tahunanui

Suburb 5km south-west of central Nelson. Rocks Road, built by prisoners, opened in the late 1890s to provide easier access to the coastal Tāhunanui flats (access was previously via Bishopdale). In 1899 the Nelson City Council purchased ‘The Sands’ (as the beach was then known) and land behind it to ensure its continued recreational use. Tāhunanui is Nelson’s main beach. Hillsides above Tāhunanui were subdivided for housing in the late 1930s. Stoke and Tāhunanui became popular residential suburbs after the Second World War. Tāhunanui (often shortened to ‘Tāhuna’) became part of Nelson city in 1949.

Meaning of place name
Tāhuna: sandbank or shoal; nui: big.

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