Mayor and Councillors

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Harry Duynhoven (Mayor)

Mayor's Message

I am very proud to be heading a team of elected members for New Plymouth District – the place named the Best Small City in the World by the UN-backed Liveable Communities Awards in 2008.

New Plymouth District has been built on a legacy of visionary, creative, hard-working and passionate people over the generations, with our companies and local government recognised nationally and internationally for innovative planning and development.

This outstanding work continues today with individuals, community groups and companies working together to get great outcomes for locals and visitors alike – such as the recently extended Coastal Walkway, the magnificent Womad (World of Music, Arts and Dance), and the ground-breaking exhibitions at Puke Ariki and the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery.

We have an enviable lifestyle here – where else can you surf in the morning and ski in the afternoon, or live rurally and be at work in the city in 10 minutes? We also have a strong economy based on our strengths of dairying, petrochemical and engineering, and a sound infrastructure on which to base future growth. And our venues attract the big names, from Fleetwood Mac and Sir Elton John to the All Blacks and, this September, three Rugby World Cup 2011 matches.

Eight centuries ago the first Maori came to the New Plymouth area to live. In 1841 the first permanent European settlers came here to establish one of the earliest provinces in New Zealand.

Today we welcome increasingly more residents, visitors and business developers as they, too, realise that Taranaki and New Plymouth District are truly ‘like no other’, and that there is no better place to be.



Mayor Harry Duynhoven