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Road Naming Policy
1 Introduction
Wellington City Council is responsible for naming (and renaming) roads within its
boundaries.
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Roads are named to reflect the identity of the local area and/or the city and to
ensure ease of identification for the Council, the public and key public and private services
such as emergency, postal and courier services.
Road naming in Wellington City has been governed by the Procedures for Road Naming
since 1996. The procedures were created as Council recognised it required a system for
responding quickly to requests for new road names, outside of Council’s formal committee
process.
The 1996 procedures are revised in this document to provide a comprehensive resource for
elected members, Council officers and the public, that clearly outlines the three main
processes relating to road naming:
°
Process for allocating a name to a road – Part A
°
Process for renaming an existing road – Part B
°
Process for including a road name on the ‘List of Approved but Unallocated Road Names’ –
Part C.
These revised procedures also take into account Council’s obligations under the Treaty of
Waitangi and the importance of Council’s Memoranda of Understanding with its Treaty
partners Wellington Tenths Trust and Te Runanga o Toa Rangatira Inc.
2 Responsibility for Implementing the Procedures
The Council’s City Information business unit is responsible for implementing these
procedures. All enquiries should be directed to the unit by telephoning (04) 499 4444,
emailing info@wcc.govt.nz or writing to:
City Information
Wellington City Council
PO Box 2199
WELLINGTON
3 What do the Procedures Aim to Achieve?
The aim of these procedures is to clearly outline the processes for approving and allocating
names to new and currently unnamed roads and for renaming existing roads.
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The authority for naming roads comes from Section 319A of the Local Government Act. Section 17 of Council’s
Consolidated Bylaw also covers road naming.
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4 What is the Scope of the Procedures?
The procedures apply to new and currently named or unnamed roads, including roads with
existing names that are not officially recognised.
For the purposes of these procedures, the definition of a “road” includes:
°
any road that is currently named as a “road”, “street”, “lane”, “avenue”, “drive”, “way”,
“crescent” or any other “road type” name.
°
places that need a name as they need to be identified within an official address. This
includes private rights of way, state highways, service lanes, pedestrian accessways,
wharves and courtyards. It does not include motorways.
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5 How Will the Procedures Work?
The procedures will be applied when:
°
a new subdivision is created
°
a road is created by a process such as a gazette notice
°
a request is received to name a new or currently unnamed road
°
a request is received to rename a road
°
a request is received to have a name approved for use as a potential road name.
5.1 Identification of a New or Currently Unnamed Road for Naming
City Information will primarily be aware that a road needs to be named when:
°
Council’s Environmental Control Business Unit (ECBU) is approached by a developer
requesting a resource consent for a new subdivision, or
°
a developer approaches City Information directly requesting that a name be allocated.
When a new or unnamed road is identified, Council will use the decision-making framework
outlined in Part A of these procedures to determine an appropriate name.
5.1.1
Private rights of way
To ensure names are easily identifiable on maps, a private right of way will usually only be
named if at least 12 dwellings use the right of way. However, the final decision on whether
or not a right of way will be named will be made at the discretion of City Information.
5.1.2
Roads on areas of significance to Maori
In general, if the unnamed road is on or near a Maori heritage precinct, site or track, and an
appropriate Maori name for the road can be identified, City Information will give precedence
to the iwi’s name for the road.
A Maori heritage precinct, site or track will usually be determined from the Council’s District
Plan. However, if Council staff have reason to believe that the area may be of significance
to Maori, but the area has not yet been identified as a significant area, Council staff will also
consult with manawhenua on an appropriate name.
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Suburbs and subdivisions are also to be covered under a separate policy, to be developed in 2002.
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5.1.3
Thematic names
In general, if the road is situated in suburb that has a predominant naming theme, City
Information will give precedence to a name following that theme.
