Cathy Casey: Communities built on good housing

The Auckland City Council has had a long and proud involvement in housing since the early 1900s. It was only three years ago, that the John Banks-led Citizen & Ratepayer Now council ended that involvement by selling the city's pensioner and residential housing portfolio.

In so doing, it became the only council in the Auckland region without a stock of housing. Now, it is one of only a handful of local authorities to have opted out of this important civic responsibility.

Local government is the country's largest not-for-profit provider of rental housing after Housing New Zealand. Wellington and Christchurch provide housing for more than 5000 households.

Why does the Auckland City Council want to provide affordable housing? The simple fact is that there is a vast shortage of it in Auckland. "Affordable" means people have access to suitable housing that costs less than 30 per cent of their gross income.

It is estimated that 23,000 (6 per cent) of households in the region are paying more.

Some 58 per cent of Housing New Zealand's waiting list is in the Auckland region.

Compounding the problem is Auckland's alarming growth rate. Next to Brisbane, it is the fastest-growing city in New Zealand and Australia. Housing solutions need to be found - now and into the future.

Good-quality, affordable housing is an essential component of strong communities. People forced into poor quality or overcrowded housing have poorer physical and mental health.

There is growing research evidence of a link between poor housing and a wide range of ailments for families, including unemployment, low educational achievement, crime and unemployment.

The shortage of affordable housing affects the city in many ways. According to the Employers and Manufacturers Association, the lack of affordable housing has caused huge problems in terms of labour shortages. Some of Auckland's traffic woes also link to housing, because many workers are forced to live on the outskirts of the region and have to travel a long way into the city centre.

In Auckland City this is a formidable challenge as house prices and rental costs continue to boom. The present council was elected to solve pressing issues, such as traffic congestion and the acute shortage of affordable housing, and it is rising to that challenge.

The council aims to follow the approach recommended by the 2003 Auckland Regional Affordable Housing Strategy - that is, that local authorities partner Housing New Zealand, the private sector, community organisations and philanthropic trusts to address housing affordability issues.

There is a strong climate of co-operation between the council and all sectors to make affordable housing a reality. The time is right to make the most of this opportunity and to explore a wide range of solutions.

This exploration will take account of the impact that affordable housing will have on transport, business and communities. Already the council has the benefit of a report written in 2001 by Hill Young Cooper and Tricia Austin, of the University of Auckland, which reviewed possible interventions and mechanisms to increase the affordable housing stock.

It will also examine partnership models that are working effectively elsewhere to see what might work for Auckland City. For example:

* Waitakere City has an industry-led partnership with the private sector, which provides a win-win for business and local government.

* Palmerston North lets part of its property portfolio to a community organisation that has responsibility for administering and placing tenants in the units.

* Queenstown has a voluntary agreement with a developer to dedicate 5 per cent of the total development budget to providing affordable housing.

* Nelson has formed a coalition/trust with third-party community organisations to lobby the Government about housing issues.

The Auckland City Council also intends to work with private and public sector developers to address the barriers to affordable housing developments.

For example, Housing New Zealand, the country's largest provider of affordable housing, is forced to go through the same consent process as small private developers.

Fast-tracking its processes could have a big impact by helping to get desperate families into houses much faster.

The council will also consider financial and other incentives, such as reducing or deferring contributions for affordable housing providers.

Research into affordable housing in Auckland is already under way. A central and local government initiative called Sustainable Cities is developing a region-wide approach.

The Auckland City Council's new budget provides $1.4 million each year for the next three years to look at seed funding for new partnerships in affordable housing, as well as other community initiatives. These budget implications are being considered and will be publicly notified through the annual planning process.

The Government, Housing New Zealand, business and the community have expressed a genuine willingness to help. I look forward to entering into productive partnerships that I am confident will see Mayor Dick Hubbard cutting the ribbon on Auckland's newest housing within this three-year term.

* Dr Cathy Casey chairs the Auckland City Council's community development and equity committee.