Developer Urges Council To Speed Up Planning For Future Housing

Thursday, 23 January 2025, 5:16 pm
Article: David Hill - Local Democracy Reporter

A Rangiora developer is frustrated by the slow speed of long term planning for the region's housing needs.

Bellgrove Rangiora project manager Paul McGowan says there is a good supply of land for housing for now, but he feels the Waimakariri District Council is not moving fast enough to make land available for future development.

The council has delayed its proposed District Plan process, with the new planning document not expected to become operational until later this year.

Meanwhile three proposed housing developments have been included in the Government’s Fast-Track Approvals Act.

Mr McGowan said the council needed to be a bit more proactive.

‘‘If people are moving to the district they need somewhere to live.

‘‘There is a good supply of housing for the next five years, but if there's 400 to 500 sections being sold in a year, you need to be thinking about the next five years.’’

Mr McGowan said stage one of Rangiora’s 1300-section Bellgrove sub-division is selling well, and he is waiting for consents for stages two to five.

Recent legislative changes require 15 sections per hectare to meet affordability criteria.

It means sections in stages two to five will be smaller, averaging 450 square metres.

The Bellgrove sub-division was fast-tracked under Covid-19 legislation and received a $5.7 million grant from Kainga Ora’s Infrastructure Acceleration Fund to provide affordable housing.

Waimakariri Mayor Dan Gordon said he met regularly with developers and real estate agents and understood Mr McGowan’s concerns.

The council has requested an extension to June 30 to complete its District Plan.

‘‘The council wants this resolved so we can continue planning for our district’s future and provide our residents and developers with more certainty.

‘‘However, there is absolutely no sense in rushing something as important as the District Plan.’’

Mr Gordon said the extension will allow staff to consider changes in Government legislation.

Barring any appeals, the District Plan will be in place in advance of meeting the district’s medium and long-term housing needs, he said.

‘‘The National Policy Statement for Urban Development requires councils to have sufficient housing supply to exceed demand over the short, medium and long term.

‘‘Our monitoring shows we well are on track to meet future demand as a high growth district.’’

A recent report commissioned by the council found there is sufficient land available to meet housing needs in the short term.

Land identified in the Greater Christchurch Spatial Plan and the proposed District Plan will more than meet demand over the next 30 years, the report, by consultancy firm Formative Ltd, says.

The district’s population of 70,000 is projected to grow to 100,000 over the next three decades, based on Stats NZ’s high growth scenario.

Based on a formula of 2.6 people per house, nearly 12,000 new houses will be needed.

The proposed District Plan is set to open up more than 330 hectares of land for housing in Rangiora and Kaiapoi, allowing for up to 20,000 new homes.

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.

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