Lower Hutt
Encyclopedia
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
in the Wellington
Wellington Region
The Wellington region of New Zealand occupies the southern end of the North Island.-Governance:The official Wellington Region, as administered by the Wellington Regional Council covers the conurbation around the capital city, Wellington, and the cities of Lower Hutt, Porirua, and Upper Hutt, each...
region
Regions of New Zealand
The region is the top tier of local government in New Zealand. There are 16 regions of New Zealand. Eleven are governed by an elected regional council, while five are governed by territorial authorities which also perform the functions of a regional council and thus are known as unitary authorities...
of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. Its council has adopted the name Hutt City Council, but neither the New Zealand Geographic Board nor the Local Government Act recognise the name Hutt City. This alternative name can lead to confusion, as there are two cities in the Hutt Valley, Lower Hutt and Upper Hutt
Upper Hutt
Upper Hutt is a satellite city of Wellington. It is New Zealand's smallest city by population, the second largest by land area. It is in Greater Wellington.-Geography:Upper Hutt is 30 km north-east of Wellington...
. The Upper Hutt City Council objects to the name of Hutt City. The former Hutt County included much of the area of both Upper Hutt and Lower Hutt.
Lower Hutt is in the Wellington Region. It is the tenth largest city in New Zealand in population, and covers an area of 376.74 km².
Geography
The city centres on the lower (southern) valley of the Hutt RiverHutt River, New Zealand
thumb|300px|The Hutt River looking downstream.The Hutt River flows through the southern North Island of New Zealand...
, to the northeast of Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
. The valley widens as the river nears its mouth, so the central urban area of the city forms a triangle with its longest side along the shoreline. In the upper reaches of the city the Western and Eastern Hutt Hills become closer, culminating in the Taitā Gorge at the northern end of Lower Hutt, separating the city from neighbouring Upper Hutt.
Lower Hutt includes the cluster of small settlements that extend down the eastern coast of Wellington Harbour
Wellington Harbour
Wellington Harbour is the large natural harbour at the southern tip of New Zealand's North Island. New Zealand's capital, Wellington, is on the western side of Wellington Harbour. The harbour was officially named Port Nicholson until it assumed its current name in the 1980s.In Māori the harbour is...
. These include the two large townships of Wainuiomata
Wainuiomata
Wainuiomata is a suburban town located within the city limits of Lower Hutt - and part of the greater Wellington urban area - in the lower North Island of New Zealand...
(inland) and Eastbourne
Eastbourne, New Zealand
Eastbourne is a suburb of Lower Hutt city in the southern North Island of New Zealand. Its population is about 4,600.-Location:An outer suburb, it is situated on the eastern shore of Wellington Harbour, 5 kilometres south of the main Lower Hutt urban area, and directly across the harbour from the...
(on the coast). The city also includes a large area of sparsely-populated land to the east of the harbour, extending to Pencarrow Head and into the Rimutaka Ranges.
Lower Hutt includes the islands in Wellington Harbour, the largest of which, Matiu/Somes Island
Matiu/Somes Island
Matiu/Somes Island, at , is the largest of three islands in the northern half of Wellington Harbour, New Zealand. It lies south of the suburb of Petone and the mouth of the Hutt River, and about northwest of the much smaller Makaro/Ward Island....
, is commonly referred to by its former name of Somes Island.
Hutt River
The Hutt RiverHutt River, New Zealand
thumb|300px|The Hutt River looking downstream.The Hutt River flows through the southern North Island of New Zealand...
is one of the most significant features of the city, which occupies the lower regions of its flood plain. In the 20th century stopbanks were built to contain the river, but the threat of flood
Flood
A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land. The EU Floods directive defines a flood as a temporary covering by water of land not normally covered by water...
ing as the result of heavy rainfall persists. In 1985 the river bursts its banks, and since then floods have been on a smaller scale. Smaller streams and storm-water drains have also caused occasional problems when rainfall persistently exceeds average levels.
Much of the land adjacent to the river is protected as reserve and provides a much-appreciated recreational feature, with walking tracks and grassed areas over approximately 12 km of river bank.
