Reiputa is Simplicity Living's new scheme for 80 Mt Wellington Highway. Photo / Simplicity Living
Reiputa is Simplicity Living's new scheme for 80 Mt Wellington Highway. Photo / Simplicity Living
Rental housing developer/owner Simplicity Living is about to start construction of its biggest project: a $225 million five-block, 297-unit build-to-rent apartment scheme in Mt Wellington with a podium to link the scheme together.
Reiputa [whale tooth ornament] is the new venture where $5 billion KiwiSaver provider Simplicity, headed by SamStubbs, joined high-rise construction experts Shane and Anna Brealey’s NZ Living to form the rental unit development business.
That company will develop one, two and three-bedroom units in the 12-level scheme at 80 Mt Wellington Highway on a site which is a six-minute walk from the nearest railway station.
Reiputa was designed by Brewer Davidson Architects and is on the corner of William Harvey Pl. Earthworks will start soon.
Communal living in the pavilion areas of the planned Reiputa scheme at 80 Mt Wellington Highway. Photo / Simplicity Living
Brealey said today Simplicity Living would develop the Mt Wellington site in blocks ranging from three to 12 storeys.
Plans by NZ Living and Simplicity to create 10,000 new build to rent homes in next decade. (From left): Shane and Anna Brealey of NZ Living, Simplicity chief executive Sam Stubbs and Simplicity chief operating officer Andrew Lance.
The scheme also includes 222 car parks, 297 bicycle parks, 15 visitor bicycle parks and associated loading areas.
Atop tower two, the northern half of that level will be a communal area for the scheme and the southern half will be fitted with a solar panel farm.
“The apartment buildings are positioned around the circumference of the site, with over 8000 square metres of lush native landscaping which provides a communal recreation area for the whole of the development. At the centre of this landscaped oasis is a pavilion which also functions as a communal asset and connects via a network of pedestrian pathways to the access points of the site,” Brealey said today.
The design for Reiputa was subject to a rigorous review by the Auckland Urban Design Panel and the consent process over the course of 10 months.
Reiputa is Simplicity Living's new scheme for 80 Mt Wellington Highway. Photo / Simplicity Living
A pre-application meeting and two Urban Design Panel sessions were held prior to the preparation of this resource consent application.
“Follow-up meetings also took place with the council prior to lodgement of the application, for minor design refinements and engineering discussions. Strong support was provided by the panel for the proposal at the second panel session,” Brealey said.
The proposal was considered within the context of the new National Policy Statement – Urban Development (NPSUD), the policies of which local authorities must implement within the next two to four years. The intent of that is to ensure local authorities are increasing development opportunities in accessible places, Brealey said.
Simplicity Living's new Reiputa, with plans shown from the Mt Wellington Highway. Photo / Simplicity Living
In particular, the proposal aligns one policy which requires buildings heights of at least six storeys within at least a walkable catchment of existing rapid transit stops, Brealey said, citing the Panmure train station, on the edge of city centre zones and existing and planned rapid transit stops.
The proposed maximum 12-storey height generally aligns with this policy to realise as much development capacity as possible and maximise the benefits of intensification, he said.
It is considered that this project completely aligned with the NPSUD by providing for high-quality residential living in close proximity to a range of amenities, including the Panmure transport hub, he said.
Simplicity Living's huge new Mt Wellington apartment project. Photo / Auckland Council
But one Herald reader isn’t pleased about the Mt Wellington scheme. Questions and concerns were being asked and raised within the community, he said.
“Upon inquiring with the council’s customer service, I discovered that a resource consent application was granted for the construction of a substantial 297-unit development,” he said.
A significant number of units within this development do not meet the minimum dwelling size requirements, he complained.
80 Mt Wellington Highway, where Simplicity Living has begun to build this scheme of nearly 300 new rental apartments. Photo / Auckland Council
What has raised particular concern was that the council approved consent through a non-notifying process without commissioner review, the reader complained.
This decision effectively eliminated the opportunity for third-party input, a move that many in the community view as unjust.
The approval process also appears to have given minimal consideration to the potential impact on the Mt Wellington area.
While the council planner has stated there are no significant environmental concerns associated with increased intensity in the future, it is crucial to highlight that such developments exceeding height limits by more than double the size of the building, dominating the skyline, and featuring substandard-sized units were unexpected in this location, the critic says.
Simplicity Living says of Reiputa: “Expected move in late 2025. Calling for registrations of interest mid-2025.”
In another scheme, Simplicity Living shows a vast new development planned for Ascot Ave, Remuera. Images on its website show a series of towers rising in the suburb as rental accommodation.
Anne Gibson has been the Herald’s property editor for 23 years, has won many awards, written books and covered property extensively here and overseas.
