The Christchurch Precedent: Central Government Enforces National Intensification Agenda
In a decision with national implications, the Coalition Government has unequivocally asserted its authority over local planning, establishing a firm precedent that will resonate across every high-growth council in New Zealand. In early June 2025, Minister for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, decisively rejected the majority of Christchurch City Council's proposed alternatives to the national housing density rules, effectively ending the council's multi-year, multi-million-dollar attempt to create a bespoke intensification plan for the city.
The decision relates to the council's Plan Change 14, its response to the National Policy Statement on Urban Development (NPS-UD) and the Medium Density Residential Standards (MDRS). These national directives, introduced with bipartisan support in 2021, mandate greater housing density in major urban centres to address the housing crisis. After initially resisting the national standards in 2022, Christchurch City Council went through a protracted process involving an independent hearings panel. While the council accepted many of the panel's recommendations for greater density in December 2024, it referred 20 points of contention to the Minister, seeking specific carve-outs. Minister Bishop rejected 17 of these.
Key among the rejected council proposals were attempts to mandate lower building heights than the MDRS allows (citing concerns over sunlight access, a campaign that used the slogan "stop daylight robbery"), and to limit high-density development in the key suburban hubs of Riccarton, Linwood, and Hornby. These suburbs, with their significant commercial centres and existing amenities, were identified as having high potential for intensification. The Minister's decision enforces the panel's original recommendations, allowing for building heights of up to 14 metres in commercial centres and enabling significant intensification in walking catchments around shopping centres and transport routes. The Minister did, however, approve some of the council's more strategic suggestions, such as allowing further intensification around designated suburban centres like Barrington in Spreydon.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/563349/kick-in-the-guts-government-knocks-back-most-of-christchurch-council-s-housing-plans
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