'The Arizona', was first a part of the late-night takeaway scene in New Plymouth in about 1965. The business was re-branded as 'Arizona and Rye' in December 2015 with reduced opening hours. In March, 2018, it again changed its name under new ownership to 'The Arizona'.
Located at 91 Devon Street West it is thought to have built sometime pre 1884. It can be seen in an image from the Alexander Turnbull Library taken in the 1880s, and is the only building in the photo still standing.
Early settler Thomas Kingwell Skinner was the original recipient of the Crown Grant for Town Section 664 in 1856. Upon Skinner's death, the property appears to have passed to his wife, Prudence Skinner in 1874.
What we currently know is that this building was certainly constructed pre 1884, as it is present on a map of New Plymouth dated 1884, with the occupier listed as 'Petty' - Mr E. T. Petty was a furniture maker who occupied this building until 1904.
DP 296 is dated December 1889 and the surveyor was T.K. Skinner. This shows the building was erected about 1883 and the occupier as Edward Thomas Petty..
DP 8407 drawn in 1958 shows A. Sheehan as the owner/occupier.
The building features in the 1995 NPDC CBD Heritage Inventory and again in the inventory as part of the Devon Street West streetscape.
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