Claudelands

Claudelands
City:	Hamilton, New Zealand
Island	North Island
Surrounded by:
To the north/north-east:	Fairfield, Hamilton
To the east:	Peachgrove
To the south-east:	Ruakura
To the south/south-west:	Hamilton East, New Zealand
To the west:	Central Hamilton
To the north-west:	Whitiora

Claudelands is a suburb directly to the east of central Hamilton. It is linked to the central city via the twin road and rail Claudelands Bridge and Whitiora Bridge.

Dissected by the East Coast Main Trunk Railway, Claudelands is one of the city's oldest suburbs with a large number of Bay Villas and bungalows dating from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Although later development led to the construction of a large number of incongruous 2 storey blocks of flats, the unique character of the area was deemed worthy of preservation by the Hamilton City Council. To this end, strict rules governing alteration, demolition and new development were introduced.

Claudelands is home to the Claudelands Showgrounds - original site of major agricultural shows and events in Hamilton as well as a trotting and dog racing track. Since passing into council ownership, a large part of it (including the race track) has been converted into a large open park.