Pollution levels in the river have been consistently high since urbanisation of the Hutt Valley. Frequent algal blooms have contributed to making slow flowing areas anoxic and have caused localised 'dead zones'. The algal blooms have been attributed as the cause of death of many dogs swimming in the river as well as severe skin reactions in the case of swimmers.
The river is crossed by seven bridges within the city, heading downstream:
- Silverstream Rail Bridge.
- Taita Rail Bridge.
- Kennedy-Good Bridge, a two-lane road bridge that was opened in 1979 and was the first bridge at this site. The bridge is named after the Mayor of Lower Hutt at that time.
- Melling Bridge, a three-lane bridge (one eastbound, two westbound) that was opened 1957. This is the second bridge at this site, the first being a one-lane suspension bridge opened in 1909, approximately 200 metres upstream.
- Ewen Bridge is the seventh bridge at this site and was opened in 1996. The preceding bridges were opened in 1844, 1847, 1856, 1872, 1904 & 1929.
- The 'Rail Bridge', a two-track rail bridge with pedestrian walkway. Opened 1927.
- Estuary or Pipe Bridge, a two-lane road bridge that also carries a pipe for the supply of water to Wellington.
Population
The central urban area of Lower Hutt (including Wainuiomata and Eastbourne) had a population ofSuburbs
Listed approximately north to south from the upper valley:North of the Central Business District (CBD)
- AvalonAvalon, New ZealandAvalon, a suburb of Lower Hutt in New Zealand, formed as a private residential development in the 1970s on land formerly occupied by market-gardens on the left bank of the Hutt River...
; BelmontBelmont, WellingtonBelmont is a suburb of Lower Hutt, to the north of Wellington in the North Island of New Zealand. It is on the west bank of the Hutt River, on State Highway 2 , the Wellington-Hutt main road, and across the river from the centre of Lower Hutt....
; BoulcottBoulcottBoulcott is a central suburb of Lower Hutt City situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand. The suburb is situated about a kilometre north-east of the Lower Hutt CBD.It's named after Almon Boulcott; a farmer in the area in the 1840s...
; EpuniEpuniEpuni is a suburb of Lower Hutt, New Zealand situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand. The suburb lies around one kilometre east of the Lower Hutt CBD.The suburb is named after the Te Āti Awa chief Honiana Te Puni....
; FairfieldFairfield, WellingtonFairfield is an eastern suburb of Lower Hutt, New Zealand situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand....
; Harbour ViewHarbour View, New ZealandHarbour View is a suburb of Lower Hutt City situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand. The suburb is located on the western side of the Hutt River and State Highway 2....
; KelsonKelson, New ZealandKelson is a northern suburb of Lower Hutt City situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand. The suburb lies on the western side of the Hutt River and State Highway 2....
; Manor ParkManor Park, New ZealandManor Park is the northern-most suburb of Lower Hutt City situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand. The suburb is located on the western side of the Hutt River and State Highway 2....
; MellingMelling, New ZealandMelling is a suburb of Lower Hutt, to the north of Wellington in the North Island of New Zealand. It is on the west bank of the Hutt River, on State Highway 2, the Wellington-Hutt main road, and directly across the river from the centre of Lower Hutt...
; NaenaeNaenaeNaenae is a suburb of the city of Lower Hutt in the North Island of New Zealand. It lies on the eastern edge of the floodplain of the Hutt River, four kilometres from the Lower Hutt Central business district. A small tributary of the Hutt, the Waiwhetu Stream, flows through the suburb.Naenae has a...
; PomarePomarePomare is one of the northernmost suburbs of Lower Hutt City in New Zealand. The suburb has the Hutt River on its northern and north-western sides....
; Stokes ValleyStokes ValleyStokes Valley is a major suburb of Lower Hutt, in the North Island of New Zealand. It is located at the northeastern edge of the city seven kilometres northeast of the city centre, in the valley of a small tributary of the Hutt River, called Stokes Valley stream which flows north to meet the main...
; TaitāTaita, New ZealandTaitā is one of the easternmost suburbs of Lower Hutt City in New Zealand, situated toward the northern end of the city...
; TirohangaTirohangaTirohanga is a suburb of Lower Hutt City situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand. The suburb is located on the western side of the Hutt River and State Highway 2.-References:...
; WingateWingate, New ZealandWingate is a north-eastern suburb of Lower Hutt City situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand....
