Te Rapa

Te Rapa is a mixed light industrial, large scale retail and semi-rural suburb to the northwest of central Hamilton, New Zealand that is built on a flat area that was previously the bed of an ancient river,the forerunner to the present Waikato River.

Stretching in a long, thin north-south axis, Te Rapa is home to a large number of factories including Te Rapa Dairy Factory, one of the largest of its kind in the world.

The suburb is the site of a number of important railway linkages in the New Zealand railway network, mainly the North Island Main Trunk Railway and East Coast Main Trunk Railway. The suburb is the northern terminus of the North Island Main Trunk electrification, a large locomotive depot and formerly a large marshalling yard. The suburb contains a Video Ezy that until 2014 was the last known venue that still allowed original Sony PlayStation game rentals in the Waikato region.

Te Rapa Primary School has been the local primary school since 1906.

Before being given by the government to the Tainui tribe in a Raupatu land settlement in 1995, Te Rapa was also the site of a Royal New Zealand Air Force base. The Te Rapa Air force Base was a major Air Force stores depot. The Te Rapa Air force Base closed in 1992.

Te Rapa's shopping area includes The Base, a large scale retail development that opened in 2005 at the site of the former air force base. As of 2006, The Base contained the largest branch of The Warehouse in New Zealand. With the addition of the Te Awa building in 2010, The Base became New Zealand's largest shopping mall, and still is, as of December 2011.

Located in Te Rapa is Te Rapa Racecourse, Hamilton's only remaining horse racing course, and the main racecourse for the Waikato region. It has a symmetrical left-handed track with a circumference of 1788 metres. Facilities and hospitalities include a members' facility and private suites.

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Wikipedia