Hamilton City Council, at the 10 May 2018 Council meeting, approved to send three Special Housing Areas proposals to the Government for final approval.

The three proposals are for at least 1450 homes in north Rotokauri (on the northwest corner of the city’s boundary), 150 homes in Te Rapa and 15 homes near Hamilton Lake.

Special Housing Areas are a short to medium term tool to bring more housing to the market quickly through an accelerated resource consenting process. The Council still needs to invest significantly in a new major growth area to support the development of homes long-term.

The 40% housing affordability goal is looking to align Special Housing Areas with the Government’s future KiwiBuild scheme. Housing affordability can be achieved by building different types and combinations of dwellings which maintain the quality. This could include one or two-bedroom apartments as part of a development to create better long-term solutions for the city and the people who will live in those homes in the future.

The Rotokauri Special Housing Area would bring forward significant housing supply in an area which has been ready for housing development for a while.

The proposed Special Housing Areas in Te Rapa (between Eagle Way and Maui St) and near Hamilton Lake (off Quentin Dr) are both currently zoned as industrial land.

The Special Housing Area process allows for developers who have land, whether or not it’s currently zoned for housing, to put forward a housing proposal and bypass some long re-zoning processes if it meets our policy criteria.  

All three proposals have been through at least one round of community consultation with people who live or own land in the area surrounding the development sites who could potentially be affected.

The three proposals will be sent to the Government for final approval. If they’re approved by the Government, the developers can then submit their resource consents using an accelerated consenting process.

Hamilton’s first Special Housing Area for 80 homes in Hamilton East was approved by the Government in April 2018.

 Here is the process under the Housing Accords and Special Housing Areas Act 2013 :