South of the CBD
- AlicetownAlicetownAlicetown is a central suburb of Lower Hutt located at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand. The suburb is situated north of the major suburb of Petone and west of the Lower Hutt CBD....
; AvaAva, New ZealandAva is a suburb of Lower Hutt City situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand. The suburb is located in the harbour ward of the city adjacent to Petone....
; GracefieldGracefield, New ZealandGracefield is an industrial suburb of Lower Hutt City, located at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand.Up until the 1980s, Gracefield and neighbouring Petone were home to woollen mills, railway workshops, car assembly and meat processing plants...
; KorokoroKorokoro, New ZealandKorokoro is a suburb of Lower Hutt City situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand. The suburb is located on the western hills of the Hutt Valley overlooking Petone and the Wellington harbour....
; MaungarakiMaungarakiMaungaraki is a suburb of Lower Hutt City situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand. The suburb is located on the western hills of the Hutt Valley with access to the area via State Highway 2....
; MoeraMoeraMoera is a suburb of the city of Lower Hutt in New Zealand and urban district of the city of Wellington.-Location:Located at the south-eastern end of the Hutt River, the suburb's name Moera is thought to be a simplification of Moe-i-te-ra, meaning "sleeping in the sun".-History:Prior to European...
; NormandaleNormandale, New ZealandNormandale is a suburb of Lower Hutt City situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand. The suburb is located on the western side of the Hutt River and State Highway 2....
; PetonePetonePetone is a major suburb of the city of Lower Hutt in New Zealand. It is located at the southern end of the narrow triangular plain of the Hutt River, on the northern shore of Wellington Harbour...
; WaiwhetūWaiwhetuWaiwhetū is a suburb of Lower Hutt, Wellington situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand.Waiwhetū is largely built on land that set aside as a native reserve for the Te Āti Awa tribe in the 1840s. In the 1930s the land was compulsorily acquired by the government, with new homes...
; WaterlooWaterloo, New ZealandWaterloo is an eastern suburb of Lower Hutt, Wellington. It is named after the Battle of Waterloo won by the Duke of Wellington in 1815.It is the home suburb to St. Bernard's College, Chilton Saint James School and Waterloo Primary School. It is also home to Waterloo Interchange, a major train and...
; WoburnWoburn, New ZealandWoburn is a suburb of Lower Hutt, Wellington situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand.Henry Petre farmed the area in the 1840s and named the area after the Duke of Bedford's estate, Woburn Abbey. Petre's farm was later taken over by Daniel and Harriet Riddiford, whose descendants...
Wainuiomata
Wainuiomata
Wainuiomata is a suburban town located within the city limits of Lower Hutt - and part of the greater Wellington urban area - in the lower North Island of New Zealand...
- ParkwayParkway, New ZealandParkway is a suburb of Wainuiomata, part of Lower Hutt city situated in the lower North Island of New Zealand....
; ArakuraArakuraArakura is a suburb of Wainuiomata, part of Lower Hutt city situated in the lower North Island of New Zealand....
; GlendaleGlendale, New ZealandGlendale is a suburb of Wainuiomata, part of Lower Hutt city situated in the lower North Island of New Zealand....
; HomedaleHomedale, New ZealandHomedale is a suburb of Wainuiomata, part of Lower Hutt city situated in the lower North Island of New Zealand.-References:...
Eastern harbour
- Days Bay; EastbourneEastbourne, New ZealandEastbourne is a suburb of Lower Hutt city in the southern North Island of New Zealand. Its population is about 4,600.-Location:An outer suburb, it is situated on the eastern shore of Wellington Harbour, 5 kilometres south of the main Lower Hutt urban area, and directly across the harbour from the...
; Lowry Bay; York Bay; Mahina Bay; Muritai; Point Howard; Rona Bay; Seaview
History
Prior to European settlement, the Hutt Valley was thickly forested, with areas of marshland close to the river's mouth. Māori inhabited the shoreline, with a paPa (Maori)
The word pā can refer to any Māori village or settlement, but in traditional use it referred to hillforts fortified with palisades and defensive terraces and also to fortified villages. They first came into being about 1450. They are located mainly in the North Island north of lake Taupo...
at each end of Petone beach.