The suburbs that are currently considered to have a predominant naming theme are:
Suburb
Theme
Brooklyn
American political figures
Hataitai
Maori names (predominantly flora and fauna)
Island Bay
European rivers
Karori
Old residents
Khandallah
Indian
Ngaio
Old residents
Redwood (Tawa)
Oxford Colleges
Strathmore
Associations with the Earl of Strathmore’s Estate
Wadestown
Early Settlers
Wilton
English counties
Woodridge
Arboreal
This list may change as
°
new themes become established (for example, specific Maori name themes may become
established as areas of significance to Maori increasingly come to reflect the Maori
heritage of that area)
°
themes may lose predominance because of the number of exceptions.
5.1.4
Exceptional circumstances
In the circumstance that a road to be named is situated in a suburb with a predominant
naming theme as well as being situated on or near an area that is of significance to iwi,
officers will make a recommendation to the Chair of the Regulatory Committee and the local
ward Councillors based on the weighted criteria outlined in section 4 of Part A.
5.1.5
Name to remain in perpetuity
Once a road name is allocated and formal notice has been made to the relevant agencies
(for example, the Wellington Regional Council (WRC) and Land Information New Zealand),
the name will remain in perpetuity. Any further change to the road name will be subject to
the Special Order process, as outlined in Part C of these procedures.
5.1.6
Allocating an appropriate name
Names for approval and allocation are considered by the Chair of the Regulatory Committee
and the local ward Councillors.
If the Councillors are unable to decide which name would be most appropriate, a report will
be forwarded to the Regulatory Committee for final decision.
The decision of the Chair of the Regulatory Committee and the local ward Councillors or the
committee (if the decision is referred to this forum) shall be final and there is no right of
appeal.
5.1.7
Formalising “unofficial” names
Where a road name has been used unofficially for many years, the name is appropriate, and
has clearly been accepted by the public, then the name can be formally approved by the
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Manager of City Information upon the recommendation of two officers of the appropriate
Council business unit.
5.2 Request to Change the Name of an Existing Road
The decision-making framework for renaming will be applied when:
°
a member of the public requests that a road name be changed
°
the emergency services, Council or a Councillor propose a name change.
In both cases, Council will usually only consider changing the name if a significant majority
of the residents or business owners in the road support the proposed change or there is
significant public benefit in making the change, especially for emergency services.
The process for changing the name of an existing road is detailed in Part B of these
procedures.
5.3 Council’s ‘List of Approved but Unallocated Road Names’
Unallocated potential road names for Wellington City are kept on the Council’s ‘List of
Approved but Unallocated Road Names’. Part C of these procedures outlines the process for
having a name approved and added to the list.
The list is maintained by City Information and given to WRC. WRC also holds similar lists
for the other territorial local authorities within the Wellington Region. Councils that wish to
allocate a name to a road contact WRC with the proposed name, to ensure that it is not
already in use or reserved for use by another Council. This ensures that duplication of road
names is avoided (for such reasons as public safety, as it ensures clarity for emergency
services).
Names approved for addition to the ‘List of Approved but Unallocated Road Names’ will
remain there until they are either allocated to a road or removed as the result of a review of
the list.
From time to time a road name may no longer need to be used as two or more roads may
be joined into one road or a road may be permanently closed. In both of these cases, the
road name(s) may be included back on the list for potential reallocation, usually for a new
or renamed road in the same general area.
5.4 Review of the List
The Regulatory Committee will be given a report once a year that provides a copy of the
current list and a reminder that Councillors can suggest new names, at any time, to City
Information.
The Chair of the Regulatory Committee and one other Councillor can also decide to remove
any of the names. A reason for removing a name would be if it had been on the list for
many years, and appeared unlikely to be used in the foreseeable future or if the name was
no longer deemed appropriate for use as a road name.
6 Road Name Signs
The guidelines for road naming signs are outlined in a separate document held by Council’s
Roading Operations business unit.
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Part A: Decision-Making Framework for Allocating a Road Name
1.
Steps in the Decision-Making Framework
The following process describes the decision-making framework (outlined in Diagram 1) for
allocating a name to a new or previously unnamed road.
Step 1 Unnamed road identified
City Information will usually be informed of an unnamed road by ECBU, once they are
approached by the developer for a resource consent, or by the developer directly.
