Smaller sections to be considered

PHOTO: CHARLES BAGNALL

Horowhenua District Council may allow perhaps the smallest residential section sizes in the country.

The council has proposed a change to its District Plan that would allow provision for infill lots of 250 square metres on 500-900 square metre sections, permitting two residential dwellings on a residentially zoned property.

This intensive urban property development comes as the council gears up for projected population growth, although the section size has raised some eyebrows when compared with other districts.

Kapiti's minimum infill section size is 450 square metres, except in Otaki where it is 700 square metres, while in Auckland City, perhaps New Zealand's most land-hungry city, the smallest allowable infill section size is 300 square metres.

The proposed changes in Horowhenua will also extend Levin's medium density housing area, which allows for sections of 225 square metres, with provision for larger-scale, 'integrated residential developments' to be assessed in a comprehensive manner.

The proposals follow workshops earlier in the year that council officers held with local surveyors, developers, builders and HDC's resource consents team.

Group manager strategy and development David McCorkindale said since the District Plan was reviewed between 2011 and 2013, there has been a significant change in the level of predicted housing and population growth.

He said it was largely due to new roading projects and the district's affordability, and Horowhenua's resident population would rise above 42,000 people.