Manakohi Street

Manakohi Street runs off Ngamotu Road in Spotswood. Its name was chosen in 2020 by the creator of the new subdivision and draws on a Māori word meaning education or knowledge.

Dan Jensen, director of A1 Homes and the developer of Onuku Taipari Estate at 150 Ngamotu Road, liaised with Te Wānanga o Aotearoa to come up with a street name that reflected the importance of learning. The tertiary education provider was one of two key tenants on the new road, along with an early learning and childcare centre. An Alzheimer’s respite care facility and 11 residential sections make up the rest.

For over 20 years DB Brewery’s Ngamotu Tavern occupied the site of the development at 150 Ngamotu Road. Promising “comfort and conviviality” as well as “the swinging sound of… nightly entertainment”, the pub saw many local and touring bands – from Kount Five to Toy Love – perform in its Marlin lounge after it opened on 22 February 1972. The old tavern’s buildings and 2.6 hectares of land were eventually sold in 1995. They proved ideal for Life Advance Church which purchased the site and turned it into a place of worship. Their former St Luke’s church building was relocated from Westown to become a community hall, and the two-bedroom manager’s house beside the tavern was turned into an administration block. When the church and its congregation, which numbered over 200, decided to relocate in 2019, the lot and its spacious buildings were auctioned. Its position alongside Herekawe Stream and walkway, plus 110 carparks, made it a natural fit for Te Wānanga o Aotearoa, which had previously been based next to Spotswood College, in the old Rangiatea Methodist Māori Girls’ Hostel. TWoA offers classes in te reo, tikanga, raranga, rongoā and business at its $1.5 million premises.

Onuku Taipari (Back Beach) Domain is situated to the northwest of Manakohi Street and was once home to Marama Tumai pā. The pā site was levelled in 1974 to make room for housing.

The name Manakohi Street was approved by LINZ and Ngāti Te Whiti hapū in 2020.

This story was originally published in the Taranaki Daily News.