Over the next 25 or 30 years Auckland must squeeze in nearly half a million new citizens into the existing city boundaries or sprawl even further over fertile farmland on the city fringes. The Auckland Council decided that world’s best practice was to stop sprawling out and go up instead.
There was some immediate opposition to high-rise apartments all over the city, but the general consensus seemed to be that with scarcer oil, traffic pollution, environmental concerns, and expensive infrastructure, it was better to earmark sites within the current city limits suited to high-rise apartments or terrace housing.
Thousands of submissions were received, and a group (Auckland 2040) sprang up determined to stop much of the high-rise development especially in seaside suburbs like Takapuna, Mission Bay and St Heliers. There was opposition, too, in Herne Bay where it was assumed the council was ready to approve six or eight storey apartments on Sarsfield and Argyle Streets, blocking sea views for much of Herne Bay waterside, damaging valuable amenity values.
A so-called NIMBY attitude evolved (Not In My Back Yard). For example: some on Grey Lynn heights thought Jervois Road a suitable place for high rise, while some in Herne Bay thought Great North Road an ideal place for population intensification, but both arguably resented the loss of amenity values which would result from huge towers overlooking their homes.
The council seemed to soften its view a bit, declaring that as much as 40% of the increased population would have to live outside the current city limits - some sprawl would be inevitable.
Now one of the real problems with the new Super City has become obvious. Elected councillors no longer run our city. It is being run by bureaucrats, unelected
CCOs (with the misnomer - Council Controlled Organisations) and increasingly, independent commissioners.
The reason this so drastically affects the Unitary Plan is that after submissions had closed, behind the scenes manipulation began. Now these unelected officials have come up with a new set of intensification proposals (known as ‘out of scope’ because nobody asked for them in their submissions).
One of the internationally recognised city planning principles is ‘bottom up planning’, with citizens having an important say in their city’s future development, and not ‘top down planning’, where city fathers make all the decisions, and tell residents and ratepayers what they should have.
This principle ruled initially but the recent interventions by bureaucratic boffins is ruining this democratic process, and taking the decision making out of the hands of local people.
One of the main objections to over intensification is the loss of amenity, with six or eight-storey apartments obscuring views, cutting sun, causing noise and traffic, cutting down trees, changing the whole character of communities particularly those consisting mainly of heritage villas or early bungalows.
People just don’t want that, and it now appears that a majority of elected councillors don’t either.
Aucklanders are calling for their city to be handed back to them. Almost nobody is calling for no intensification - but not jammed in, ensuring future ghettos.
A majority of councillors now appears ready to take back some control from faceless officials. Len Brown has called an emergency meeting for Wednesday 24 February, after the Ponsonby News March deadline to discuss ‘out of scope’ decisions.
Not that this intensification at all costs will help create Len Brown’s ‘The World’s Most Livable City’.
A group of Ponsonby News readers in Grey Lynn are among those distressed by the behind doors machinations of the unelected officials. New high-rise proposals for Richmond Road between the Tongan Church on the corner of Sackville Street and Ray White Realty in the West Lynn shops has shocked David Thomas who lives at 418 Richmond, and his neighbour at 420. A high-rise in front of him would be very detrimental to his quality of life. Likewise new plans for streets full of heritage houses like Fisherton are strongly opposed.
The Grey Lynn Residents’ Association has joined a Unitary Plan petition to tell Auckland Council to withdraw their undemocratic ‘out of scope’ zoning changes.
A final word from David Thomas: “This is about loss of amenity values. How can a city improve its ‘livability’ if a ratepayer loses sun, outlook, privacy, property value and faith in his elected councillors. I seem to have no redress at all.”
At least when we know elected councillors have made decisions we don’t like, we can vote them out. These faceless, unelected officials, who deign to tell us what is best for us, must be reined in, or democracy in Auckland will be the victim. (JOHN ELLIOTT)