The Wellington Company keen to develop 28ha site in Paraparaumu

The Wellington Company wants to develop land in the heart of Paraparaumu. Photo / David Haxton

Concept plans for a large-scale mixed-use development project proposed for the heart of Paraparaumu looked “pretty good”, Paraparaumu Community Board chairman Glen Olsen said.

The Wellington Company has bought 28ha of vacant land off Kāpiti Rd and wants to develop it into a mixed-use zone of residential subdivisions, residential aged care, commercial/retail/residential, enhanced wetland, general reserve, and new roads and transport links, including from Kāpiti Rd to Ihakara St, as well as a link to Iver Trask Place. About 1000 homes could be built.

Olsen felt at some stage in the future, the land would be developed by someone, whether the company or not, and based on “the use of it and what we need in Paraparaumu — I’m not against it”.

“I think it looks pretty good.”

He said there wasn’t a lot of detail so far apart from the various zones proposed.

“A lot of people’s questions will be answered in the future when more information comes out.”

Olsen wasn’t aware of timeframes but knew a zoning change had been submitted to Kāpiti Coast District Council.

He said one of the key issues was transport.

Part of the land The Wellington Company is keen to develop. Photo / David Haxton

“Kāpiti Rd, in that area, really does struggle at the moment, so getting transport right through it, and the issues around it, will be very important.

“If the transport can be sorted out into a way that it can relieve the issues we’ve got now around that area, that will be critical to the development and the success of it.”

A linking road from Kāpiti Rd to Ihakara St would be “a big win for the community, because that’s been on the cards for as long as I can remember”.

He understood the council had been working with the company “quite closely” on the roading issue, and believed discussions were “going quite well”.

Olsen expected the developer to “pay for all the infrastructure that is required within the development”.

“That’s pretty standard.

“If the ratepayer isn’t financing that, which they shouldn’t be doing, and they work with the council to do it, then we should be okay.

“It’s just going to be a matter of following the process as we go through the normal consenting process.

“It will be important that the council and the public keep them honest all the way through.”

Olsen said feedback from the public was divided.

“There’s people who recognise a desperate need for housing in the area ... and some who say the housing won’t be affordable.

“I hope there will be some affordable housing in it, and often, with new developments, it can free up existing housing in the area because you’ll get people who might want to move into these new areas, which would release an older property, and that may turn out to be the affordable place.”

On the company’s website, it said the development “will be seeking a Green Communities accreditation and would be Kāpiti’s first 15-minute community”.

“The proposed development concept is to create an exemplar mixed-use town centre through careful planning and place management strategies that will provide certainty of delivery and future-proof opportunities for long-term sustainable growth through land ownership/management and development strategies.”