More than 400 people attend a public meeting at the Ngongotahā Hall on January 26 to discuss the Government's plans to build 350 houses in the village. Photo / Andrew Warner
More than 400 people attend a public meeting at the Ngongotahā Hall on January 26 to discuss the Government's plans to build 350 houses in the village. Photo / Andrew Warner
A second public meeting is being called over a planned development in Ngongotahā which will see 350 houses built in the area.
The meeting, to be held on March 15 at the Ngongotahā Hall, will ask authorities pre-prepared specific questions in the hope they will be answered in a public forum.
Ministry of Housing and Urban Development has bought the 15.9ha site at 31 Ngongotahā Rd for an undisclosed sum.
There are plans to build high-density properties that are a mix of single and two-storey homes, with car parks. Homes would be 130sq m to 150sq m and it is estimated it will be for about 1000 people. The first stage would see 196 homes built.
The same site was mooted for a special housing area project in 2018 but was eventually rejected by Housing Minister Megan Woods over flood and congestion fears. That project proposed 190 homes.
The site was also rejected in 2004 as a possible cemetery due to the presence of “sewage sludge”.
The proposed Government housing site at 31 Ngongotahā Rd for 350 new houses. Photo / Andrew Warner
More than 400 people attended the first public meeting on January 26 and heard divided opinions from residents.
Some said the township needed the development to improve infrastructure and ensure decent housing for locals but others were concerned about flooding risks, increased traffic on already congested roads and pressure on the local school with 350 more families moving in.
Watchman Residential director Marcus Jacobson, whose development company has signed the agreement with the ministry, told those at the first public meeting there would be strong interest from buyers and sales were usually done using a ballot system. He gave a verbal assurance everyone in Rotorua would have the opportunity to buy the homes first.
Jacobson said 18 to 20 per cent of the homes would be social housing and about 20 per cent affordable housing with a cap of $475,000. The remainder would be rentals.
The public meetings are organised by Rotorua District Residents and Ratepayers. Reynold Macpherson, who chaired the first meeting, said their working party met on February 1 to document the verbal assurances given at the first meeting, enable public feedback on draft development proposals and monitor what was happening now.
Macpherson said the ministry had asked his group to hold the second meeting to provide public consultation, specifically by hearing planning updates from Jacobson, ministry deputy chief executive Ben Dalton and the contracted engineer James Dufty. The second meeting will also allow follow-up questions from the Ngongotahā community and other stakeholders.
Macpherson said his working group met again on February 22 and had come up with questions it hoped would be answered at the March 15 meeting. The questions have been sent to the ministry, developer, engineer and the Rotorua Lakes Council.
Guy Ngatai talks at a public meeting in Ngongotahā. Photo / Andrew Warner
Ngāti Ngararanui spokesman Guy Ngatai told the Rotorua Daily Post this week he had concerns about the development being fast-tracked when there was real concerns about flood risk.
“There has been an unprecedented natural disaster caused by the very same event that I have serious grave concerns about.”
Ngatai said the “supposed one in 100-year” weather events would happen more regularly and the land being built on needed to be under extreme scrutiny for its suitability to withstand events like the ones seen recently in Auckland and Hawke’s Bay.
He said the second public meeting meant those questions could be asked.
“It’s not something that will spring up overnight, this development will be in stages and will be with us for two to three years.”
He said areas such as social support, infrastructure, police, medical, banking, education and employment would be needed to cater for the extra 1000 people.
“Waiteti Marae will be pivotal in helping whānau reconnect to te ao Māori and tikanga.”
Reynold Macpherson, Rotorua District Residents and Ratepayers, has publicly released questions his working party had asked officials to answer on March 15. Among the questions for the ministry are:
How is the scale of the project justified?
How will 1000 people impact the character of the Ngongotahā Village?
Has Cyclone Gabrielle triggered a policy review of the ministry’s housing strategy and revised plans for 31 Ngongotahā Rd?
What other plans does the ministry have for housing in Ngongotahā?
How will the ministry consult with the community?
Among the questions for the developer are:
How will the presence of wāhitapu and the tapu Waiteti awa be respected in the layout of the site?
How is the proposed scale and profile of housing provisions justified?
How will parking and recreational needs be accommodated at the site?
How will the proposed site be connected to the Ngongotahā village?
How can the proposed public “drop-in” session provide authentic public consultation? Is there a possibility of critical feedback resulting in significant and negotiated change?
Among the questions for the engineer are:
What is the quantified level of flooding risk and potential impact at the site?
What is the quantified level of flood hazard to downstream properties and potential impact?
What flood mitigation has been planned at the site and downstream?
What are the findings and implications of the geo-tech evaluations of the site?