The Māori welcomed the arrival of the New Zealand Company
New Zealand Company
The New Zealand Company originated in London in 1837 as the New Zealand Association with the aim of promoting the "systematic" colonisation of New Zealand. The association, and later the company, intended to follow the colonising principles of Edward Gibbon Wakefield, who envisaged the creation of...
ship Tory in 1839, and William Wakefield
William Wakefield
William Hayward Wakefield was an English colonel, the leader of the first colonizing expedition to New Zealand and one of the founders of Wellington. In 1826, he married Emily Sidney, a daughter of Sir John Sidney.-Early life:...
(the company's agent) negotiated with local chiefs to allow settlement.
The first immigrant ship, the Aurora, arrived on 22 January 1840, still celebrated every year as Wellington's Anniversary Day. The settlement, Britannia, was established close to the mouth of the Hutt River, and settlers established the country's first newspaper and bank.
The city got its name from the river, which was named after the founding member, director and chairman of the New Zealand Company, Sir William Hutt
William Hutt (British MP)
Sir William Hutt KCB, PC was a British Liberal politician who was heavily involved in the colonization of New Zealand and South Australia.-Background and education:...
.
Within months of settlement the river flooded, and the settlers decided to move the new colony to Thorndon
Thorndon
Thorndon is an inner suburb of Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand. It combines residential accommodation and the home of government, and is located at the northern end of the Central Business District...
, in what is now the heart of Wellington, though some settlers remained at the north end of the harbour.
In 1846 there was conflict between settlers and Māori, which led to skirmishes (see Hutt Valley Campaign
Hutt Valley Campaign
The Hutt Valley Campaign of 1846 during the New Zealand land wars could almost be seen as a sequel to the Wairau Affray. The causes were similar and the protagonists almost the same...
). In 1855 a major earthquake raised part of the lower valley, allowing land to be reclaimed from swamp.
The arrival of the railway from Wellington in 1874 and the subsequent location of the railway's engineering works at Woburn in 1929 led to a rapid expansion of the area's population and economy. Other industries were soon attracted to the district.
The present boundaries of the local body have evolved from a series of amalgamations and boundary changes over the years.
The Hutt County Council was established in 1877 and covered the region from Wellington’s south coast up to Waikanae, excluding Wellington City Council area. As the region grew, urban parts of the Hutt county became autonomous boroughs: Petone in 1888, Lower Hutt in 1891, Eastbourne in 1906, Johnsonville
Johnsonville, New Zealand
Johnsonville is a large suburb in northern Wellington, New Zealand. It is seven kilometres north of the city centre, at the top of the Ngauranga Gorge, on the main route to Porirua . The population of "J'ville" was about 6,500 at the 2001 census.- Public transport :Johnsonville is a reasonably...
in 1908, Upper Hutt
Upper Hutt
Upper Hutt is a satellite city of Wellington. It is New Zealand's smallest city by population, the second largest by land area. It is in Greater Wellington.-Geography:Upper Hutt is 30 km north-east of Wellington...
in 1926, Porirua
Porirua
Porirua is a city in the Wellington Region of New Zealand, immediately north of the city of Wellington, with their central business districts 20 km apart. A large proportion of the population commutes to Wellington, so it may be considered a satellite city. It almost completely surrounds...
in 1962 and Kapiti
Kapiti
Kapiti can refer to:*Kapiti Island, a small island a short distance off the New Zealand coast north of Wellington*Kapiti Coast, the stretch of coast that runs adjacent to the island.*Kapiti Line, a suburban railway in Wellington...
in 1974.
In 1941 Lower Hutt became a city and was joined by Normandale
Normandale, New Zealand
Normandale is a suburb of Lower Hutt City situated at the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand. The suburb is located on the western side of the Hutt River and State Highway 2....
in 1957.
In 1987-89 the Government forced local authorities to consolidate, which led to Lower Hutt amalgamating with the adjacent Boroughs of Petone
Petone
Petone is a major suburb of the city of Lower Hutt in New Zealand. It is located at the southern end of the narrow triangular plain of the Hutt River, on the northern shore of Wellington Harbour...
and Eastbourne
Eastbourne, New Zealand
Eastbourne is a suburb of Lower Hutt city in the southern North Island of New Zealand. Its population is about 4,600.-Location:An outer suburb, it is situated on the eastern shore of Wellington Harbour, 5 kilometres south of the main Lower Hutt urban area, and directly across the harbour from the...
and the Wainuiomata
Wainuiomata
Wainuiomata is a suburban town located within the city limits of Lower Hutt - and part of the greater Wellington urban area - in the lower North Island of New Zealand...
