Wellington District Plan: submission guide!
We need more homes, good ones, close to where we want to be, and quickly please. The District Plan is not a silver bullet but it’s a big limiter! Let’s get it rightererer
It’s all a bit complex and confusing, what’s the value of submitting on this?
Good question. Here’s our take.
As a general rule, as soon as one starts to own a home – especially given how much of one’s life one has mortgaged into it – one has a vested interest in the value of that home staying the same or going up.
So lots of folks with more advantage [like me – Ed] will be feeling the pressure to resist anything that we fear might reduce our property’s value.
Alas, “things to resist” includes plenty of things which in more mature cities everyone understands as value adding, like enabling retail / hospitality / community spaces / entertainment to mix into currently residential-only areas.
And given how much folks who already own property are over-represented in decision-making and influence, including amongst our politicians, Talk Wellington readers can comfortably put in a “slightly more progressive” submission than you might otherwise. You can be confident that there’ll be lots of countervailing conservative forces that’ll push the eventual result back towards the status quo.
Alright I’m going to submit! How?!
All District Plans are HUGE and this one’s no exception. Here’s a “quick snapshot” – genuinely!
I’m undeterred! I’ve got half an hour or more…
Good for you! Go here and you can submit your feedback on individual bits. Open the relevant info sheet and put your 2c in there.
Ok I’m short on time!
You and us both!
We suggest emailing the below: copy and paste into an email and send to planningforgrowth@wcc.govt.nz by 11.59pm (they say 5pm but that’s only for the online submission).
We suggest you tutu the wording so it’s a bit more in your voice.
But all the below are good shoves in the right direction. We’ve taken most of this from the quick-submit provided by the excellent nerds in the backroom behind A City for People, and added our Talk Wellington zhouzh.
- I strongly support enabling the full potential of the Spatial Plan in this District Plan.
- I believe the District Plan must enable a diverse and varied range of housing choices in all residential zones, including papakāinga, co-housing, perimeter block housing, and more.
- I support removing front and side setbacks (required minimum building distance from boundary) and maximum coverage requirements from all residential zones to reduce site fragmentation, make the most of small sections, and allow for bigger and better quality backyards.
- I support the minimum permeable surface requirements, which will ensure good stormwater management and reduce water runoff.
- I support options 1, 2, and 3 of the inclusionary zoning proposals, as these options are sure to increase the supply of affordable and social housing, and I prefer option 3 to option 2 as it provides better flexibility and can raise revenue for social housing provision. I strongly support Wellington City Council expanding our City Housing stock across the city, and using revenue raised from Option 3 towards this.
- I believe the District Plan must have further consistency with the Government’s new Medium Density Residential Standards by applying at least as enabling height-to-boundary standards to 4+ story multi-unit housing.
- I support removing maximum height limits in the City Centre Zone to enable more housing in a compact city centre, and to comply with the National Policy Statement on Urban Development.
- I support the accessibility and Universal Design requirements in the Design Guides and the incentives in the City Outcomes Contribution
- I support easier consenting and density bonuses for accessible and eco-friendly developments
- I support providing incentives for lifts in multi-storey developments
- I support Wellington City Council working with central government to improve accessibility and building performance requirements in the Building Code.
- I believe that we are facing a climate emergency and that 15-minute neighbourhoods should be a key way we support emissions reduction, better quality of life, and community cohesion and resilience.
- Streets need to support what’s between them. I urge Wellington City Council to adapt its Network Operating Framework and work closely with Waka Kotahi to make a more liveability-focussed and climate-focussed road and street network, especially where intensification is happening.
- It is important to have multifunctional community spaces within centres as Climate Action Hubs to support the circular economy, provide space for innovation, education and behaviour change and create a tangible vision of a low carbon future.
- I support circular economy principles being integrated into the district plan so that waste is minimised and designed out of construction projects, and that resource recovery infrastructure is put in place to manage any remaining waste.
- I believe that green spaces can be recreational, food producing, and support biodiversity. Community gardens and green stormwater infrastructure should maximise their value across all these outcomes and the District Plan should support the creation of a sustainable and resilient local food and biodiversity network system in Wellington.
- I support the new bicycle and micro-mobility device parking requirements for commercial and community facilities in the Centres and Mixed Use zones.
That email again: planningforgrowth@wcc.govt.nz
Cutoff is 11.59pm on Tuesday 14th.
Go you good thing! And please share this (and also the cycle network one, closing today too).
The more folks giving our leaders a good shove on this stuff, the better.
Now, reward yourself with this bulldog having a grand time on a skateboard!
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