Our submission on Auckland Council’s Plan Change 120

We have published our submission on Auckland Council’s Plan Change 120. Our submission supports provisions enabling greater housing and commercial development around rapid transit stations and town centres, while opposing rules that would unnecessarily constrain development in Auckland's most accessible and well-serviced locations.

Auckland is home to around 40% of New Zealand's infrastructure investment. The planning decisions made through Plan Change 120 will shape how effectively that infrastructure serves Aucklanders for decades to come.

Last month, we published the National Infrastructure Plan that sets out a practical, affordable pathway to deliver the infrastructure New Zealanders need to thrive over the next 30 years. One of the Plan's key recommendations is to set land-use policies to enable maximum efficient use of existing and new infrastructure. The Plan specifically calls for upzoning around key transport corridors.

This is the kind of planning decision that will determine whether Auckland gets the return it needs from billions of dollars of infrastructure investment. For example, the City Rail Link (CRL) is a $5.7 billion public investment. The Commission’s submission argues that to deliver value for money, Auckland's planning rules must enable significantly more people to live and work near CRL stations.

Every home built near a rapid transit station or centre is one that doesn't require new roads, pipes, and public transport infrastructure on the urban fringe. Intensification where infrastructure already exists also helps Council fund growth from growth.

Our submission raises concerns about multiple overlapping planning constraints that have been retained in some areas around rapid transit and centres including lower density zoning, Special Character Area protections and viewshaft controls, and detailed design criteria and rules – that would restrict development capacity in locations otherwise well-served by infrastructure.

We have urged the council to undertake work to better understand the cost-benefit trade-offs of such restrictions on development, including foregone rapid transit ridership and lost development contributions.

The submission also calls for the North West Busway to be treated consistently with other rapid transit corridors, enabling intensification along the route to support the business case for the investment.

We have requested to speak at the Plan Change 120 hearing and have indicated our willingness to participate in expert caucusing.