to the island with her children during a battle that forced the tribe from Wellington Harbour.[3]
Victoria University of Wellington maintains an active research and teaching presence on Wellington's south coast at the Victoria University Coastal Ecology Laboratory, which overlooks the spectacular exposed rocky reef systems typical of Cook Strait.
Island Bay is the starting point for two recreational walkways that cross the city. The City to Sea Walkway runs 12km between Parliament and Island Bay through the Botanic Gardens and Aro Valley. The 11km Southern Walkway follows the Town Belt between Island Bay and Oriental Bay.

Island Bay Festival

The annual Island Bay Festival takes place over eight days each February. Festival highlights include:

The Blessing of the Boats is a southern Italian tradition where boats are decorated with flags and blessed by a priest to protect the crew from the sea and to bring good fortune. The ceremony has been adopted in Island Bay since 1933, when the fishing boat Santina foundered in Cook Strait, with the loss of four crew including three Italians. A chair was unveiled on 13th February 2011, during the Island Bay Festival for the crew of the Santina, presented by friends and family of the four casualties.[11]
A Soapbox derby down the steep Ribble Street attracts budding racecar drivers with Junior, Intermediate, Senior and Expert categories, the latter often reaching 65 km/h.
Participants are ferried by boat to the Island, and swim the few hundred metres back to shore.
Proceeding down The Parade to Shorland Park, the Festival Parade features a colourful 'dressing of the bicycles' competition.
On the final Sunday of the festival the younger members of the community bring their Teddy Bears for a special picnic in Shorland Park!

Arts and Culture

While living in Wellington in the 1960s, Rita Angus painted a number of scenes in Island Bay. Boats, Island Bay is one of her best-loved paintings.[12]
The art deco Empire Theatre screened films between 1925 and 1964. It was reopened as the Empire Cinema in 2005, its three screens now showing arthouse and mainstream films daily.
Exhibits locally-made jewellery, pottery and prints by Island Bay artist Laura Garland, and New Zealand photographers Gene Glover and Reuben Price.
Michael McCormack is an Irish-born painter who works from his studio and gallery in Island Bay, painting vivid streetscapes and coastal scenes around Wellington.
Rock frontmen Andrew Fagan of the Mockers and Jon Toogood of Shihad grew up in Island Bay. Samuel Flynn Scott, Conrad Wedde and Richie Singleton of New Zealand group The Phoenix Foundation also live in the suburb.
Island Bay Surf Club is the proud home to the internationally-renowned 1980s throwback dance troupe "The Real Hot Bitches".[13]
South Coast Gallery is a fine art gallery on the Esplanade; viewing is by appointment only.
Alan Brunton and Sally Rodwell of the Red Mole experimental theatre group, were based in Island Bay from 1988 until Brunton's death in 2002.[14]

Gallery

External links

References

  1. ^ The population is the sum of the figures for the census areas of Island Bay West (Quickstats about Island Bay West) and Island Bay East (Quickstats about Island Bay East)
  2. ^ Irvine-Smith, F.L (1948), The Streets of My City: Wellington New Zealand, AH & AW Reed, Wellington, pp.261
  3. ^ a b c Chapman, Katie (7 January 2010). "Story of a suburb: Island Bay". The Dominion Post. http://www.stuff.co.nz/3210316. Retrieved 5 October 2011. 
  4. ^ Nichols, Lane (14 October 2010). "Capital goes green and cuddly". The Dominion Post. http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/politics/local-body-elections/4230315/Capital-goes-green-and-cuddly. Retrieved 5 October 2011. 
  5. ^ "Erskine College (Former)". Register of Historic Places. New Zealand Historic Places Trust. http://www.historic.org.nz/TheRegister/RegisterSearch/RegisterResults.aspx?RID=7795&m=advanced. Retrieved 2010-05-25. 
  6. ^ http://erskineevents.co.nz/home.htm
  7. ^ http://islandbayanglican.org.nz
  8. ^ http://wsbc.org.nz
  9. ^ http://homepages.paradise.net.nz/stfrancis.desales
  10. ^ http://ibpc.org.nz
  11. ^ Sims, Rowan (April 2010). "Village by the Sea" FishHead, Wellington, p50-55.
  12. ^ http://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/exhibitions/ritaangus/ArtWorks.aspx?irn=764
  13. ^ "Easy but cheesy dancing fills Square". The Press. 26 September 2008. http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/647282. Retrieved 5 October 2011. 
  14. ^ http://jacketmagazine.com/18/edmond-brunt.html