James Kirkpatrick Group plans this office block at 538 Karangahape Rd. Photo / Resource consent application
A developer and investor with $800 million-plus of assets has lodged an appeal with the Environment Court after plans for a $100m Auckland building were rejected for being too large.
James Kirkpatrick Group chief executive and managing director James Kirkpatrick jnr said his business planned to challenge the February 7 decision of Auckland Council independent hearing commissioners.
They rejected a Fearon Hay-designed 11-level mass timber office building at 538 Karangahape Rd, near one of the new City Rail Link railway stations, Karanga-a-Hape.
Kirkpatrick hopes the Environment Court might hear the matter this winter and overturn the original decision so his company can build.
Developers who disagree with consent authority rejections can challenge that, seeking a decision be examined to ascertain whether it was the correct decision based on the law.
Kirkpatrick anticipates the appeal could be heard between May and July but said that depended on the council agreeing to that timeframe.
Plans were suitable, sympathetic and compatible with the built character of the area, would deliver a high-quality building, act as a catalyst for future growth and provide purpose-built offices, the 250-page February 27 appeal said.
“The whole of the decision is appealed,” that said, because it took an overly conservative approach, was inconsistent with sound resource management, did not represent an efficient use of the development of natural resources and was inconsistent with the RMA.
Last month, independent hearing commissioners Janine Bell, Bridget Gilbert and Heike Lutz refused plans, citing submissions from Waitematā Local Board members Alexandra Bonham and Allan Matson.
“The principal concern for the board is the scale of the development,” the commissioners’ report said.
The plans failed to meet tests under the RMA and were contrary to the Auckland Unitary Plan objectives and policies, the commissioners wrote.
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop called that decision “insanity. Total nonsense. RMA reform is critical to making us a wealthier country.”
He challenged the local process.
Kirkpatrick backed Bishop’s criticism of the rejection, referring to the minister’s comments as “rather damning”.
Plan Change 78, which encourages more intensification, was likely to come out in late May anyway, he said.
The commissioners said that in December 2023, an application was lodged to construct and operate a part 10, part 11 level commercial building.
The ground-level spaces are for retail and food and beverage activities, with the upper levels for offices and a two-level basement carpark for 48 vehicles and end-of-trip facilities, servicing, and plant areas.
Demolition of remaining structures on site and extensive earthworks to form the basement levels and foundations were required.
The plans failed to meet tests under the Resource Management Act (RMA) and were contrary to the Auckland Unitary Plan objectives and policies, the commissioners said.
The commissioners noted the plan’s objections and policies included:
“The proposed development incorporates many positive and beneficial elements however these do not outweigh the adverse effects that arise from the proposal,” the commissioners said.
Plans released last June showed the block proposed for the area near the Ponsonby intersection would rise 27m tall from Karangahape Rd, 20m above Gundry St and 15m above Abbey St, with setbacks from podium levels to give visual relief.
Mt Hobson Group said James Kirkpatrick Group had initially applied for a three-level building on the site in 2020 but rising building costs and the National Policy Statement for Urban Design had sparked plans for the much larger structure.
Last year, Kirkpatrick said the building would be New Zealand’s tallest mass timber commercial building with a 6 Greenstar rating.
“We see this as a valuable addition to the Auckland and K Rd streetscape. It is an opportunity to regenerate the Ponsonby end of K Rd with retail and hospitality at street level on K Rd, Gundry St and Abbey St, along with nine levels of office overhead. We hope a development of this scale being consented can alleviate some concerns in the construction industry for future works,” Kirkpatrick said last June.
The group is represented by Douglas Allan and Alex Devine of Ellis Gould in the Environment Court appeal.
Anne Gibson has been the Herald’s property editor for 25 years, written books and covered property extensively here and overseas.