Hutt City Council

Hutt City Council Te Awa Kairangi
Coat of arms
Brand logo
Type
Type	Territorial authority of Lower Hutt
Term limits	None
History
Established	1 November 1989 (1989-11-01); 36 years ago
Preceded by	Lower Hutt City Council Petone Borough Council Eastbourne Borough Council Wainuiomata District Council
Leadership
Mayor	Ken Laban, Ind. since 18 October 2025
Deputy	Keri Brown, Labour since 22 October 2025
CEO	Jo Miller since 1 July 2019
Structure
Seats	14 (including mayor)

Political groups	Independent (12) Labour (1) Independent Green (1)
Elections
Voting system	First-past-the-post
First election	14 October 1989
Last election	11 October 2025
Next election	14 October 2028
Meeting place
30 Laings Road
Website
huttcity.govt.nz

Hutt City Council (abbr. HCC; Māori: Te Awa Kairangi) is the territorial authority for the city of Lower Hutt, New Zealand. It serves as the city's local government, with the Greater Wellington Regional Council serving as the regional authority. The current entity has existed since 1989, prior to which local government in the area was split between four local authorities. From 1989 to 1991 the authority was known as Lower Hutt City Council.

The governing body of the council has 14 members and is chaired by the mayor of Lower Hutt (currently Ken Laban since October 2025). There are also two community boards.

History

Predecessors

In 1989, the former Lower Hutt City Council, the Petone Borough Council, the Eastbourne Borough Council, and the Wainuiomata District Council were amalgamated to form a new Lower Hutt City Council.^[1]

Governing body

Mayor

One mayor is elected at-large; they chair meetings of the governing body and act as the head of local government in the city.

Current composition

The current members of the governing body of council are:^[2]^[3]

Role	Name		Ward
Mayor	Ken Laban	Independent	Elected at-large
Deputy	Keri Brown	Labour	Wainuiomata
Councillor	Brady Dyer	Independent	At-large
Councillor	Prabha Ravi	Independent	At-large
Councillor	Tony Stallinger	Independent	At-large
Councillor	Karen Yung	Independent	At-large
Councillor	Mele Tonga-Grant	Independent	At-large
Councillor	Chris Parkin	Independent Green	Western
Councillor	Tui Lewis	Independent	Harbour
Councillor	Naomi Shaw	Independent	Northern
Councillor	Andy Mitchell	Independent	Northern
Councillor	Glenda Barratt	Independent	Central
Councillor	Simon Edwards	Independent	Central
Councillor	Te Awa Puketapu	Independent	Mana Kairangi ki Tai Māori

Community boards

The council currently has two local community boards under the provisions of Part 4 of the Local Government Act 2002,^[4] with members elected using a first-past-the-post (FPP) system or appointed by the council. The community boards are as follows:^[5]

Eastbourne Community Board;
Wainuiomata Community Board.

From 1989 to 2025 the council also had a third community board covering Petone.

Coat of arms

The City of Lower Hutt has a coat of arms, granted under the seal of the Garter King of Arms and the Norroy and Ulster King of Arms on 25 November 1955.^[6] The blazon is:^[7]^[8]

Coat of arms of Hutt City Council
	Crest A Tūī Bird holding in the beak a spring of Kōwhai flowered proper. Escutcheon Argent on Water in base Barry Wavy a Barquentine in full sail proper, flying at the fore-mast a Flag Azure, thereon a representation of the constellation of the Southern Cross Or; on a Chief Vert a Cog wheel between two Garbs Gold, over all a Canton Argent charged with a Chevron between three Fleurs de lys Sable. Supporters On the dexter side the figure of a Farmer supporting with the interior Hand a long-handled Shovel resting his exterior hand on a Sheep Dog sejant, and on the sinister side the figure of a Māori Warrior vested proper, supporting with the interior Hand a long Spear also proper.

References

Reeves, Paul (8 June 1989). "Orders in Council for Local Government Reorganisation" (PDF). New Zealand Gazette (99).
"2025 Triennial Elections DECLARATION OF RESULT" (PDF). www.electionz.com. Hutt City Council. Retrieved 17 October 2025.
"Councillors". Hutt City Council. Retrieved 31 January 2026.
"Local Government Act 2002 No 84 (as at 01 July 2017)". www.legislation.govt.nz. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
"Community Boards". Hutt City Council. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
"ATL: Unpublished Collections". tiaki.natlib.govt.nz. Alexander Turnbull Library. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
"Arms (crest) of Lower Hutt". www.heraldry-wiki.com. Heraldry of the World. 28 January 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
"City of Lower Hutt Coat of Arms". huttcity.govt.nz. Hutt City Council. 12 August 2019. Archived from the original on 26 August 2023. Retrieved 18 May 2024.