[1] During the 1940s, the Manukau County Council proposed that a green belt would be created between Pakuranga and Howick as the areas began to be developed for housing.

[5] The park was the former site of John Mattson's dairy farm, that the Auckland Regional Authority purchased from Neil Housing, in part to develop a bus terminal that was never constructed.

[6] In 1973, a deal was made between the Manukau City Council and the Auckland Regional Authority, where the council agreed to sell the Wiri Bus Depot on Norman Spencer Drive in return for the future sites of the Manukau Sports Bowl and Lloyd Elsmore Park.

[16] Many of the historic buildings of the area are relocated to the village, including those that had been housed at the Emilia Maud Nixon Tainui Garden of Memories in Howick,[17] and the former Mclaughlin homestead, Puhi Nui.

[6] The park was named after the Mayor of Manukau City, Lloyd Elsmore, and the official opening marked the beginning of an eight-day festival, ending with a royal visit by Prince Charles on 3 April 1981.