Last updated October 2026
Burgess Park is a rural locality in New Plymouth District, set in the Waiwhakaiho valley rather than among the city streets.
The name belongs to a historic reserve beside the river, and it is also the official name of the surrounding locality. This is open country of paddocks, shelter belts and scattered houses, a short drive inland from central New Plymouth, not a suburb with its own shops or town centre.
Council plans place the reserve on the river between Meeting of the Waters upstream and the esplanade land that runs toward Balsom Park. For anyone weighing inland Taranaki living, or simply passing through, the character of the place is the river corridor, the gifted parkland and the hydro landscape that has shaped this valley for generations.
Practical Information
- Getting there
- By road from New Plymouth along Mangorei Road and Junction Road. Hydro Road leads toward Meeting of the Waters. No local rail station, and a scheduled bus into the locality was not confirmed.
- Nearby landmarks
- Burgess Park historic reserve, Meeting of the Waters, Tupare, Waiwhakaiho River
About Burgess Park
Burgess Park the locality is rural river country on the inland side of New Plymouth. Houses and farm buildings sit among pasture, with the Waiwhakaiho as the defining feature rather than a main street or a cluster of shops. It reads as a settlement of roads and properties around a named reserve, not as a town in its own right.
The reserve that gave the locality its name lies beside the river. New Plymouth District Council’s green spaces plan treats it as a historic reserve, managed under a separate historic reserves plan, and places it upstream of esplanade reserves on the western bank and of Balsom Park.
One of those esplanade parcels connects to Burgess Park from the north. Tupare, the garden developed by Russell Matthews and held by Taranaki Regional Council, sits between those riverside reserves.
Upstream, near Hydro Road, the valley opens into Meeting of the Waters. Council land there is split by a tail race from a power station, with water brought down from Lake Mangamahoe. The point where that race meets the Waiwhakaiho is a known put-in for kayakers.
Department of Conservation reserves neighbour the council land, including the Araheke bush loop on the far bank, reached by a pedestrian bridge. Papamoa Pā, associated with Ngāti Te Whiti, stands at the western end of one council parcel and is protected as an archaeological site.
New Plymouth District Council records historic and cultural interests in the Waiwhakaiho river reserves with Ngāti Te Whiti, Ngāti Tuparikino and Ngāti Tawhirikura. That is a statement about the river reserves, not a claim that one hapū speaks for every property in the locality. Visitors should treat pā and other archaeological features as places to leave undisturbed.
Day to day, Burgess Park is a place people live and farm, with the city close enough for work, school and shopping and the river close enough for informal time outdoors. It does not offer a village centre.
Anyone picturing a large urban park with playgrounds and cafés should read the name carefully: the public reserve is historic riverside land, and the wider locality is rural.
History and Heritage
The reserve’s name comes from a civic gift. Council records for Pukekura Park note that former mayor C.H. Burgess, in office from 1915 to 1919, and his wife Ann gave the park its tea house in 1931 to mark their golden wedding.
The same records say the couple also donated a playground in Wallace Place, and five hectares of land and a family home which became Burgess Park. Both were later recognised as M.B.E.
The tea house still stands in Pukekura Park. This page does not describe the Burgess Park house as a building you can visit, because its present status was not confirmed in the council plans opened for this guide.
The valley’s other long story is water and power. Electric power was first supplied to New Plymouth in January 1906 from the Mangorei power station alongside the Waiwhakaiho near Burgess Park.
Council history of the Meeting of the Waters land ties the site to the borough’s power plant, with water piped from Lake Mangamahoe to the turbines and the outflow running down the tail race to the river.
The Energy Companies Act 1992 later separated the council from power generation, which led to land transfers and easements around the lake and this valley. Vehicle access to the council reserves at Meeting of the Waters uses a privately owned road off Hydro Road, over which the council holds a right of way.
Downstream, the esplanade reserves between Burgess Park and Balsom Park were acquired through subdivision from the 1960s onward and are kept mainly for ecological values.
Balsom Park itself was once part of Native Reserve 3, Puketotara, and later a quarry, before Taranaki County Council bought the main parcel for recreation in 1979. That history belongs to the next reserve downriver. It is useful context for the corridor, not a description of Burgess Park itself.
