Wellington City Council has approved the next step for the Matai Moana Heritage Park in Miramar, but the historical claims behind the proposal are under serious scrutiny. The park, once a promising idea, is now caught in controversy over a version of history many believe is inaccurate.

For years, the project was sidelined by complex issues like the Shelly Bay debacle and the stalled Mt Crawford redevelopment. Now that it’s finally gaining traction, the council is proposing a co-governance model with Taranaki Whānui. However, much of the land involved is not part of any Crown settlement, and the historical connection claimed by Taranaki Whānui is questionable.

The council’s consultation documents frame the land as an ancestor, speaking in terms of whakapapa and deep cultural ties. But the real history tells a different story. Taranaki tribes—including Te Āti Awa, Ngāti Tama and Ngāti Mutunga—migrated to the Wellington region in the 1820s, displacing long-standing iwi such as Ngāti Ira, Ngai Tara, and Ngāti Kahungunu.

In 1835, Ngāti Tama and Ngāti Mutunga departed from Miramar entirely, sailing to the Chatham Islands and leaving the area to Te Āti Awa. While Te Āti Awa played a key role in later events, their occupation of Miramar was recent, not ancestral in the deep sense the council’s documents suggest.

Despite this, councillors Teri O’Neill and Sarah Free—both from the Eastern Ward—supported the co-governance move, with Teri moving the motion and Sarah seconding it. This mirrors the approach taken during the Shelly Bay development, where inconvenient truths about history were ignored.

Most importantly, the land in question lies outside the scope of Treaty settlement land. The Port Nicholson Block and other Article 2 claims have already been settled. The Waitangi Tribunal ruled in 2003 that the original 1839 sale was flawed, but this decision did not hear from settler descendants. And legally, the Tribunal cannot overturn land contracts. The Crown later completed full and final settlements that included redress, both cultural and commercial.

So why co-govern land that is no longer in dispute?

Historical records show a story of collaboration, not conflict. When settlers, including the writer’s ancestors, arrived in January 1840, they were met with generosity. Māori helped build shelters, supported families, and traded willingly. One early settler child was even breastfed by a Māori wet nurse due to poor maternal health from the voyage.

When raids from Ngāti Toa allies began in 1843, it was a united force—settlers, Te Āti Awa, British troops, and even some Ngāti Toa—that defended Wellington. This alliance helped secure peace and built the foundation for a shared future.

The idea of a heritage park is a good one. But it must honour the true history of Miramar. The current council narrative erases the original iwi, ignores early settler contributions, and presents a version of events that doesn’t stand up to fact.

Public consultation must be honest, not shaped by politics. Claims of ancestral connection must be accurate. Otherwise, decisions risk legal challenge and public backlash.

Wellington deserves better. Miramar deserves the truth. And Matai Moana should be a place that reflects real heritage—not historical fiction.