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Auckland Council’s policy, planning and development committee has approved proposed changes to Plan Change 120 (PC120) for public notification.
This gives Aucklanders another opportunity to have their say on the region’s housing rules through an additional round of public submissions.
Franklin Ward Councillor Andrew Baker recently shared his views on PC120 – click here for more.
The proposed changes respond to government legislation that reduced Auckland’s minimum housing capacity requirement from around two million homes to a minimum of 1.4 million homes.
The council says the changes continue to meet the government’s mandatory housing requirements, with some additional housing opportunities proposed in places with good access to transport and services, following feedback received from local boards and iwi authorities.
Mayor Wayne Brown says it’s good to get a clear decision that will allow Auckland to move forward.
“The option we’ve gone with is a compromise between those who wanted us to do less and those, like me, who wanted us to do more.
“Eighty-five per cent of properties won’t be affected, but we are going to get intensification where we’ve sunk billions of dollars into better public transport networks and where it makes sense.
“It is fair to say most Aucklanders are sick and tired of talking about intensification and plan changes – our decision delivers a good, balanced outcome and we don’t need the goal posts shifted anymore.”
The proposal retains government-mandated housing requirements within walkable catchments around rapid transit stations, the city centre and metropolitan centres.
Within 10km of the city centre, taller building heights in some of these walkable catchments is still proposed.
Walkable catchments outside 10km of the city centre will generally have building heights reduced to government mandated six storeys.
Additional housing opportunities are retained around town centres based on the access provided to shops, jobs and services in those areas.
Additional housing opportunities are retained along selected frequent bus routes within 10km of the city centre.
Stronger natural hazard rules to better protect people and property by limiting new homes in areas at high risk of floods and other natural hazards.
The proposal removes additional housing around smaller local centres and along most frequent bus routes beyond 10km of the city centre.
Auckland’s wider residential area reverts to the current Auckland Unitary Plan rules, adopted in 2016 with around 85 per cent of Auckland’s urban area remaining unchanged. Housing capacity is not a building target
The current Auckland Unitary Plan is estimated to provide theoretical housing capacity for around 1.2 million homes.
The proposed changes are estimated to provide theoretical housing capacity for between approximately 1.5 million and 1.7 million homes.
Public submissions on the proposed plan are expected to run for four weeks from the end of August.
Anyone can make a submission. Aucklanders are encouraged to read the proposal and have their say through the AK Have Your Say website from late August.
People who have already made a submission are welcome to provide additional feedback on the proposed changes through the additional submissions process.
Their existing submissions will continue to have standing unless withdrawn.
Following the submissions period, an independent hearings panel will consider all submissions, hold public hearings and make recommendations to the council.
The council is expected to make final decisions on Plan Change 120 in mid-2027.
In a statement, Howick Ward Councillor Bo Burns says an amendment she and fellow councillor John Gillon proposed, promoting ‘Option A’ with minor changes, was unsuccessful.
She says she heard from hundreds of people in the Howick ward who asked her to support Option A.
“Councillor John Gillon moved the amendment, and I seconded it, because we believed Option A better reflected the views of our communities while still meeting the Government’s mandatory housing requirements.
“Unfortunately, that amendment was not supported. While Option B does not significantly change much for the Howick area at this stage, it does leave the Independent Hearings Panel with greater scope to focus on and potentially advance the Option B approach.
“I also supported the earlier amendment from councillors Mike Lee and John Watson, which asked the Minister for RMA Reform to pause Plan Change 120 until the wider resource management reforms are completed. That made sense to me.
“This process has already cost approximately $15 million, and there is every possibility Auckland will have to revisit large parts of it again within the next two years.
“That is a huge cost, a huge amount of staff time, and a huge amount of uncertainty for communities.
“I also strongly disagree with the assumption that intensification automatically delivers affordable housing.
“I have seen existing homes sold for around $1.4 million, replaced with multiple new homes, and those new homes then marketed for more than $1.1 million each. That does not look affordable to me.
“I also do not believe rows of homes with little or no grass, limited or no parking and nowhere practical for rubbish and recycling bins represent the healthy Kiwi way of life we want for our children and grandchildren.”
We’ll include more from Andrew Baker regarding his take on this decision in our next print edition.
- Bo Burns is the owner of Times Media, the publisher of the Franklin Times.