Step 2 Consultation
City Information will consider if there is an appropriate name for the road, taking into
account input simultaneously from Council’s manawhenua partners, the road’s developer,
and Council’s community boards, as appropriate.
Council’s Manawhenua Partners
City Information will consult with manawhenua if:
°
the road is on or near a Maori heritage precinct, site or track as outlined in the Council’s
District Plan, or
°
Council staff have reason to believe the area surrounding the road may be of significance
to iwi, or
°
the proposed name for the road is likely to be significant to manawhenua.
If the area is of significance to iwi, City Information will seek input from the Wellington
Tenths Trust and Te Runanga o Toa Rangatira Inc on the significance of the area. The
manawhenua will be requested to identify an appropriate name for the road. Written
justification of significance will be requested if Council does not currently hold this
information.
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The Developer
The developer may wish to:
°
suggest a name off Council’s ‘List of Approved but Unallocated Names’ (the process for
allocating a road name is likely to be much quicker if the name has already been
approved by Council), or
°
recommend a new name that has not already been approved. In doing this, the
developer may wish to consult with people who are connected to the local area, such as:
-
Local historians
-
Local community groups
-
Community Boards (Makara/Ohariu and Tawa) in their respective areas
-
Members of the public.
Council’s Community Boards
City Information will consult with the appropriate community board if a road name is being
allocated to a road within the community board’s boundary. The community board might
wish to suggest an appropriate name for the road.
Timeframe
Should Council’s manawhenua partners and the developer wish to suggest a name, they will
be asked to provide details within two weeks of the request for suggestions.
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See “Nga Waahi Taonga O Te Whanganui a Tara” published by the Council’s District Plan Team, which provides
an inventory of the information currently held on Maori sites.
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Step 3 Wellington Regional Council check name
Names will be given to WRC to check against the lists they hold of all road names currently
used and reserved for use by Councils throughout the Wellington region.
WRC will recommend that the name be declined if it is:
°
the same as one already in use or reserved for use by another Council
°
already in use and only the road type is different (for example, Huia Road might exist and
the suggested name is Huia Crescent).
Step 4 Name assessed
Officers determine the appropriateness of the suggested name (or names) against the style
guide and approval criteria (outlined in sections 2 and 3 of this decision-making
framework).
Step 5 Correctly spelt names
Officers will check that the name is spelt correctly.
If the name is a Maori name, but not one chosen by the iwi, then the name will be checked
through a Maori language service to ensure that it is not offensive to manawhenua and
Maori and is spelt and interpreted correctly.
A Maori name suggested by the manawhenua under Step 2 will be deemed to be spelt and
interpreted correctly.
Step 6 Choosing the most appropriate name
If more than one name is suggested through consultation with manawhenua and the
developer, City Information will determine the most appropriate name based on the
guidelines provided in section 4 of this decision-making framework.
Where both a non-Maori and a Maori name have been suggested, a joint non-Maori/Maori
name will not generally be considered. This is because road naming signs need to be easily
read by a driver who is travelling at the given speed for an area. A joint name may result in
a road sign being unclear or confusing.
Step 7 Report given to two Councillors
City Information will write a report for the Chair of the Regulatory Committee and the local
ward Councillors providing a recommendation on the most appropriate name for the road.
Where more than one name is suggested, City Information will provide information on the
alternative names and give the reasons for recommending one name over the others.
If a developer does not agree with City Information’s recommendation, that information will
be included in the report. The developer will be informed that they may lodge a written
objection which will be forwarded with City Information’s recommendation to the
Councillors.
Compelling reasons why City Information might not recommend a suggested name could
include:
°
the name either duplicates or sounds similar to a road name already allocated in either
Wellington City or the Wellington region
°
the name is the same as that of a park or suburb in another part of the city
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°
the name is offensive
°
the name would be more appropriately allocated in another area of Wellington
°
the name has been reserved for use by another Council within the Wellington Region
°
WRC recommends that the name should not be used.
