Date:  01 December 2016

A showcase for New Zealand’s significant places has been launched in Northland today, Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Maggie Barry says.

“Landmarks Whenua Tohunga will pick out our must-see places – connecting them together and creating a journey to some of our most important heritage sites,” Ms Barry says.

Heritage New Zealand chief executive Andrew Coleman officially launched the pilot project on behalf of the Minister at the Stone Store in Kerikeri, the oldest stone building in New Zealand and one of the first sites in the Northland Landmarks pilot.

The initiative is being trialled in Northland throughout the 2016-17 summer with the aim of potentially expanding it nationwide over time.

“We have chosen nine special Heritage New Zealand sites in Northland because of their significance to the nation, the compelling stories they tell and the varied experiences they offer to visitors,” Ms Barry says.

“It’s an important way to raise the profile of special places on roads less travelled, like Te Waimate Mission, Ruapekapeka Pa and Clendon House, encouraging more visitors to come and experience what they have to offer.”

Landmarks sites will have distinctive markers and branded signage, telling unique stories about their importance to our nation’s heritage.

“Tourism has become New Zealand’s largest export industry, contributing $10.6 billion in the year to March 2016.

“We hope Landmarks will provide a boon to Northland’s economy by serving as a badge of quality, drawing visitors to sites of real historic and cultural significance and creating opportunities for business and regional development.

“Northland is the perfect place to trial this new approach. It has so much to offer visitors. It is the cradle of our nation, where some of the most important events in our history took place, from the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi to early colonial farming experiments and the bloody clashes of the New Zealand Wars.”

The nine initial Landmarks are: the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, Kororipo Heritage Park, Rangihoua Heritage Park, Cape Brett Rakaumangamanga, Clendon House, Māngungu Mission, Pompallier Mission, Ruapekapeka Pā and Te Waimate Mission

The programme is a joint project between the Ministry for Culture and Heritage, the Department of Conservation and Heritage New Zealand.

For more information on Landmarks Whenua Tohunga visit www.landmarks.nz