Ōpōtiki

The place name, Ōpōtiki-mai-tawhiti, originally belonged to a pond on a hill east of the mouth of the Waiotahe River. It means "the place of Pōtiki from afar" and refers to Pōtiki-mai-tawhiti who is said to have come from Hawaiki to Aotearoa in pre-contact times. but came to be used for the wider region. The name subsequently came to be used for the region as a whole and was applied to the site of the settlement by the first European settlers in 1840. In 1840, the New Zealand Church Missionary Society (CMS) established a station in Ōpōtiki. Ōpōtiki was the traditional centre of the Māori iwi (tribe) Te Whakatōhea. On 2 March 1865, CMS missionary Carl Völkner was killed by local Māori for acting as a spy for the New Zealand Government. In response to Völkner's death, the New Zealand Government dispatched military expeditions to Ōpotiki to hunt down his killers. Several local people were arrested, with some being executed. The Government also confiscated a large area of land stretching from Matatā to the east of Ōpōtiki from local Bay of Plenty tribes including Te Whakatōhea. During the 1980s, the town was adversely affected by economic reformswhich led to the closure of two clothing factories in nearby Waimana and layoffs in the public works. Between 1996 and 2001, the population declined by 3.7%. According to 1News, the three dominant gangs in Ōpōtiki are the Black Power chapter Mangu Kaha, the Ōpōtiki Mongrel Mob and the Mongrel Mob Barbarians. == Geography ==

The town of Ōpōtiki is situated exactly on latitude 38° South. The climate is temperate. Summer temperatures reach the mid-20s (Celsius, mid-70s Fahrenheit) on the coast and encourage a continuation of the beach culture of the Bay of Plenty. Winter days are often cloudless, the daytime temperature never drops below freezing but there may be a mild frost at night. Winter snow falls along the crest of the ranges, and on the higher peaks (over 1000 m) may remain for a few weeks. Rain occurs at any season. Severe localised rainstorms ('cloudbursts') may occur in the high country and have caused flash flooding including past inundations of Ōpōtiki township. ==Demographics==

Stats NZ describes Ōpōtiki as a small urban area which covers . It had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2. Ōpōtiki had a population of 4,839 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 48 people (1.0%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 768 people (18.9%) since the 2013 census. There were 2,358 males, 2,472 females, and 12 people of other genders in 1,605 dwellings. 2.2% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 35.0 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 1,164 people (24.1%) aged under 15 years, 957 (19.8%) aged 15 to 29, 1,902 (39.3%) aged 30 to 64, and 813 (16.8%) aged 65 or older. ==Amenities==

Marae Ōpōtiki contains three marae: • Maromahue Marae and Te Poho o Kahungunu meeting house is a traditional meeting place of the Whakatōhea hapū of Te Ūpokorehe. In October 2020, the Government committed $364,597 from the Provincial Growth Fund to upgrade the marae, creating 16 jobs. • Te Rere Marae and Te Iringa meeting house is a meeting place of the Whakatōhea hapū of Ngāti Ngahere. It opened in 2001. == Transport and infrastructure ==

Ōpōtiki is situated at the northern junction of State Highway 2 and State Highway 35. To the west, State Highway 2 connects Ōpotiki to Whakatāne, Rotorua and Tauranga. To the south and east, State Highway 2 provides a direct inland route to Gisborne, while State Highway 35 follows the coast via Te Araroa. Coastal shipping used Opotiki Harbour until the mid-1960s. As of 2023, a project is underway to reconstruct the harbour, including the wharf and harbour entrance. Horizon Networks owns and operates the electricity distribution network in Ōpōtiki, with electricity fed from Transpower's national grid at its Waiotahi substation. Natural gas arrived in Ōpōtiki in 1984, as part of the construction of the Kawerau to Gisborne high-pressure pipeline. Today, First Gas owns and operates both the high-pressure pipeline and the local distribution network supplying the town. ==Education==

Ōpōtiki College is a state high school for Year 9 to 13 students, with a roll of . It opened as Ōpōtiki District High School in 1922, and became Ōpōtiki College on its present site in 1953. Ōpōtiki has three primary schools for Year 1 to 8 students: Opotiki School, established in 1873, with a roll of ; Ashbrook School, established in 1859, with a roll of ; and Woodlands School, established in 1921, with a roll of . St Joseph's Catholic School is a state-integrated Catholic primary school for Year 1 to 8 students, with a roll of . The school started at a convent in 1890, and the current buildings date from 1920. All these schools are co-educational. Rolls are as of ==Notable people==

• James Rolleston, an actor in Boy and Vodafone NZ advertisements, lives and was raised in Ōpōtiki. • René Lannuzel, priest from Pen Allan Garo, Plourin who was posted in Ōpōtiki until his death. He is buried in Ōpōtiki. • Sholto Kairakau Black, teacher and community leader ==Climate==

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