Under the Resource Management (Consenting and Other System Changes) Amendment Bill, the coalition government is allowing Auckland and Christchurch councils to put in place tailor-made intensification plans as it abolishes the Medium Density Residential Plans (MDRS) for those cities.

Auckland’s plan must enable six-storey housing in mixed-used zones anywhere within a 10-minute walk of the CRL, as well as train and bus stations.

This means kauri villas and bungalows in suburbs such as Mt Eden, Kingsland and Morningside could be replaced by medium-density housing as developers buy up properties in these areas.

RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop says in a year or so, trains will pass through Auckland’s new CRL stations every few minutes and the changes under the bill will ensure the city can fully harness the economic benefits.

After months of negotiation Auckland Council and the government have reached an agreement to free up more land for housing and have a shared vision for the CRL stations to become hubs for public transport, mixed-use development and new housing, he says.

“Successive governments and councils have failed to grasp this opportunity for economic growth in New Zealand’s largest city. This is how modern, growing cities all around the world operate, and now it’s Auckland’s turn.”

Little point in ‘opt out’ provisions for cities

The bill comes after Labour and National agreed in a bipartisan pact to Medium Density Residential Standards (MDRS) as the country’s planning rules. National pulled out of the agreement before the 2023 election, claiming it didn’t give enough flexibility on zoning.

The coalition government then allowed the country’s main cities to opt out of the MDRS if they could quickly put a plan together to provide 30 years of zoned land for housing.

However, because the government is now reforming the Resource Management Act (RMA) and replacing existing planning rules with a new system aimed at speeding up housing and infrastructure development, Bishop says there is little point in keeping the opt-out provisions, which will soon be overtaken by wider reforms.

After a rethink about the practicality of them as Wellington, Tauranga and Hamilton councils progressed plans under the MDRS, the government has withdrawn them for those cities.

Bishop says most city councils have spent years incorporating the MDRS into their city plans and have substantially completed the job, with just Auckland, Christchurch and Waimakariri yet to finish.

“The practical reality is that if councils did vote to ‘opt out’ of the MDRS, they would have to pass a new plan change to do so, and due to the length of time this typically takes under the RMA, by the time this was complete, the Government’s new planning system is expected to be in place.

“Fundamentally, it would have achieved nothing, but cost ratepayers a lot.”

The government has taken the pragmatic view that it would be sensible to remove the ability for councils to opt out of the MDRS and to work on bespoke legislative solutions for Auckland and Christchurch instead, Bishop says.

Auckland’s new plan change

Auckland’s intensification plan change, PC78, had been underway since 2022. Progress has been slow for many reasons, including the Auckland floods.

The intensification plan change process did not allow Auckland to “downzone” certain areas due to natural hazard risk – only to “upzone” them – and the council asked the Government to fix the problem.

Auckland will now be allowed to withdraw its incomplete PC78 plan, which stalled after the Anniversary Weekend floods as the council was not legally permitted to downzone hazard-prone areas. 

Emphasising the Government was determined to unlock housing capacity, Bishop says the council brought forward parts of PC78 relating to the city centre and agreed to process a new plan change by October 10, which will enable housing capacity equal to or greater than that enabled by PC78.

The council has been told to prepare a bespoke housing plan which focuses on significantly upzoning around public transport links. 

Bishop expects the city to select “heights and densities that ensure we make the most of the opportunities offered by this transformational transport project.

“Auckland Council must enable within a walkable distance from these stations heights and densities reflective of the higher demand for housing and business in these areas.

“This requirement goes further than the existing requirements under the NPS-UD (National Policy Statement on Urban Development), and I expect heights and densities that ensure we make the most of the opportunities offered by this transformational transport project.

Bishop says the Government is also considering whether further amendments to the Bill to fully maximise development opportunities around other CRL stations as necessary, and he will have more to say on this soon.

Auckland Minister Simeon Brown says it must grow to fully meet its potential as a world-leading city.

“The one sized-fits-all approach of the MDRS was not appropriate for Auckland.”

The Bill requires more housing density around key public transport corridors - a common sense solution for Auckland,” he says.

Christchurch growth

Christchurch City Council is also allowed to draw-up bespoke intensification plans.

Bishop recently rejected an independent hearings panel’s recommendations limiting density in suburbs, such as Hornby and Riccarton, while imposing a blanket ban on new buildings casting a shadow over neighbours.

The council has not finished implementing is MDRS and NPS-UP plans and it is now able to scrap the MDRS parts of its plan as long as it can allow for 30 years land for housing growth at the same time. It has until December to finalise these plans.

Assessment of that target will be made by Bishop based on advice from officials.

“These decisions will enable a greater level of development in and around Christchurch City’s urban centres, Bishop says.