Featherston, New Zealand
Featherston (Māori: Kaiwaewae or Pae tu mokai) is a town in the South Wairarapa District, in the Wellington Region of New Zealand's North Island. It is at the eastern foothills of Remutaka Range close to the northern shore of Lake Wairarapa, 63 km (39 mi) north-east of central Wellington and 37 km (23 mi) south-west of Masterton.
Featherston
| |
|---|---|
Fitzherbert Street in Featherston | |
| Coordinates: 41°7′S 175°19′E | |
| Region | Wellington Region |
| Territorial authority | South Wairarapa District |
| Ward | Featherston Ward |
| Community | Featherston Community |
| Founded | 1856 |
| Named for | Isaac Featherston |
| Electorates |
|
| Government | |
| • Territorial Authority | South Wairarapa District Council |
| • Regional council | Greater Wellington Regional Council |
| • Mayor of South Wairarapa | Martin Connelly |
| • Wairarapa MP | Mike Butterick |
| • Ikaroa-Rāwhiti MP | Cushla Tangaere-Manuel |
| Area | |
| • Total | 3.18 km2 (1.23 sq mi) |
| Population (June 2023) | |
| • Total | 2,780 |
| • Density | 870/km2 (2,300/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+12 (NZST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+13 (NZDT) |
| Postcode(s) | 5710 |
| Area code | 06 |
The town has a population of 2,780 (June 2023). Featherston has increasingly become a satellite town of Wellington since the Remutaka rail tunnel opened in 1955; at the 2006 census, 36% of employed Featherston residents worked in Wellington and the Hutt Valley. This proximity to the capital, coupled with low house prices, made Featherston popular with writers, artists and those with young families, in turn leading to a recent upsurge in business investment and creative activity. From 2014 to 2019, housing prices in Featherston increased by 108% while rental prices went from an average of $140 to $400 in the same time period.