In local government terms, Pāuatahanui is part of the Northern Ward of Porirua City.

The first non-denominational Protestant chapel was built about 1856, and from 1861 Anglican services were held by a visiting clergyman once a fortnight.

[9] In World War II the US Marines had four camps in the Pāuatahanui area; at Judgeford, at the Porirua side of the foot of the Haywards Hill, at Motukaraka, and in the Moonshine Valley.

[10] In the early 1970s the development of sections at Whitby on the south of the Pāuatahanui Inlet caused noticeable silting and raised community concerns.

Subsequently the Pāuatahanui Wildlife Reserve was created, in 1984, in order to preserve the only large estuarine wetland left in the lower North Island.

The wetland reserve is run by the Royal Forest and Bird Society with ongoing efforts to reduce human impact on the environment and to restore damaged areas.

The reserve has several hides for viewing birdlife, boardwalks, and some barbecue / picnic areas for visitors.

[13] It was established in 1855, originally in an undenominational chapel on the site of Rangihaeata's pā, and later in the military barracks vacated by the troops, making it one of the oldest schools in New Zealand.

[15] State Highway 58 skims the southern fringe of the village and State Highway 1 (as the Transmission Gully Motorway) lies just to the east of it; the two roads intersect at a diamond interchange to the south of Pāuatahanui.

[19][20] Built in 1847, Taylor-Stace Cottage is the Wellington region's oldest surviving house, and is currently used as a beauty salon.