NAENAE

As Lower Hutt expanded after the end of World War II in 1945, the Labour Party government under Peter Fraser selected Naenae as an ideal site to become a "designer community", a model suburb of sorts, where a suburban state-housing estate would complement a substantial shopping centre. This community centre would serve as a social hub for the greater area. The planners hoped to encourage nuclear-family life in such a scheme. Due to the increasing urbanization of New Zealand, demand for housing outstripped the need for such centres, leaving the scheme only partially realized.

A re-zoning of Naenae made it partly industrial in the 1960s, but it remained principally a residential area. At its peak, Naenae boasted two manufacturers with strong Dutch connections - Philips which produced televisions and radios (and is now the Resene Paints), and Rembrandt Suits Ltd.

Naenae or nae-nae is a translation from the Māori, meaning "mosquito" or "sandfly", recalling a time prior to the draining of the area, when the mosquito population predominated.

This is a busy road so please watch any little people with you, and please be stealthy.

Naenae, Lower Hutt. Whites Aviation Ltd: Photographs. Ref: WA-60228-F. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. /records/23236418