Maori Hill
Maori Hill is a residential suburb of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. It is located at the northern end of the ridge which runs in a crescent around the central city's western edge, 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) to the northwest of the city centre, immediately above and within the Town Belt. It is connected to Dunedin North, which lies to the east, via Drivers Road, the suburbs of Roslyn and Kaikorai to the southwest via Highgate, and the suburb of Wakari to the northwest via Balmacewen Road. Maori Hill's 2001 population was 1,956.
In the northeast of the suburb lies the recreational ground of Prospect Park, and this part of Maori Hill is also often known by this name. From Prospect Park, views across the lower Leith Valley can be obtained, as the park sits close to the edge of cliffs which rise above the broad canyon at Woodhaugh. A steep walking track, the Bullock Track, links the two suburbs.
Maori Hill is regarded as one of the city's wealthier and more exclusive suburbs, and contains many fine houses, especially in the maze of winding streets which run through the bush-clad slopes of the Town Belt. These houses include the historic manor Olveston, which has been owned by the city and open to the public since the 1960s. Unlike neighbouring hill suburbs like Roslyn, Maori Hill was not served by a cable car, possibly underlying its greater degree of exclusivity.
Notable features of Maori Hill include the Balmacewen Golf Course, home of the Otago Golf Club, in the suburb's northwest. This is one of New Zealand's oldest and finest courses. A state integrated Presbyterian boys' secondary school, John McGlashan College, is located close to the golf course. To the southeast of the course lies a recreation ground, Bishopscourt, and nearby is Balmacewen Intermediate School. As with Prospect Park, this area is often referred to as a separate suburb, Balmacewen. To the northwest of the golf course is an area of scenic reserve which surrounds the Ross Creek Reservoir in Glenleith. Several popular walking tracks lead down to the reservoir from Cannington Road, which marks the northern edge of Maori Hill.
Other schools in Maori Hill include Maori Hill School, a state primary school. On the Roslyn/Kaikorai/Maori Hill border is Columba College, a state integrated Presbyterian girls secondary school, with a coeducational Junior (primary) school.
Maori Hill contains the city's largest private hospitals. Formerly known as the Mater Misericordiae, it is now the Mercy Hospital, and contains as part of its complex the Marinoto Clinic. This is located on Newington Avenue, one of several streets which wind down into the Town Belt from Highgate. The hospital is built around Marinoto, the former home of the Sargood family and now one of the hospital's major buildings.
Further reading
- Smallfield, Jane; Heenan, Brian (2006). Above the Belt: A History of the Suburb of Maori Hill. Maori Hill History Charitable Trust. ISBN 9781877139987.