Castle Hill Village

Location

Castle Hill Village is located in Selwyn District. It is located adjacent to just north of the Thomas River. Nearby are the distinctive limestone boulders of Castle Hill. The boulders are located within the Kura Tawhiti Conservation Area. The Craigieburn Range forms the backdrop for the location.

History

During the time of the West Coast gold rush in the mid-1860s, a hotel was built along the coach road that is now State Highway 73; traces of Castle Hill Hotel can be found immediately opposite to Castle Hill Village. The coach traffic disappeared when the Midland Line was extended to Arthur's Pass just prior to World War I; this withdrew the financial basis for the hotel.

After sub-dividing land from his high country Castle Hill Station in 1981, John Reid started the village in 1982. The first sections on sale for $10,000. Reid later sold his remaining land holdings except for the land opposite the village for a 9-hole golf course.

Demographics

Castle Hill Village is described by Statistics New Zealand as a rural settlement, and covers 0.61 km2. It had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2. It is part of the statistical area of Craigieburn.

Castle Hill had a population of 18 at the 2018 New Zealand census, a decrease of 27 people (−60.0%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 9 people (100.0%) since the 2006 census. There were 9 households, comprising 12 males and 6 females, giving a sex ratio of 2.0 males per female. The median age was 66.7 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally).

Today

In 2022, there were over 150 houses in the village. Most are holiday homes but some have permanent residents, including Reid who still lives there. A daily school bus service runs to Springfield, just over 30 km from Castle Hill Village. There are no public facilities other than a public toilet at the village hall and a children's playground.

Selwyn District has set separate design rules in its district plan for buildings in Castle Hill Village so that the alpine character of the location is reflected. In 2020, a resource consent allowing up to 111 new plots was granted.

Mountain biking is popular around Castle Hill Village with the Hogsback track connecting Castle Hill Village with Texas Flat on the Mount Cheeseman Ski Field Road. The majority of the track construction was carried out in a series of community work parties over the 2010/2011 summer.

Castle Hill Village's proximity to the Porters Ski Resort, Mount Cheeseman, Broken River and Craigieburn Ski Fields makes it popular with Christchurch residents during the winter.

Climate

| Jan record high C = 33.6 | Feb record high C = 32.8 | Mar record high C = 30.1 | Apr record high C = 23.7 | May record high C = 20.7 | Jun record high C = 16.8 | Jul record high C = 15.6 | Aug record high C = 19.3 | Sep record high C = 21.5 | Oct record high C = 26.5 | Nov record high C = 29.7 | Dec record high C = 29.9 | year record high C = 33.6 | Jan avg record high C = 29.6 | Feb avg record high C = 29.2 | Mar avg record high C = 26.0 | Apr avg record high C = 21.8 | May avg record high C = 17.7 | Jun avg record high C = 14.6 | Jul avg record high C = 13.3 | Aug avg record high C = 15.3 | Sep avg record high C = 19.3 | Oct avg record high C = 22.6 | Nov avg record high C = 25.8 | Dec avg record high C = 27.6 | year avg record high C = 31.1 | Jan avg record low C = 1.8 | Feb avg record low C = 1.6 | Mar avg record low C = -0.7 | Apr avg record low C = -2.8 | May avg record low C = -5.0 | Jun avg record low C = -7.4 | Jul avg record low C = -7.8 | Aug avg record low C = -7.0 | Sep avg record low C = -5.5 | Oct avg record low C = -3.2 | Nov avg record low C = -2.0 | Dec avg record low C = 0.7 | year avg record low C = -9.0 | Jan record low C = -1.4 | Feb record low C = -1.2 | Mar record low C = -2.9 | Apr record low C = -5.1 | May record low C = -6.8 | Jun record low C = -11.0 | Jul record low C = -10.6 | Aug record low C = -9.8 | Sep record low C = -6.9 | Oct record low C = -5.9 | Nov record low C = -3.9 | Dec record low C = -1.7 | year record low C = -11.0 |access-date = 4 April 2021}}

Notes

References

1. "Kura Tawhiti Conservation Area". Department of Conservation.
2. (19 July 2014). "A bit of Switzerland in Canterbury". [[The Timaru Herald]].
3. "Castle Hill Village". CastleHill.Net.
4. (2020-03-13). "Will next stage of Canterbury's Castle Hill development divide the village?".
5. "ArcGIS Web Application".
6. {{NZ census place summary 2018. craigieburn. Craigieburn
7. {{NZ census 2018. 7026669
8. "Castle Hill Community Association". Castle Hill Community Association.
9. "Castle Hill Mountain Village: Design Rules". Castle Hill Mountain Village Design Assessment Committee.
10. (2020-03-13). "Will next stage of Canterbury's Castle Hill development divide the village?".
11. "Hogs Back Track".