About 10,000 properties in Auckland are at a high risk of coastal erosion. Photo / Alex Burton
Beachfront properties in several of Auckland’s most expensive suburbs are being slapped with new rules restricting development because of the risk of coastal erosion.
The Eastern Bays suburbs of Kohimarama, Mission Bay and St Heliers, plus Browns Bay on the North Shore, are the areas most impacted, senior council manager Phill Reid said.
Auckland Council’s new plan is predominantly focused on accommodating two million new homes over the coming decades, but it also introduces stricter regulations for areas prone to natural hazards such as flooding and coastal erosion.
About 12,000 properties most at risk from natural hazards are being “downzoned”, making new developments on them harder or not permitted at all. Of the properties, 2000 are in flood plans and 10,000 are subject to coastal erosion.
Reid said he did not expect the new rules to significantly affect the value of beachfront properties, noting residents would still be able to live in their homes, though with greater limitations on what could be done with the land.
He said many properties would be downzoned from mixed housing urban to single-house zoning, but in areas where this has already occurred, land values have not declined sharply.
Using Remuera as an example, Reid said while zoning varies across the suburb, it is not a major driver of property valuation. Zoning is just one factor, but not dominant, he said.
Deputy Mayor Desley Simpson, councillor for Ōrākei, which includes the Eastern Bay, said the council had worked on downzoning properties subject to hazards but it has been legally impossible to introduce changes until now.
“Many members of my community have shared concerns with me when they see more development in areas they know regularly flood. These controls will try to prevent that,” she said.
Reid said under the new plan, anyone seeking resource consent to build on flood-prone or erosion-prone land must first complete a risk assessment. This assessment categorises the site’s risk level as significant, potentially tolerable, or acceptable.
“The goal is to encourage people to adjust their designs before submitting their resource consent applications,” he said.
“They make those choices, revise their plans, and lower the risk from significant to something like potentially tolerable, which increases their chances of approval.”
Reid gave the example of a homeowner planning a large extension on a flood plain. If the risk assessment identified the project as having a “significant” level of risk and the homeowner was unwilling to modify the design, the proposal would be classified as a non-complying activity.
In that case, the resource consent application would likely be declined, he said.
Reid said the new consenting process would target the “worst of the worst” 12,000 high-risk properties, along with other sites located in natural hazard zones across Auckland.
He said the council was confident many properties outside that core group could be made safer through reasonable design changes, reducing risk to an “acceptable” level.
The aim is to build greater resilience and reduce exposure to hazards, he said.
Lyall Carter, chairman of West Auckland is Flooding (WAIF), a group formed to support residents in finding fair and sustainable solutions after the 2023 floods, said careful consultation with property owners was important before implementing any changes.
“I’d hate to see a homeowner’s property value significantly impacted without proper consultation or clear communication from the council,” he said. “People deserve to have their voices heard, while also ensuring public safety.”
Carter said these are major changes affecting thousands of residents living on floodplains, and simply posting updates online or sending letters isn’t enough.
“There needs to be genuine, thorough engagement with communities. There are a lot of fish hooks in this for people, and the last thing we want is for homeowners to be surprised. It requires real listening from the council to affected homeowners.”
Simpson said people will be given the chance to have a say on the new rules.
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