All recommendations will be based on one officer from City Information recommending the
name and two other officers agreeing to it.
Step 8 Referred to Regulatory Committee
If the two Councillors are unable to decide if the name is appropriate, it will be referred to
the Regulatory Committee for consideration.
Step 9 Name allocated
If the Councillors (or committee, if appropriate) approve the name, City Information will
allocate it by informing WRC, Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) and the Electoral Office
of the new name.
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2.
Style Guide for Names
To ensure a consistent standard of road naming, the following style guide should be applied:
1. Possessive forms will not be used.
2. Words should be spelt correctly. (Note: Where an incorrect name has become
established by local usage the Council may in its discretion retain the incorrect form.
See Part B: Renaming an Existing Road for the occasions when an incorrectly spelt road
name can be renamed.)
3. Diacritical marks such as macrons will not be used, to ensure the clarity of signs is
maximised.
4. Full names will only be used where the name is of a reasonable length and the first
name needs to be used to correctly identify the individual being commemorated. Full
names that are longer than 15 letters (including the space between the names, but not
including the “road type”) will not usually be considered. In these instances,
consideration will be given to using only the surname.
5. In general the “road type” of a road will reflect the public/private nature of a road or the
geography of the area. For example, a private right of way might be called a “Way”.
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3.
Approval Criteria
All recommended road names must meet the following approval criteria:
1. The name is not considered to be in poor taste or likely to cause offence.
2. The name is not difficult to pronounce and/or cannot be misheard or misread to be the
same as a current road name in Wellington city.
3. The name is not already being used elsewhere in the city; for example, for a road, park
or suburb. However, if a park has the same name and it adjoins the road, then the
name may be used.
4. The name has significant local content or meaning. The name should reflect one of the
following:
A. Traditional or Appropriate Maori Name
The traditional Maori name in an area that is recognised, or believed to be, a Maori
heritage precinct, site or track, by the Council’s manawhenua partners.
B. An Established Theme
If a naming “theme” is already established in a suburb, the names for that suburb
should remain consistent with the theme.
C. Historical Person or Event
The name of a notable person or event from early history should ideally have a local
association with the area. At the very least, the name should have a Wellington
association. For example, they could be settlers or early notable people or events.
Naming after persons living or recently deceased should generally be avoided.
D. Significant feature
It is appropriate to name a road after a significant feature in the area (for example,
geographical feature, landscape, flora, or fauna). Naming after features which do not
exist in the area should be avoided (for example, naming after native trees or plants
that are not evident in the area, or views that cannot be identified).
E. Personal name for special service
This can be for conservation, sport, community service or other sphere of activity with
local association which can be duly recognised. Naming after persons living or recently
deceased should generally be avoided.
F. Published name in any work
If the area has a local/popular use name that has been used in a published work and the
work is considered as authoritative by Council, then that name may be appropriate for
the road.
However, the name will not be considered to be official by virtue of it being published.
G. Cultural Significance other than Maori
If the area is significant to a culture other than Maori, written evidence of the
significance must be provided.
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4.
Weighting the Names
4.1
Areas of Significance to Maori and Thematic names
As outlined in sections 5.1.2 and 5.1.3 of these procedures, two main considerations for
naming are:
°
whether or not the area surrounding the road is recognised as a Maori heritage precinct,
site or track (criterion A on the previous page), or
°
if the new road is placed within an area with a predominant naming theme (criterion B on
the previous page).
Should either of these considerations apply, the recommended name will usually be the one
that is respectively either chosen by the manawhenua or is the best fit with the theme.
Where both of these considerations apply, City Information will use the weighted criteria
below to provide a recommendation to the Chair of the Regulatory Committee and the local
ward Councillors for decision. If the Councillors are unable to decide which name would be
most appropriate, a report may be forwarded to the Regulatory Committee for the
committee to make the final decision.
4.2
Other Roads
When more than one name is suggested for a road, and the road does not fit into either
criterion A or B, then City Information will compare the names against each other using the
weighting framework in the below table. The weighting reflects the relative importance of
the criteria and enables names to be ranked in order of merit, with the highest scored being
the highest ranked.
