Aro Valley

Aro Valley

Houses along Aro St
Aro Valley, Wellington, New Zealand
Aro Valley
Aro Valley (New Zealand Wellington)
Basic information
Local authority Wellington City
Electoral ward Lambton Ward
Land area 126 [1] ha
Population 3,621 [1] (2013)
Facilities
Surrounds
North Kelburn
East Te Aro
South Brooklyn
West Mitchelltown, Taitville, Mount Pleasant

The Aro Valley forms a small inner-city suburb of Wellington in New Zealand. It takes its name from the Stream which originally flowed where modern Epuni Street is.[2] The stream's official name is Wai-Mapihi, but it was commonly called Te Aro due to it running through the Te Aro flat.[2]

Geography

The Aro Valley runs between the hills of Brooklyn to the south and those of Kelburn to the north.

The Valley comprises part of the bed of the Wai-Mapihi Stream. Aro Street runs through the whole valley, from Willis Street in the east to Raroa Road in the west; major side-streets include Devon Street, Epuni Street, Adams Terrace, Mitchelltown's Holloway Road and Taitville's Norway Street.

In general, the north side of the valley is darker than the south side.[3] A 2014 property profile commented that:

“ In short, Aro Valley gets damn cold, terribly damp and can be downright depressing. Pack your long pyjamas, an electric blanket and never purchase or rent a property here if you do not have the means to heat it.[3] ”

Parks

A prominent feature of Aro Valley is Aro Park, which is the site of the former Matauranga School.

Aro Valley also holds the Polhill Gully Recreation Reserve.

History

First developed by settler Wellingtonians as a working-class residential suburb in the late 19th century,[2] the Aro Valley featured small, narrow sections with closely built wooden or corrugated-iron houses. It gained a reputation for political radicalism and for shady extra-legal dealings.

An electric tram was opened in 1904 running from Aro St to the Wellington railway station via the city center and ran until 1957.[2]

In the 1960s, The Evening Post described Aro Valley's Holloway Rd as "sagging stairways with most of the tread rotted away", leading to "sagging, open doors and damp, musty rooms where glass from broken windows crunches underfoot".[4]

Matauranga School was a progressive primary school set up by Marie Bell and parents of Aro Valley in 1963[5] and was a pioneer for the 'free-play' method of pre-schooling within New Zealand. In 1967 it became a full primary school.[6] The school closed in 1982 after Marie Bell and another teacher left the school.[6]

Gentrification affected the Aro Valley from the 1970s, boosted by urban-renewal planning (the Comprehensive Urban Renewal Area or CURA) after the rejection of a proposal to turn the valley into a main arterial road route: it became a desirable suburb, seen as close to the centre of Wellington and boasting notable community spirit. The Aro Valley Community Council was established in 1978 and was followed by the building of the Aro Valley Community Center.[2]

In 1974, the Aro St public toilets were the scene of a Russian spy drama,[4] when economist, historian and writer Bill Sutch was caught and charged with attempting to pass classified information to the Soviet Union. Sutch was later acquitted.[7]

Sociology

The Valley also adjoins parts of Victoria University (mainly to the north), and a large number of Valley residents study there or at Massey University to the east. Despite the "yuppification" of the suburb, it keeps its reputation as a home to politico-social radicals.

Alexandra Hollis writes in Salient that "although Aro is this liberal, artsy enclave, it is also very aware of this reputation. Which essentially means: there are lots of really cool people there, and also a load of wankers."[8]

Politics

Green MP James Shaw speaking at the 2014 Aro Valley candidates meeting. Shaw also lives in Aro Valley.

Politically, Aro Valley has become a stronghold or "spiritual home" of the Green Party.[8] In the 2011 general election, the Aro Valley Community Centre was the polling station with the most number of ballots for the Green Party in the country (619), and also was amongst the top polling stations in terms of percentage support for the Greens (at 44%).[9]

Before every general election the Aro Valley candidates meeting is held in the Aro Valley community hall. The atmosphere of the meetings can make them intimidating for candidates, who often face heckling from the audience.[10]

Education

School enrollment zone

Aro Valley is within the enrollment zones for Wellington College, Wellington Girls College, Wellington High School, Wellington East Girls' College, St Oran's College and Te Aro School.[11]

Te Aro School

Te Aro School, located at 360 The Terrace, is a multicultural, not integrated state primary school. In 2014 it had a roll of 216.[12] It has a decile rating of 10Z for 2015.[13] The school was established in 1854 and caters for all children from Year 0–8.[14] The current Principal is Sue Clement.[15]

Aro Valley Pre-School

Aro Valley Pre-School is a licensed early childhood education centre in a purpose-built building situated next to the Aro Valley Community Centre and Aro Park. The pre-school caters to children aged three and four years old, with some younger children attending accompanied by their parents. Once a week they also facilitate a parent-led playgroup for children under three.[16]

Other prominent features

The School of Practical Philosophy on Aro Street

References

  1. 1 2 "Community profile - Aro Valley". idnz.co.nz. Wellington City Council.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Weber, Adriana. "Street history: Aro St". The Wellingtonian.
  3. 1 2 Trubridge, Nick (2 December 2014). "Let's live in... Aro Valley". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 21 February 2015.
  4. 1 2 Romanos, Joseph (2 November 2012). "Holloway Rd's nod to history". The Wellingtonian.
  5. ↑ Dalli, Carmen (2 February 2013). "Inspirational educator pushed boundaries for women, children". The Dominion Post.
  6. 1 2 "Matauranga School, 1969 (2nd of 2)". Te Ara – The Encyclopedia of New Zealand.
  7. ↑ "Fresh twist in 40-year-old Cold War spy mystery". The Dominion Post. 11 August 2014.
  8. 1 2 3 Hollis Alexandra (24 February 2014). "Welcome to suburbia". Salient magazine. Retrieved 21 February 2015.
  9. ↑ "Where the Greens are tops". blog.greens.org.nz. 29 November 2011. Retrieved 21 February 2015.
  10. ↑ Franks, Stephen (9 September 2005). "Unfranked #41 Question time in Aro Valley". stephenfranks.co.nz. Retrieved 21 February 2015.
  11. ↑ "eLearning Schools Search".
  12. ↑ "Ministry of Education School Rolls". educationcounts.govt.nz.
  13. ↑ "Decile Change 2014 to 2015 for State & State Integrated Schools". Ministry of Education. Retrieved 12 February 2015.
  14. ↑ "Te Aro school - About our school".
  15. ↑ "Te Aro School website". Te Aro School. Retrieved 24 November 2014.
  16. ↑ "Aro Valley Preschool website".

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Aro Valley.

Coordinates: 41°17′43″S 174°46′3″E / 41.29528°S 174.76750°E / -41.29528; 174.76750

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, February 26, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.