List of cities in New Zealand
After the local government reforms of 1989, the term "city" began to take on two meanings. Before 1989, a borough council with more than 20,000 people could be proclaimed a city. The boundaries of councils tended to follow the edge of the built-up area, so little distinction was made between the urban area and the local government area.
In 1989 the local government structure was significantly rationalised. The new district and city councils were generally much larger and covered both urban and rural land. Many places that once had a city council were now being administered by a district council.
The word "city" began to be used in a less formal sense to describe major urban areas independent of local body boundaries. This informal usage is jealously guarded. Gisborne, for example, adamantly described itself as the first city in the world to see the new millennium. Gisborne is administered by a district council, but its status as a city is not generally disputed.
The populations given are the Statistics New Zealand usually resident population estimates for
30 June 2005. They are listed in order from most northern to southern.
| City Council | Population (2003) | First Proclaimed |
|---|
| North Shore | 212,200 | 1989 |
| Waitakere | 191,900 | 1989 |
| Auckland | 425,400 | 1871 |
| Manukau | 332,900 | 1965 |
| Hamilton | 131,400 | 1936 |
| Tauranga | 103,800 | 1963 |
| Napier | 56,400 | 1950 |
| Palmerston North | 78,400 | 1930 |
| Porirua | 50,500 | 1965 |
| Upper Hutt | 37,900 | 1966 |
| Lower Hutt | 100,500 | 1941 |
| Wellington | 185,100 | 1870 |
| Nelson | 45,700 | 1874 |
| Christchurch | 347,600 | 1868 |
| Dunedin | 122,400 | 1865 |
| Invercargill | 51,300 | 1991 |
Many cities were reorganised into districts by the Local Government Commission in 1989 under the
Local Government Act 1974, for example,
Timaru. The most recently proclaimed city is
Tauranga, which became a city, for the second time, from
1 March 2004. Another former city is
Rotorua. Some present cities, such as
Christchurch (1862 and 1868) and Invercargill (1930 and 1991), have been cities more than once.
Under Section 27 of the Local Government Act 2002, a district may become a city by either a
reorganisation scheme with the Local Government Commission,
or under Section 27(1) it may apply for a change in status under Schedule 3, Clause 7. Either way, the new city must have 'a population of not less than 50,000 persons', be 'predominantly urban' and 'a distinct entity and a major centre of activity within the
region' (or regions) which it is encompassed by. Existing cities are grandfathered under Schedule 2, Part 2 of the Act. The only new city council so far under this section is the
Tauranga City Council, from
1 March 2004.
Previously, under Section 37L of the Local Government Act 1974, new cities could only be formed from a
reorganisation scheme. The same criteria were used. The last city to be constituted under this section was Invercargill, which was re-reorganised into a city in 1991.
In 1991, the Lower Hutt City Council became the Hutt City Council by a special Act of
Parliament [
1], which specifically did
not change the name [
2] of its city,
Lower Hutt; as a result, the city's
coat of arms still refer to a
City of Lower Hutt.
Cities during provincialism, 1852 to 1876
During
provincialism in New Zealand there was no uniform system of local authorities in New Zealand. There is thus some argument over which of the following cities were the first.
*
Christchurch (By Royal Charter 31 July 1856, by provincial ordinance November 1862, revoked June 1868 by provincial ordinance and restored October 1868, by Act of Parliament)
*
Nelson (1858, by Letters Patent)
*Otago (later
Dunedin) (July 1865)
The Municipal Corporations Act 1876 included the first schedule of cities, with the dates they were constituted. Dunedin was the first city in New Zealand to be described in an Act of Parliament as 'City of...', something now automatic under the Local Government Act 2002.
*
Christchurch (
28 May,
1868)
*
Wellington (
16 September,
1870)
*
Auckland (
24 April,
1871)
*
Nelson (
30 March,
1874)
*
Dunedin (
4 July,
1865)
Cities, 1877 to 1989
Up to October 1989, the Local Government Commission undertook a major reorganisation of local government. As a result, some cities were reorganised into other cities or changed to districts, and to this day some of these areas are still considered cities by many New Zealanders. This is a list as at circa 1986.
*
North Island**
Whangarei (1964)
**
Auckland***
Auckland (1871)
***
East Coast Bays***
Takapuna***
Birkenhead***
Waitemata (1974)
***
Mt Albert***
Papatoetoe ***
Manukau (1965)
***
Papakura***
Tamaki**
Hamilton (1936)
**
New Plymouth (1949)
**
Tauranga (1963)
**
Rotorua (1962, merged into Rotorua District, 1979)
**
Gisborne (1955)
**
Napier (1950)
**
Hastings (1956)
**
Wanganui (1924)
**
Palmerston North (1930)
**
Wellington***
Wellington (1870)
***
Upper Hutt (1966)
***
Lower Hutt (1941)
***
Porirua (1965)
*
South Island**
Nelson (1874)
**
Christchurch (1868)
**
Timaru (1948)
**
Dunedin (1865)
**
Invercargill (1930)
*
City status in the United Kingdom*
Territorial Authorities of New Zealand*
List of towns in New Zealand*
List of main streets of New Zealand cities*
List of cities in the Cook Islands*
List of cities in Niue*
List of cities in Tokelau* Gordon McLauchlan (Editor),
Illustrated Encyclopedia of New Zealand, The, Auckland: David Bateman, 1989 (second edition) (ISBN 1869530071) - confirmation, pre-1989 dates
*
Statistics New Zealand Subnational Population Estimates* Tauranga status change, 2003 - specific details
**
Local Government (Tauranga City Council) Order 2003 (
Governor-General's Order-in-Council,
2 October 2003)
**
Local Government Commission press release (PDF)
**
Local Government Commission decision full text (PDF)
** Tauranga's city status returns (
New Zealand Herald,
August 12,
2003)
*
Local Government Online Limited site - confirmation, post-1989 council names
*
Map
