Resource consent yet to be lodged for 600-home development in Napier

The project site outlined in red just south of Maraenui Park. Photo / Supplied

A project to bring over 600 new homes to a Napier suburb has hit delays.

The iwi-led Riverbend Residential Development was announced in November 2021 and fast-tracked by the Government, as it met criteria for creating jobs and addressing urgent need for affordable housing.

It could see more than 600 homes, including public housing, built across 22ha of land next to Maraenui Park.

However, a resource consent application is yet to be lodged more than a year on from the project being fast-tracked.

Ngāti Kahungunu construction company K3 Kahungunu Property is leading the project and initially hoped to begin building homes as early as 2022.

K3 Kahungunu Property chief executive Aayden Clarke declined to comment on what was happening with the housing project, but said an update would be available soon.

The Ministry of Housing is a partner in the project and purchased land for the development.

The development site near Maraenui on the outskirts of Napier. Photo / Warren Buckland

A Ministry of Housing spokesperson said the project would move ahead ”upon a development agreement for the site being successfully negotiated and agreed”.

The Ministry of Housing did not clarify further why the process was taking so long.

Last year, regional councillor Neil Kirton voiced his concerns about the development being prone to flooding, noting the land was under water for days following the November 2020 flood.

K3 Kahungunu Property said in response to those concerns that it was working with experts to mitigate any flooding issues.

The next stage for the project is lodging a resource consent application with the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA).

“Their application will then be considered by an expert consenting panel,” an EPA spokesperson said.

There is a limited amount of time to lodge that resource consent application as the Covid-19 Recovery (Fast-Track Consenting) Act 2020 repeals on July 8 this year.