District (which had its own independence for barely a year) and the abolition of the Hutt County Council.
Culture and Leisure
Several education and research facilities of national significance are in the southern half of the city. Cultural facilities include the Dowse Art Gallery (now called TheNewDowse)http://www.dowse.org.nz and the former Avalon Television studios, now used primarily as a paintball arena.The city possesses civic administration buildings constructed in the 1950s that are regarded as representative architecture of the era. A building of national significance is Vogel House, a two-storey wooden residence that was the official residence of the Prime Minister of New Zealand
Prime Minister of New Zealand
The Prime Minister of New Zealand is New Zealand's head of government consequent on being the leader of the party or coalition with majority support in the Parliament of New Zealand...
for much of the 20th century. It is a prime example of early colonial architecture in New Zealand and operates today as a tourist attraction.
The city is popular for outdoor sports, especially mountain biking, hiking, recreational walking and fishing. Fishing is however increasingly discouraged in Lower Hutt, due to high pollution levels and frequent toxic algal blooms in the Hutt river.
Lower Hutt is to host the 2012 Australasian Police and Emergency Services Games
Australasian Police and Emergency Services Games
The Australasian Police and Emergency Services Games is a bi-annual, week long event with 40 sports. It is next due to be held in Lower Hutt, New Zealand in 2012....
, a weeklong event of 40 sports, since Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
could not host in the wake of the 2011 earthquake.
Among the filming locations for The Lord of the Rings film trilogy
The Lord of the Rings film trilogy
The Lord of the Rings is an epic film trilogy consisting of three fantasy adventure films based on the three-volume book of the same name by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. The films are The Fellowship of the Ring , The Two Towers and The Return of the King .The films were directed by Peter...
directed by Peter Jackson
Peter Jackson
Sir Peter Robert Jackson, KNZM is a New Zealand film director, producer, actor, and screenwriter, known for his The Lord of the Rings film trilogy , adapted from the novel by J. R. R...
, Dry Creek quarry, which dominates the hills above the suburb of Taitā, became the site for a huge medieval castle built for scenes of Helm’s Deep and Minas Tirith.
Economy
Historically, Petone and nearby parts of Lower Hutt acted as the principal area for light industry in this region, with industries including meat processing and freezing, motor vehicle assembly, and timber processing. This activity has been significantly diminished or discontinued in recent decades with either the transfer of industrial activity to the more heavily populated area of AucklandAuckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
or cessation at a national level. Such movement has often resulted from competitive pressures on commercial organisations for increased efficiency, as a result of opening up the New Zealand economy to international competition since the mid-1980s.
Nevertheless, Lower Hutt is the main location for light industrial activity in the Wellington Region, but it largely lacks heavy industry. Trends over the past 25 years have seen service, distribution, and consumer-oriented activity replace the industrial activity previously a feature of the Petone area.
Lower Hutt also continues to be one of Wellington's dormitory areas and a significant proportion of the population commutes to the commercial and Government offices in Wellington 12 km to the south-west.
Ray Wallace was elected Mayor in 2010, succeeding David Ogden.
Government
The Civil Aviation Authority of New ZealandCivil Aviation Authority of New Zealand
The Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand is the government agency tasked with establishing civil aviation safety and security standards in New Zealand....
(CAA) has its headquarters in Aviation House in Petone
Petone
Petone is a major suburb of the city of Lower Hutt in New Zealand. It is located at the southern end of the narrow triangular plain of the Hutt River, on the northern shore of Wellington Harbour...
, Lower Hutt.
Flora and fauna
Hills to about 350 m (1000 ft) line both sides of the valley within the city limits. The western hills have been populated as residential areas, but the eastern side is protected and clad in native bush and scrubForest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
, and the ubiquitous gorse
Gorse
Gorse, furze, furse or whin is a genus of about 20 plant species of thorny evergreen shrubs in the subfamily Faboideae of the pea family Fabaceae, native to western Europe and northwest Africa, with the majority of species in Iberia.Gorse is closely related to the brooms, and like them, has green...
in areas that have been cleared as a result of scrub fires or earlier human activity.
