Ngaio

Ngaio’s one of Wellington's sunniest suburbs, and full of good quality family houses; it’s a suburb for families, keen gardeners and DIY aficionados.  The small village has a popular café, a good library and some shops.  Ngaio is handy to quality schooling (primary and secondary), with plenty of parks and reserves (notably the streams and magnificent bush in Trelissick Park), active community organisations (centred on the churches and schools) and a particularly strong tennis club.  Ngaio has good bus and train services, yet is only 10 minutes drive from the CBD  

It’s named after the Ngaio tree; its main streets follow the old logging tracks; and many streets are named after former residents.  Maori used Ngaio Gorge as a main route north to Wanganui and Taranaki. In 1841, the pedestrian track was improved to become the Old Porirua Road between Kaiwharawhara and Khandallah (now Cockayne Road).  In 1845 a road was commissioned by Captain Edward Daniell, whose ‘Trelissick Farm’ at the head of the gorge was named after his estate in Cornwall, but the suburb only really started developing after the Wellington–Manawatu railway opened in 1885. In the 1920s the Railways Department built a housing settlement in Tarikaka Street; now a heritage area.

Prominent position, Ngaio's Anglican Church