Media Release
4 July 2006

Flat Bush Confirmed as Preferred Town Centre Name

Flat Bush has been confirmed as the preferred name for Manukau’s newest town centre by Manukau City Council’s Hearings Committee.

The decision follows the hearing of public submissions today.

Hearings Committee Chairperson Jan Sinclair says the committee decided Flat Bush should be the name of the town centre because it is the geographic centre of the wider Flat Bush area.

“The area is already widely known as Flat Bush, not just in Manukau but also around the rest of the Auckland region. The name Flat Bush has been in widespread use since the 1850s.

“We felt using the name Ormiston would single out one family when historically a number of families have made significant contributions to the community. The naming of the main road into Flat Bush gives the Ormistons recognition,” Cr Sinclair says.

“Flat Bush is growing rapidly, so it is important we give residents and businesses certainty about the name of the town centre,” she says.

The next step is for the full Manukau City Council meeting on 27 July to consider the Hearing Committee’s recommendation of the name Flat Bush.

The preferred name will then be forwarded to the New Zealand Geographical Board, which has responsibility for accepting or rejecting geographical names. If a nomination is accepted by the board, people have three months to lodge objections.

Manukau City Council decided to revisit the naming earlier this year at the request of the Botany Community Board.

A total of 40 submissions were received, with 20 supporting Ormiston, 12 supporting Flat Bush and the remainder of submissions suggesting a range of other names.

The council previously decided to name the town centre Flat Bush in October 2000 following public consultation.

Flat Bush is the fastest growing area of Manukau city, where a new town of at least 40,000 people is anticipated to be built over the next 12 years.

ENDS

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