Table 1: Weighting of Criteria
Criterion
Weighting
C. Historical Person or Event *
Medium 2
D. Significant feature
Medium 2
E. Personal name for special service *
Low
1
F. Published name in any work
Low
1
G. Cultural Significance
High
3
Score
*Note that there may be more then one name suggested. If so the officer
responsible will need to make an assessment on the relative merits of each
name under the same criterion with regard to the following:
-
extent of local knowledge about person or event
-
contribution to area of interest.
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Diagram 1: Decision-Making Framework for Allocating a Name to a Road
(Where the name is not already on the 'approved but unallocated' list)
One name
suggested
STEP 4
Name assessed through
• the style guide
• the approval criteria.
STEP 9
Name allocated.
More than
one name
suggested
STEP 6
Names put through
weighting table.
STEP 7
Report given to the Chair of the Regulatory
Committee and the local ward Councillors for
consideration.
STEP 5
Ensure the name is spelt correctly. If the name
is a Maori name,* check the spelling with a
Maori language service.
STEP 1
City Information (CI) requested to name a road.
STEP 2
CI identifies an appropriate name and consults
with Council’s manawhenua partners, the
developer, and the local community board as
appropriate.
STEP 3
Name checked with Wellington Regional
Council.
*This does not include Maori
names suggested by iwi under
step 2. These names shall be
considered correct.
Name not
approved
Name
approved
STEP 8
Referred to Regulatory
Committee for
consideration.
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Part B: Process for Renaming an Existing Road
The following process describes the decision-making framework for renaming a road
(outlined in Diagram 2).
1.
Reasons to Rename a Road
Appropriate reasons for renaming a road would be:
°
the name is duplicated in another suburb of Wellington or within the Wellington region
°
two or more roads have been joined
°
a current road is significantly realigned to the extent that a new name would be
appropriate
°
two or more roads follow each other and it is not clear where the road changes its name
°
the name has been incorrectly spelt
°
the road is commonly known by a different name.
It is not, however, Council’s aim to rename all existing roads where one of these reasons
applies. Changing a name can be very disruptive for residents who may have lived in the
road for many years and businesses, which may have used the name in publications and
advertising. However, all requests for renaming will be given due consideration.
2.
The Process for Renaming a Road
Road renaming requires a Special Order procedure to be undertaken.
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The full process
should proceed as follows:
Step 1 Request to rename a road
Either a request to change a road name is received or Council initiates the process to
change a name. Requests from outside of Council must provide information and
background as to why the road should be renamed and include details on the proposed
name (for example, the history of the name). If officers determine that the request is
inappropriate, no further steps need to be taken.
Step 2 Consultation
Residents and business owners in the road will be consulted on the change. City
Information will write to the residents/business owners requesting their feedback.
Manawhenua will be consulted under step 3.
Step 3 Assess proposed name
City Information assesses the proposed name through the decision-making framework
outlined in Steps 2-6 of the decision-making framework for allocating a road name (Part A
of these procedures). These steps include consulting with the manawhenua and forwarding
the name to WRC for their consideration.
Step 4 Report to Regulatory Committee
City Information prepares a report for the Regulatory Committee, recommending that
Council undertake a Special Order process to change the name of the road.
4
As outlined in Section 315 of the Local Government Act 1974.
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Step 5 Report to Council
If agreed by the Regulatory Committee, the Special Order process is forwarded to Council
for consideration.
Step 6 Public notices
If approved by Council, the road name change is advertised in public notices twice and
copies of the proposed change are circulated to the service centres and libraries for public
consultation. The notices include the advice that oral submissions on the name change may
be made to the Regulatory Committee. The appropriate venue, date, time and contact
person are also to be included.
Step 7 Submissions
Submissions are received and evaluated.
Step 8 Final report to Regulatory Committee
The final report goes to the Regulatory Committee for consideration, including the written
submissions received and the evaluation of the submissions. Oral submitters are also
invited to attend the meeting.
