Auckland Council is consulting on how intensification should occur across Auckland.
Taken to its extreme the intensification envisaged in Central Government policy will result in irrevocable change to our local neighbourhoods, our way of life, and our city’s heritage. As residents it is imperative that you speak up loudly and let Auckland Council know how important the characteristics of your neighbourhoods are.
Central Government is focusing on intensification of urban areas through the instruments of the National Policy Statement on Urban Development (NPS-UD), and the Medium Density Residential Standards (MDRS) contained in the Resource Management (Enabling Housing Supply and Other Matters) Amendment Act 2021 (Amendment Act).
The unique place of our neighbourhoods is recognised in the Auckland Unitary Plan (AUP), with the zoning of Residential – Single House Zone supplemented by the Historic Heritage and Special Character Areas Overlays. These mechanisms were arrived at following a long and involved process with significant community engagement. The resulting provisions function to protect the beauty and uniqueness of these neighbourhoods as held dear by our people and communities.
The Central Government instruments require Auckland Council to:
Enable greater housing density by permitting buildings of six-storeys or more within at least a ‘walkable catchment’ of rapid transit stops and the edges of city centre and large town centres; and paply new MDRS to allow three dwellings of up to three-storeys on most residential properties without a resource consent, and non-notified resource consents for four or more dwellings or dwellings which do not comply with the standards set out.
Taken at face value, and to their extreme, these intensification requirements could enable and encourage the rezoning and subsequent replacement of a majority of Ponsonby’s, Grey Lynn’s, and Herne Bay’s existing historic heritage villas. As is evidenced by a number of such developments to date such high levels of intensification can have a plethora of other effects, including increased traffic, increased noise, overload on local schools and infrastructure (including water services), and increased demand on local services which address current community needs but would be overwhelmed with unsupported population increase.
The mechanism to ensure that a measured and proper approach to intensification is taken is to rely on the AUP Special Character Overlay. This Overlay would be a ‘qualifying matter’ under the Central Government regulations, which would provide a pathway to exempting such areas from intensification.
There are two stages of consultation underway.
The first stage of consultation closes on Monday 9 May 2022 and deals with the Council’s preliminary response to the six-storey intensification required around city and metropolitan centres and transport hubs. Currently this walkable catchment of 1,200 metres from the city centre, 800 metres around rapid transit stops (including the proposed Auckland Light Rail), and 400 metres from large town centres (Ponsonby Road). This captures many properties in Ponsonby, Grey Lynn, and Herne Bay. Feedback is also sought on Council’s proposal to include identified special character areas as a qualifying matter.
The second stage of consultation runs from 18 August – 15 September 2022 and deals with the detailed intensification changes that will be proposed to the AUP in a plan change, including the MDRS in the Amendment Act and the proposed wide-spread three-storey intensification.
To have your say on these important matters you can make submissions on both stages letting Council know:
a. In relation to Stage 1 - your views on whether our neighbourhoods (or parts of our neighbourhoods) should be considered to be special character areas and therefore exempt from intensification;
b. In relation to Stage 2 – your views on the details that need to be included in the plan change to ensure that any Special Character Overlay areas retain the protections currently afforded by the AUP to villas in the Single House zone with the Historic Heritage and Special Character protection.
There is no doubt that Ponsonby, Grey Lynn, and Herne Bay are special, and unique, and deserve our full consideration and protection from any proposal that would damage their uniqueness. (Nicole B, by email)
More information on the consultation and the proposed intensification is available here: https://akhaveyoursay.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/housing