Hamilton Zoo and heritage park become one in development milestone

Friday, 31 March 2023

Hamilton Zoo and Waiwhakareke Natural Heritage Park are now linked by a shared entry precinct that the mayor called a phenomenal milestone in the area's development.

The physical fusion of Hamilton Zoo and Waiwhakareke Natural Heritage Park is now complete with the opening of the shared entry precinct.

The new area was officially opened in an early morning ceremony on Friday, with a blessing from Te Haa o te Whenua o Kirikiriroa.

The shared space on Brymer Rd now has a waharoa (entryway) carved by Kawharu Green, Simon Te Wheoro and Te Reinga Te Tai.

There are 39 pou which feature artwork from Crawshaw Primary School and Te Kōpuku High School students.

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Deputy mayor Angela O'Leary and mayor Paula Southgate were emotional to see the project come to fruition.

An elevated viewing platform that overlooks Waiwhakareke Natural Heritage Park, Hamilton’s flagship ecological restoration project.

Hamilton mayor Paula Southgate said it has exceeded her expectations.

Hamilton Zoo director Baird Fleming under the waharoa between the zoo and Waiwhakareke Natural Heritage Park

“When I came in here today, the viewing tower - I can’t even describe the view. Each way you look you can see the windmills in Raglan, the fog coming over Hakarimatas, and the zoo.”

Southgate said it’s a phenomenal milestone in the development of the area.

“It will be 20 years next year of planting in Waiwhakareke Park, before that it was a bare paddock with cows on it. So having a vision by Bruce Clarkson and Friends of Waiwhakareke to re-establish a natural ecosystem is amazing, and also connecting it to the zoo and all its new improvements.”

Deputy mayor Angela O’Leary admitted to being emotional seeing the plans develop over the past 12 years.

“I remember sitting in a room with the two American consultants, and they had worked in zoos all around the world, and we had been talking for 30 – 40 minutes about how special the zoo and how it’s the place where we kept the pets we can’t keep at home. And I remember the moment Paula Hansen said this is an opportunity to connect these two facilities, and all of us around the table went that’s a good idea, and it went from there.”

In the new shared area are are 39 pou with local students’ artwork on them.

O’Leary said that it was the most significant project she’s been involved with from start to finish in her 16 years as a councillor.

“It’s the only time in my political career I am going to see it come to fruition with politics being what they are..I was very emotional today seeing it.”

Zoo director Baird Fleming said the fusion of the entities is just the beginning of all the mahi which is still to come.

“It’s really about educating, connecting people with the importance of this taonga. It’s protecting what is on both sides and how we need to do more of it.”

Gaylene Jacobs, a teacher at Te Kōpuku High School said creating artwork for the pou was about a six-month project for eight students.

“What they have to do is learn about the kaupapa first… Because it was more of not just drawing something but knowing the meaning behind it and why they were doing it.”

She admits they were excited to see the final result of their work on the pou.