Aokautere

Aokautere is a suburb of the New Zealand city of Palmerston North. It is situated in the cliffs on the south banks of the Manawatu River.

Aokautere is named after Te Aokautere, a great Rangitāne chief during the late 18th century. In the 19th century, it was known as Fitzherbert, after the politician William Fitzherbert who promoted settlement of the Manawatu. The Fitzherbert East Dairy Factory building still carries the name these days.

Aokautere has views of the Ruahine and Tararua Ranges (with the Wind Turbine Farms) and on a clear day it is possible to see Ruapehu.

Anzac Park (Te Motu-o-Poutoa), a clifftop reserve colloquially known as Pork Chop Hill, has views across the city, through to the southern Ruahine and northern Tararua ranges. It is also possible to see distant Taranaki and Ruapehu. There is also access to the Stairway of Tāne (Te Arapiki-a-Tāne), steps cut into the former Anzac Cliffs, now collapsed into a slope.

Prior to 1996, Aokautere was part of the Manawatu electorate. However, due to the reformation of the electoral system from FPP to MMP, the electorate of Palmerston North's boundaries were redrawn to include Aokautere. Palmerston North's electorate boundaries were redrawn in 2007 and Aokautere was shifted to the Rangitikei electorate. Rangitikei as of 2020 is represented by National MP Ian McKelvie, who was elected in 2011.