were built at the corner of Margan and Seabrooke Avenues. Due to restrictions on the importation of British goods during the war, the Amalgamated Brick and Pottery began mass-producing crockery for the New Zealand market, growing to become one of the largest brick and ceramics companies in the Southern Hemisphere, known for their Crown Lynn pottery range. The ceramics industry led to widescale immigration of Pasifika New Zealanders to the area during the 1960s and 1970s, many of whom were employed at the Crown Lynn Potteries factories. The port of New Lynn closed for commercial operations in 1948, when a final shipment of bricks and mānuka were transported from the port on the Rahiri. In 1965, LynnMall, the first modern American-style shopping centre in New Zealand was opened in New Lynn. It immediately became a retail hub for Auckland, and influenced the nearby Henderson borough to create a similar mall, the Henderson Square (now known as WestCity Waitakere). In September 1974, New Zealand's first Pizza Hut restaurant opened in New Lynn. In 1978, a new bridge across the Whau River was built along Rata Street, acting as a bypass to divert traffic away from New Lynn and Great North Road. On 17 July 1981, the Jack McCorquindale Community Centre opened in New Lynn, named after a former borough mayor. In 1989, the Amalgamated Brick and Pipe Company (then known as Ceramco) closed down operations. In the same year, New Lynn ceased being an independent borough, merging with other local governments of West Auckland in the local body reforms of 1989 to become a part of the Waitakere City. Urban development In 2010, the New Lynn railway station was redeveloped as a transport hub, with a new station constructed and the existing tracks moved into an underground trench. This was the start of an urban revitalisation project for New Lynn, where the New Lynn town centre was redeveloped as a commercial centre and mid to high desity residential hub. The first stage of the Merchant Quarter, immediately adjacent to the train station, was completed in 2013, and the Merchant Quarter Apartments, one of the tallest buildings in West Auckland, was opened in 2015. As of 2020, New Lynn is the major commercial centre of the Whau local board area, and one of the major commercial hubs of West Auckland. Te Toi Uku: Crown Lynn Clayworks Museum opened in May 2015. On