Meadowbank residents say that 11 new homes proposed for a former 2-home site is too many
Residents of an upmarket Auckland suburb are the latest to launch a fight over plans for a high-density development on their doorstep.
Housing New Zealand plans to build 11 new state houses in Auckland's Orakei Basin, on land half the size of what it initially planned to develop.
11 homes are proposed for one of the two sites marked in red. Picture / supplied
The battle taken up by Meadowbank residents is not the first, and will not be the last, since the Unitary Plan came into effect last year enabling greater intensification.
The development on Meadowbank's Purewa Rd would add more state houses in an area that has just seen a cluster built on Tahapa Cres and another block being built on Koa St.
A plot of HNZ land, on Puroto St, was originally to be developed together with Purewa Rd to house 12 units.
Plans for the higher-density proposal of 11 units on the Purewa Rd site only, have not yet been finalised and are still awaiting council approval.
However if approved, the development would consist of nine two-bedroom units in three three-storey apartment buildings as well as two two-bedroom duplexes.
Any new plans for the Puroto St site have not been made public at this time.
L-R David Mills. Grant Dickson and Brigid Hoffman Dervan think the proposed development is not in keeping. Picture / Nick Reed
Resident Grant Dickson, who lived behind one of the plots about to be developed, said it was just too many homes in an already tight space.
While he acknowledged intensification was necessary, he felt this was going too far.
"What we want is notification of the resource consent, a review by an urban designer and for HNZ to sell some off privately because they have doubled the social housing numbers in a small area," he said.
Dickson had been fighting the intensification of his neighbourhood for a couple of years and had support from neighbours and the local residents' association.
HNZ general manager asset development Patrick Dougherty said the development of 11 two-bedroom units was about making the best use of government land.
"Housing New Zealand is seeking to make best use of its land and deliver much-needed housing for Auckland, without expanding its existing footprint."
In a letter to residents HNZ explained higher intensification was due to its "demand analysis" and information from the Ministry of Social Development indicating there was a higher need for smaller homes.
Construction on Tahapoa Crescent is indicative of the homes proposed for Purewa Road. Pictured Nick Reed
Matt Lowrie edits the Greater Auckland blog, which campaigned for greater intensification through the Unitary Plan.
He said under the Unitary Plan these types of developments would continue to pop up, and, as long as they fit the plan's parameters, "there's no reason why locals should be able to try and stop it".
"The point of the plan is Auckland needs more homes," he said.
"Auckland is growing, it's going to keep growing, so the alternative is either people can not have homes and squeeze into crowded houses or we have more extensive development on the fringes . . . We need to move on and make sure it comes out well."
There was no reason well-designed new properties could not fit in with the character of older houses on a street.
Lowrie added that the spot was perfect for intensification.
"[It's] right across the road from a train station and a cycleway connecting to the city and Glen Innes is in progress, both of which would give the location excellent connectivity without residents having to drive everywhere," he said.
A drive through the leafy suburb with a median home value of $1.3 million shows an already eclectic mix of homes from brick bungalows to apartment-style buildings.
QV.co.nz's suburb insights indicated 37 per cent of its residents earned in excess of $100,000 while 24 per cent earned between $50,000 to $100,000.
The development is but one of the projects HNZ is carrying out as part of plans, announced by Social Housing Minister Amy Adams last week, to increase the city's housing stock.
These plans would see 26,000 new affordable and market houses built - up to 6000 state houses - within the decade.
In the past fortnight two other private developments, in Takapuna and Mt Albert, have hit headlines as disgruntled residents opposed the influx of homes and people into their neighbourhood.
However, as Property Council chief executive Connal Townsend said after the news of a private developer's plans to build new homes in the central city suburb of Mt Albert; opposition was understandable but likely futile.
He said the Unitary Plan was pro-development, "which is good, because we have a massive shortfall".
The Meadowbank development was on land zoned as mixed housing urban zone which allows for two dwellings of up to three storeys. Any more requires council consent.
