loft to an existing three-storey building before in 1897 the company constructed a new much bigger building on reclaimed land with further expansion in the following year. Up until 1920 Port Chalmers was the company’s main repair facility until in that year the company moved its headquarters to Wellington followed by the establishment of its main repair centre in that city. The facilities at Port Chalmers declined in importance until they finally closed in 1975. Between 1920 and 1930 a large number of the Norwegian whaling vessels based at Stewart Island were refurbished by the workshops of the Union Stream Ship Company. The Second World War was a particularly busy period due to repairs being required on vessels damaged by the enemy. Governance Until 1853 public works were undertaken by the Governor of New Zealand and from thereafter by the Provincial Government, but little was spent on local development. In 1855 the town obtained a directly elected representative on the Provincial Government when the council was restructured into eight electable districts of which the town was one. The town obtained its first directly elected local governance when a nine member Town Board was formed in 1860 following the passing of the Port Chalmers and Invercargill Town Board ordinance in 1859. On 9 April 1866 the town became a municipality and then a borough in 1884. The first mayor of the borough was Daniel Rolfe. By 1905 the borough was divided into four wards—High, East, Middle and South. Sir John Thorn (1911–2008) was mayor of Port Chalmers from 1956 for 33 years consecutive years until the borough of Port Chalmers and the whole surrounding district was dissolved and amalgamated into enlarged City of Dunedin in 1989. His service made him the longest serving mayor of New Zealand (as of 2016). Today Port Chalmers elects councillors to the Dunedin City Council as part of the Waikouaiti-Chalmers Ward, and is served by a local Community Board, the Chalmers Community Board. List of mayors Between 1878 and 1982, Port Chalmers had at least 23 mayors. The following is an almost complete list: Culture The creative arts are important to the area's economy; Port Chalmers and the surrounding suburbs of Careys Bay, Deborah Bay, Roseneath and Sawyers Bay have a thriving arts community, and the town is base for those living an alternative lifestyle. Various artists and musicians have lived in Port Chalmers, most notably