Te Upoko o Te Whenua Marae is the only remaining marae within Ngāti Maru district and iwi boundary and is located on the banks of the Waitara Awa in Tarata under the shelter of a large hill.
Whakatauki:
Ka ora te wai, Ka ora te whenua. Ka ora te whenua, Ka ora te tangata
When the water is healthy, the land is healthy, and the people are healthy.
This approach has underpinned the development which throughout has had a focus to safeguard and uplift the mauri of the water and protect and enhance the whenua.
Its been an exciting time to be in Maru country – the Crown settlement and apology, marae upgrades and being a part of the wave of momentum with people returning to their lands and reconnecting with their iwi.
BTW are proud to have supported Ngāti Maru with their award-winning redevelopment and grateful to have been part of this chapter of the Ngāti Maru journey.
Project highlights included kai on the marae, planting days, dawn pōwhiri for the opening ceremony and growing relationships with the people and culture. Did we mention kai on the marae!
BTW provided planning, surveying, engineering, environmental and project management services to support Ngāti Maru with their redevelopment.
The physical works included earthworks and landform optimising, roading, access and carparking upgrades, development of safe water infrastructure and wetland and ecological restoration.
Image credit: Boon Team Architects.