Native birds are common, including the kererū
Kereru
The New Zealand Pigeon or kererū is a bird endemic to New Zealand. Māori call it Kererū in most of the country but kūkupa and kūkū in some parts of the North Island, particularly in Northland...
(wood pigeon), tui
Tui
As a noun, Tui may refer to:* Tu'i , a title of nobility in Polynesia and some of Melanesia* Tui Awards, New Zealand's annual music industry awards* Tui , a brand of New Zealand beer produced by Tui Breweries...
, fantail
Fantail
Fantails are small insectivorous birds of southern Asia and Australasia belonging to the genus Rhipidura in the family Rhipiduridae...
, waxeye
White-eye
White-eye can refer to:*White-eye , a large family of birds.*White-eye , a species of fish.*White-eye mutation, a mutation in Drosophila melanogaster linked to the X chromosome, found by reciprocal cross breeding experiments in 1906.*A lioness member of the Marsh Pride of lions that have featured...
, shining cuckoo
Cuckoo
The cuckoos are a family, Cuculidae, of near passerine birds. The order Cuculiformes, in addition to the cuckoos, also includes the turacos . Some zoologists and taxonomists have also included the unique Hoatzin in the Cuculiformes, but its taxonomy remains in dispute...
(in season), grey warbler
Grey Warbler
The Grey Gerygone , more commonly known in New Zealand as the Grey Warbler or Riroriro, is a species of insectivorous bird in the Acanthizidae family endemic to New Zealand.Its natural habitat is temperate forests....
and morepork (native owl
Owl
Owls are a group of birds that belong to the order Strigiformes, constituting 200 bird of prey species. Most are solitary and nocturnal, with some exceptions . Owls hunt mostly small mammals, insects, and other birds, although a few species specialize in hunting fish...
). Introduced species include the blackbird, song thrush
Song Thrush
The Song Thrush is a thrush that breeds across much of Eurasia. It is also known in English dialects as throstle or mavis. It has brown upperparts and black-spotted cream or buff underparts and has three recognised subspecies...
, sparrow
Sparrow
The sparrows are a family of small passerine birds, Passeridae. They are also known as true sparrows, or Old World sparrows, names also used for a genus of the family, Passer...
, goldfinch
Goldfinch
Goldfinch may refer to any of the following species of bird from the genus Carduelis:* American Goldfinch, Carduelis tristis* European Goldfinch, Carduelis carduelis* Lawrence's Goldfinch, Carduelis lawrencei...
, chaffinch
Chaffinch
The Chaffinch , also called by a wide variety of other names, is a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae.- Description :...
, starling
Starling
Starlings are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Sturnidae. The name "Sturnidae" comes from the Latin word for starling, sturnus. Many Asian species, particularly the larger ones, are called mynas, and many African species are known as glossy starlings because of their iridescent...
, and magpie
Magpie
Magpies are passerine birds of the crow family, Corvidae.In Europe, "magpie" is often used by English speakers as a synonym for the European Magpie, as there are no other magpies in Europe outside Iberia...
.
Sister-city relationships
Lower Hutt has four sister cities: Xi'an
Xi'an
Xi'an is the capital of the Shaanxi province, and a sub-provincial city in the People's Republic of China. One of the oldest cities in China, with more than 3,100 years of history, the city was known as Chang'an before the Ming Dynasty...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
Minoh City, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
Taizhou
Taizhou, Jiangsu
Taizhou is a prefecture-level city in central Jiangsu province of eastern China. Situated on the north bank of the Yangtze River, it borders Nantong to the east, Yancheng to the north and Yangzhou to the west....
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
Tempe
Tempe, Arizona
Tempe is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, USA, with the Census Bureau reporting a 2010 population of 161,719. The city is named after the Vale of Tempe in Greece. Tempe is located in the East Valley section of metropolitan Phoenix; it is bordered by Phoenix and Guadalupe on the west, Scottsdale...
, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, The United States of America
Tempe was the first Sister City, in 1981; Taizhou the most recent, in 2005.
Panoramas
