# Opawa vs Woolston, the record side by side

| | [Opawa](https://www.chch.live/opawa) | [Woolston](https://www.chch.live/woolston) |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 1,400 (2023) | **11,120 (2023)** |
| 2023 Census (SA1 join) | 1,401 (indicative) | **10,608 (indicative)** |
| Census households | 549 | **4,371** |
| Under 15 (Census) | 15% | **17%** |
| 65+ (Census) | **25%** | 16% |
| Area | 0.82 km² | **5.48 km²** |
| People per km² | 1,707 | **2,029** |
| Reports filed | 3,162 | **16,613** |
| Rank on the roll | 46th of 108 | **3rd of 108** |
| Reports per km² | **3,856** | 3,032 |
| First report on record | 2015 | 2015 |
| Busiest day | 2017-10-25 (17 reports) | **2026-08-29 (62 reports)** |
| Crashes on record | 29 (1 fatal · 8 serious) | **338 (6 fatal · 79 serious)** |
| Epicentres inside the outline | 1 (biggest M3.3) | **27 (biggest M4.1)** |
| Of the outline, red-zoned | — | — |
| The 2011 grade | TC3 (104.2% of the outline) | TC3 (20.0% of the outline) |
| Flooded on record | **26.3% (4 events)** | 25.6% (5 events) |
| The sea’s reach | — | 27% of the outline |
| Slope-hazard bands | — | — |
| The remembered ground | 3% of the outline | **5% of the outline** |
| The wild ledger | 4% of the outline | **7% of the outline** |
| The kept view | 3% of the outline | **6% of the outline** |
| The waiting water | **2% high-hazard (19% managed)** | 1% high-hazard (83% managed) |
| The quiet lines | — | — |
| The drawn water | **18 reaches (Jacksons Creek Lower, Heathcote / Opawaho River), 18% setback strips, held edge** | 118 reaches (Steamwharf Stream, Bells Creek), 14% setback strips, held edge |
| The allowed shape | 4% under density overlays, Suburban Density Transition | **11% under density overlays, Medium Density** |
| The rebuild’s receipts | 954 frames filed (2010–2016) | **5,354 frames filed (2007–2017)** |
| The pedal network | 0.0 km inside the outline, Ōpāwaho River | **0.0 km inside the outline, Heathcote Expressway, Rapanui Shag Rock +2 more** |
| The remembered names | 8 plaques, Risingholme Park, Hansen Park | **13 plaques, Woolston Park, Heathcote Quay Monuments** |
| The rules on the ground | 5 drawn rules, Te Ngai Tuahuriri Runanga | **13 drawn rules, Te Ngai Tuahuriri Runanga** |
| On the hazard register | 2 parcels (1 current) | **49 parcels (21 current)** |
| Made ground on file | 55 parcels (11 unvouched) | 252 parcels (28 unvouched) |
| Surveyed rocks | — | — |
| Cleanups on file | 2 parcels (1 verified) | 14 parcels (none verified) |
| The model’s verdict | high (52% of the outline) | medium (55% of the outline) |
| Engineered defences | — | — |
| The canopy | 1,200 trees (25 veterans, 542 remembered felled) | **2,709 trees (31 veterans, 1,255 remembered felled)** |
| The plan’s word | Residential Suburban (52% of the outline, 55% residential) | Residential Suburban (33% of the outline, 55% residential) |
| The plan’s reservations | **8% of the outline (3 designations, learning, movement)** | 4% of the outline (3 designations, movement, learning) |
| The plan’s exceptions | — | 4% of the outline (4 matters, section 6) |
| The listed city | 4 scheduled items (1 highly significant) | **9 scheduled items (1 highly significant)** |
| The usual complaints | Graffiti (828), Parks (288), Dumped Rubbish (269) | Dumped Rubbish (3,089), Graffiti (2,836), Rubbish/Recycling (1,665) |
| Schools | 3 | **5** |
| Parks | 4 | **27** |
| Facilities | 0 | 0 |
| Tracks | 12 | **30** |
| Bus stops | 7 | **42** |
| Bus routes through | 3 | 3 |
| Heritage places | 7 | **13** |

Same record, same caveats, the stream counts reports, not virtue.

## Questions, answered briefly

**What is the difference between Opawa and Woolston?**

Opawa counts 1,400 people (2023) to Woolston's 11,120; Opawa covers 0.82 km², Woolston 5.48 km²; the record holds 3,162 reports for Opawa and 16,613 for Woolston.

**Which has more heritage places, Opawa or Woolston?**

Woolston, 13 on the heritage register to the other’s 7.

**Where do these numbers come from?**

The same public record for both, council reports, the crash register, the heritage schedule, Stats NZ’s counts. The stream counts reports, not virtue; the caveats are each suburb’s own.

HTML: https://www.chch.live/compare?a=opawa&b=woolston
Data: https://api.chch.live/suburb?slug=opawa · https://api.chch.live/suburb?slug=woolston