Auckland’s housing intensification: What’s really at stake in Kingsland? - Sally Hughes
Kingsland, known for its vibrant atmosphere and character housing, faces potential risk from proposed high-rise developments.
Minister Chris Bishop argues Special Character Areas (SCA) impede development, but locals say there’s ample land already zoned for growth.
Residents urge protection of Kingsland’s special character areas, highlighting existing development opportunities and market conditions.
Myth-busting Auckland’s plans for 2 million new homes
Is Auckland about to become the new Hong Kong or Manhattan or are people scaremongering about what intensification for the city means?SUPPLIED
Revisions to Auckland Council’s zoning policy plans don’t often work people up into a frenzy, but include “2 million new homes” in the headline, and they take notice.
Over the past couple of weeks, it’s been a controversial issue, with communities divided and opposing sides of the argument accusing the other of scaremongering or destroying the very nature of what Auckland’s about.
David Seymour warns of ‘most dramatic’ zoning for Parnell at Auckland meeting
Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour says high-rise apartments make sense near transport hubs like Mt Eden station – but has warned that pushing 15-storey towers into Parnell risks overwhelming Auckland’s infrastructure.
Speaking at a packed public meeting in Parnell on Friday night, Seymour said Auckland Council’s new housing plan would bring to the suburb some of the “most dramatic” changes anywhere in the city, with swathes of the suburb rezoned for buildings up to 15 storeys.
“That is quite a significant uplift in the height of buildings allowed in suburban Parnell,” he told residents. “It’s probably the most dramatic increase anywhere in Auckland.”
The multi-level problems of housing. The best thing we can do for future generations is to improve the quality of the natural and built environment right now: Rob Campbell.
Rob Campbell Opinion: Some recent public meetings about “densification” have created emotive scenes and conflicting interests about buildings.
This densification is not about Erica Stanford’s work with schools but urban areas, which in this country pretty much means Auckland, getting more multi-level dwellings.
As I understand it, the idea is that rather than extending housing development out into areas on the edge of the city where new infrastructure needs to be developed, it is delivered within the existing city where old infrastructure needs to be replaced.
As part of this densification it gets developed alongside transport links so they get the usage they need to justify their construction. If you sense something circular in this, I do not think you are wrong. It is also based on faulty assumptions.