The impact of traffic generated by a childcare centre emerged as the dominant issue in the hearing to consider granting consent for a 69-unit village development in Tauranga.
The application by SNG Investments Ltd for the former Golden Grove Holiday Park site in Omanu was made under the Housing Accords and Special Housing Areas Act.
Consultant planner Richard Coles, acting for SNG, said the legislation was established to fast-track housing development projects to meet the housing shortfall in New Zealand's key growth areas.
However, including a childcare centre in the development, particularly because the Act was about remedying housing shortages, reared its head in the hearing taken by independent commissioner David Hill.
Mr Hill asked consultant architect Graham Price about the rationale of including a childcare centre within the development. Mr Price responded that it was not a gated community. And because the building was for small children, the scale was quite different to other buildings.
Mr Coles said the Act allowed developments that were predominantly residential to have retail and mixed-use components, provided the non-residential use was "ancillary".
Residents who objected to aspects of the development, particularly the impact of traffic from the childcare centre on surrounding streets, questioned how it could possibly be ancillary.
The owner of a neighbouring property, Carla Forster, said it was highly unlikely that any of the residents would have young children. The development was not particularly child-friendly, and it was too expensive for young families to afford.
The childcare centre would significantly contribute to parking and traffic issues, she said.
However, she and husband Jon Hume said they appreciated the developer's decision on February 1 to change the application in response to their submission.
The changes centred on reducing the scale of the childcare care centre from 115 children to 85 children to reduce traffic effects and to modify the design of a two-storey building, so it complied with council setback and overshadowing rules.
Mr Hume said there were seven childcare centres within a 1km radius of Paterson St that bordered the development. "Haven't we got enough?", he asked.
The couple estimated 75 per cent of traffic generated by the childcare centre would leave via Paterson St and then link into Girven Rd, creating increased traffic flows on Girven Rd.
He said the 349 vehicles a day generated by the childcare was conservative because it was based on 85 children. It assumed the children would stay all day whereas if a child stayed half a day, traffic volumes could double.
And with the childcare accounting for 76 per cent of traffic movements at peak times, Mr Hume warned it would be chaos from manoeuvres outside the childcare and everyone moving in and out from Paterson St at the same time.
Transportation engineer Bruce Harrison said the 2.3 per cent increase in traffic on Girven Rd would be minimal given existing flows. The impact on Paterson St would also be minimal.
Mr Coles agreed with the council planner's overall findings that consent could be granted because the environmental effects were acceptable and it was consistent with the purpose of the Act. The effects would be no more than minor.
Mr Hill said the key word was whether the childcare centre was ancillary. "I am going to have to think about that."
He was told that the application to make the 1ha site a Special Housing Area included the Minister being informed that the site included a childcare centre.
Mr Hill reserved his decision.