Getting Around
Burgess Park is a drive-to locality. Mangorei Road runs through this part of the valley and gives its name to the esplanade reserves between Burgess Park and Balsom Park.
Junction Road is the other main inland road in the area, and Hydro Road is the turn toward Meeting of the Waters and the power-station tail race. State Highway 3 is the southern highway approach to this side of New Plymouth.
There is no railway station in the locality, and a public bus route serving Burgess Park addresses was not confirmed. Plan on a private vehicle. Access tracks on riverside reserves are not all formed public roads.
At Meeting of the Waters, the approach road is privately owned even where the council has a right of way, and council policy expects vehicle access onto council land there to be arranged with staff. The esplanade reserves toward Balsom Park are maintained for ecology, with any public access considered case by case.
Getting Outdoors
Outdoor time here is informal and river-based, not a signed network of neighbourhood walks. The historic reserve at Burgess Park is the namesake open space, held by the council beside the Waiwhakaiho.
Facilities, paths and any conditions of entry sit in the Historic Reserves Management Plan, which is separate from the green spaces plan, so this guide does not invent gates, toilets or a loop track.
Meeting of the Waters, a short way upstream via Hydro Road, is the other standout. It combines council open space, a hydro tail race used by kayakers, neighbouring Department of Conservation land and the Araheke walk on the far side of a footbridge.
Grazing continues on some of the open land, and council signage notes are aimed at people sharing space with stock and keeping dogs on a lead. Papamoa Pā is part of that landscape and is not a climbing or exploring site.
Further down the true left bank, esplanade reserves link the Burgess Park area toward Balsom Park and, beyond that, Audrey Gale Reserve. Those links are broken in places and are not presented by the council as an all-weather public walkway.
The district’s longer ambition, the Taranaki Traverse, includes a proposed mountain-to-sea route along the Waiwhakaiho, but that is a planning intention, not a finished track you should assume is open through this locality.
Where to Learn More
New Plymouth District Council: Green Spaces Management Plan: Council description of the Waiwhakaiho reserves, Meeting of the Waters, and the land between Burgess Park and Balsom Park.
New Plymouth District Council: Parks and reserves management plans: Index of council reserve plans, including the Historic Reserves Management Plan that covers Burgess Park.
New Plymouth District Council: Pukekura Park management plan: Council account of the Burgess gift of the tea house, Wallace Place playground, and the land and home that became Burgess Park.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Burgess Park a suburb of New Plymouth?
It is a rural locality in New Plymouth District, not a city suburb with a shopping strip. The same name is used for the historic reserve beside the Waiwhakaiho River.
Who was Burgess Park named after?
It takes its name from Charles Burgess, mayor of New Plymouth from 1915 to 1919, and his wife Ann. Council records say they donated five hectares and a family home that became the park, as well as the Pukekura Park tea house in 1931.
Is the historic reserve still council land?
Yes. The green spaces plan identifies Burgess Park as a historic reserve beside the river, covered by the Historic Reserves Management Plan rather than the green spaces plan. Check that plan, or the council, for access and facilities before you rely on a visit.
How do I get to Burgess Park?
Drive from New Plymouth via Mangorei Road or Junction Road. Hydro Road is the approach toward Meeting of the Waters. There is no railway station in the locality, and a local bus service was not confirmed.
Is there a school in Burgess Park?
No school was confirmed as standing inside the locality. Mangorei School, a full primary on Mangorei Road, has a home zone that includes land on the western side of the Waiwhakaiho and both sides of part of Junction Road. Check the current zone before assuming a particular address qualifies.
Are there shops in Burgess Park?
No shopping centre or retail strip was confirmed in the locality. Everyday shopping and services are back in New Plymouth.
Can I walk along the river from Burgess Park?
Do not assume a continuous public track. Esplanade reserves on the western bank are managed mainly for ecological values, and public access is reviewed case by case. Meeting of the Waters, upstream, is the clearer recreational node, with its own access limits.
Which hapū have connections with this river country?
For the Waiwhakaiho river reserves, New Plymouth District Council records historic and cultural interests with Ngāti Te Whiti, Ngāti Tuparikino and Ngāti Tawhirikura. Papamoa Pā, at Meeting of the Waters, is associated with Ngāti Te Whiti and is a protected archaeological site.
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