Step 9 Final report to Council
If agreed by the Regulatory Committee, the report is forwarded to Council for consideration.
Step 10 New name allocated
Once final Council approval is received, City Information informs LINZ, the Electoral Office
and WRC of the new name.
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Diagram 2: Process for Renaming an Existing Road
STEP 4
City Information prepares report for the Regulatory
Committee recommending that the Special Order
process be undertaken to change the name.
STEP 10
Name allocated once approved.
STEP 6
Road name change advertised in public notices
twice.
STEP 7
Submissions received and evaluated.
STEP 5
Council considers the Special Order process.
STEP 1
Request made to rename a road.
STEP 2
Consult with residents and business owners in the
street on the proposed renaming.
STEP 3
Assess proposed name through Steps 2-6 of the
decision-making framework for allocating a road
name (including consultation with manawhenua).
STEP 8
Submissions reported to the Regulatory Committee.
STEP 9
Council considers final report.
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Part C: Decision-Making Framework for Adding a Name to the ‘List
of Approved but Unallocated Road Names’
The following process describes the decision-making framework for adding a name to the
‘List of Approved but Unallocated Road Names’ (outlined in Diagram 3).
1.
Steps in the Decision-Making Framework
Step 1 Potential road name identified
Potential road names may be suggested by:
°
members of the public
°
manawhenua
°
Community Boards (Makara/Ohariu and Tawa) for their respective areas
°
local community groups
°
local historians
°
City Councillors
°
Council staff.
Step 2 Name checked through a Maori language service
If the name is a Maori name, and is not a name suggested by the manawhenua, it will be
checked through a Maori language service to ensure that it is not offensive to manawhenua
and Maori and is correctly spelt and interpreted. Names suggested by the manawhenua will
be deemed to be correct.
Step 3 Named checked by the Wellington Regional Council
Every name will be given to WRC to check against lists they hold of all road names currently
used and reserved for use by Councils throughout the Wellington region.
Step 4 Name assessed
City Information will assess the name through the:
°
style guide
°
approval criteria
outlined in Part A of these procedures.
Step 5 Approval sought
City Information will provide a report on the name, including information about the reason
why the name is appropriate for a road, to the Chair of the Regulatory Committee and a
Councillor (to be identified by City Information) for consideration. The Councillor must be a
local ward Councillor if the area where the road name would apply has been identified.
Step 6 Name added to the ‘List of Approved but Unallocated Names’
Once approved, the name can be added to the ‘List of Approved but Unallocated Road
Names’ with the following information:
°
date of approval
°
any caveats on the use of the name (for example, limitations to a particular area)
°
the correct spelling
°
the correct interpretation (if the name is Maori)
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°
reasons why the name is appropriate to be used as a road name.
The list will also show the last date it was forwarded to the Regulatory Committee.
Step 7 Allocating a name from the list
Once the name is on the list, it can be allocated by City Information provided one officer
from the business unit recommends that the name be allocated and two other officers agree
with the recommendation.
However, should City Information suspect that the name may be contentious or the road is
sufficiently prominent to suggest wider consultation would be appropriate, City Information
may request the Chair of the Regulatory Committee and the local ward Councillors to make
the final decision.
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Diagram 3: Decision-Making Framework for Adding a Name to the ‘List of
Approved but Unallocated Road Names’
Potential road name identified.
STEP 1
STEP 6
If approved, the name will be added to the approved ‘List of
Approved but Unallocated Road Names’.
STEP 4
Name assessed through the:
• style guide
• approval criteria
STEP 5
City Information writes report for the Chair of the
Regulatory Committee and a Councillor seeking the
approval of the name.
STEP 2
If the name is a Maori name, check with a Maori language
services that the name is not offensive to iwi and Maori and
is spelt correctly.
STEP 7
The name can be allocated by City Information, provided
one officer makes the recommendation and two officers
agree with the recommendation.
STEP 3
Name checked with Wellington Regional Council.