Council acts to get more living in central city

Christchurch City Council is moving to accelerate residential growth in the central city.

The Council is proposing to launch a new programme, called Project 8011, which is aimed at unlocking residential development to help boost the number of people living in the central city from the current 6000 to 20,000 people by 2028.

More housing choices in the central city is one of the goals of Project 8011.

“One of the major goals of the Greater Christchurch Urban Development Strategy has been to create a vibrant, thriving central city, recognising that the central city offers a lot to the surrounding districts as well,” says Mayor Lianne Dalziel says.

“The post-quake environment offered us the opportunity to put the accelerator on this goal. We have seen a lot of post-quake investment in the central city in commercial, office, retail and civic facilities but the missing ingredient is people.

“We need people living in the central city if we want it to be a lively, attractive place around the clock.

“Project 8011 takes its name from one of the central city’s postcodes and from the approximate number of homes we’ll need for 20,000 people, and it proposes measures that will kick things into gear so that within 10 years we can fulfil this goal,’’ the Mayor says.”

A report detailing Project 8011 and how it will work will be considered by the Council’s Strategic Capability Committee next week.

The report provides an outline of Project 8011 and the immediate, three-year work programme. This will help achieve a number of long-term goals for the central city including more people, more choice of housing, liveable neighbourhoods, and encouraging, supporting and accelerating the delivery of the required homes.

“A significant part of the job is building a neighbourhood identity and making higher density living work. In addition we need to fast-track development, and we have some of the tools to do that and will investigate others. We would like to reduce the risk and increase the feasibility of development, and offer support to developers through the entire process,’’ the Mayor says.

In the first three years, Project 8011 proposes to prioritise:

• A Christchurch Development Portal, a central online database of statistics, research and guidance available to developers, purchasers, consultants and the community.
• The maintenance and upkeep of the central city’s amenities and infrastructure.
• Exploring funding opportunities and incentives for development, including new approaches that make use of patient capital, low equity loans, development contribution rebates and NZ Super Fund investment.
• A support and advice service for central city landowners, prospective landowners and developers.
• Marketing the central city as a place to play, stay and live.

“The best results will come in partnership with developers, other agencies, and the residential neighbourhoods that already call the central city home. We’re looking forward to rolling up our sleeves and getting on with the job,” the Mayor says.