NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Govt instructs Auckland Council to allow buildings at least 15 storeys near key train stations

Bernard Orsman
By Bernard Orsman
Auckland Reporter·NZ Herald·
25 Jun, 2025 01:39 AM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Developers will be able to build apartment blocks of at least 15 storeys near key Auckland train stations including Maungawhau/Mount Eden. Photo / Michael Craig

Developers will be able to build apartment blocks of at least 15 storeys near key Auckland train stations including Maungawhau/Mount Eden. Photo / Michael Craig

The Government has instructed Auckland Council to allow apartment buildings of at least 15 storeys near key train stations as the City Rail Link (CRL) nears completion.

Housing Minister Chris Bishop and Auckland Minister Simeon Brown today said the Government would require Auckland to allow even greater housing and development around CRL stations, “ensuring that Auckland takes economic advantage of this transformational investment in the city”.

“CRL is a massive multibillion-dollar investment for the Government and Auckland Council,” Bishop said.

“It’s important that we get bang for buck by maximising the opportunities for economic growth and increased productivity that the CRL will bring when it opens next year.”

The Government recently announced it and the council had reached an agreement to free up more land for housing, particularly around stations that will benefit from the CRL investment.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The Resource Management (Consenting and Other Matters) Amendment Bill currently required Auckland to allow for greater density around the key stations of Maungawhau (Mount Eden), Kingsland and Morningside, Bishop said.

Maungawhau/Mount Eden CRL station under construction in August 2022. Photo / Michael Craig
Maungawhau/Mount Eden CRL station under construction in August 2022. Photo / Michael Craig

“The bill currently provides that Auckland Council must enable within a walkable distance from these stations heights and densities reflective of the higher demand for housing and business in these areas, and at a minimum, no less than six storeys.”

However, the Government had decided these requirements, “while a step forward, don’t go far enough”.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

It was therefore moving an amendment to the bill to:

  • Extend the requirement to enable heights and densities reflective of the demand for housing and business to two additional stations: Mt Albert and Baldwin Ave.
  • Require upzoning allowing buildings of at least 15 storeys high around the stations of Maungawhau (Mount Eden), Kingsland and Morningside.
  • Require upzoning allowing buildings of at least 10 storeys high around Mt Albert and Baldwin Ave stations.

Brown said both Mt Albert and Baldwin stations were “ripe for development”, sitting close to Unitec’s campus and Mt Albert’s popular shops and cafes.

“Increasing development capacity in the area will allow for more commuters and more students to live close to the stations, adding vibrancy to these suburbs.

“The Government is determined to fix our housing crisis and a key step toward that is unlocking housing capacity in Auckland.”

Mayor Wayne Brown said the CRL was a more than $5 billion investment in Auckland’s continued growth.

“Enabling greater housing intensification along this corridor will help us maximise the benefits of this investment and provide more homes in a city geared up for growth.”

“Once this law is passed, we can get on with intensification. We’ve now fixed the city centre and rapid transport corridors, and I look forward to working with the Government to make sure we deliver growth in the right places for the rest of the region,” the mayor said.

Mt Albert MP Helen White said Labour supported increasing density, and it made sense to ensure it happened around transport routes.

“I’m committed to advocating for more abundant and high-quality homes to tackle the housing crisis.

“It’s on the Government to demonstrate that their announcement is achievable, and the minister should table his amendment now so that it is fairly debated on behalf of the Mt Albert electorate,” White said.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

This month, the Government and the Auckland Council agreed to the upzoning of land close to the CRL with “building heights of at least six storeys”.

The Government has given the council until October 10 to finalise a plan enabling upzoning around the train stations and other parts of the city.

Last month, the council met a request from the Government to increase building heights in the central city.

LJ Hooker head of network Campbell Dunoon said the Government’s commitment to enabling more housing around the City Rail Link was a forward-looking move that would help bring more life back to Auckland’s city centre and better connect people to jobs, education and services.

He said increasing housing density around key transport routes was a practical way to provide housing in locations people wanted to live in, while supporting more sustainable, transit-oriented lifestyles.

But he added a recent LJ Hooker surveyfound 84% of Kiwis still dream of owning a standalone home, outdoor living remained high on the wish list, and most Kiwis still want to own a car.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Auckland has few apartment buildings of 15 storeys or more; most are in the central city. The Civic Administration Building, turned into apartments, is 18 storeys, the Metropolis skyscraper has 40 storeys, and the Pacifica has 57 floors. Construction on another skyscraper, the 56-level, Seascape tower, was paused in August last year.

Sign up to The Daily H, a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

Premium
Auckland

Death on a Remuera street: The tall, ‘harmless’ man with a tragic background

05 Jul 09:16 PM
New Zealand

Noel Edmonds to marry again: British TV star proposes in hot tub in NZ

05 Jul 09:00 PM
New Zealand

French fare leaves sour taste after bakers vanish leaving unpaid bills

05 Jul 08:41 PM

There’s more to Hawai‘i than beaches and buffets – here’s how to see it differently

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Recommended for you
'There's still a lot to do': Road safety concerns despite $47m upgrades
Northern Advocate

'There's still a lot to do': Road safety concerns despite $47m upgrades

06 Jul 12:00 AM
Slow-cooked to perfection: Make a rich and spicy osso buco with red wine
Viva - Food & Drink

Slow-cooked to perfection: Make a rich and spicy osso buco with red wine

06 Jul 12:00 AM
Taradale and Pirate set sail for Hawke's Bay club rugby semis
Hawkes Bay Today

Taradale and Pirate set sail for Hawke's Bay club rugby semis

05 Jul 11:55 PM
'Very cold and shaken': Kayakers found after using phone torch to alert rescuers
Northern Advocate

'Very cold and shaken': Kayakers found after using phone torch to alert rescuers

05 Jul 11:52 PM
26-year-old beats seven finalists to win Young Farmer of the Year
New Zealand

26-year-old beats seven finalists to win Young Farmer of the Year

05 Jul 11:41 PM

Latest from New Zealand

Premium
Death on a Remuera street: The tall, ‘harmless’ man with a tragic background

Death on a Remuera street: The tall, ‘harmless’ man with a tragic background

05 Jul 09:16 PM

Jules Turk, 74, was a common sight on Shore Rd in Remuera, with his spiky, coloured hair.

Noel Edmonds to marry again: British TV star proposes in hot tub in NZ

Noel Edmonds to marry again: British TV star proposes in hot tub in NZ

05 Jul 09:00 PM
French fare leaves sour taste after bakers vanish leaving unpaid bills

French fare leaves sour taste after bakers vanish leaving unpaid bills

05 Jul 08:41 PM
Premium
Businessman loses $11.5k in bank transfer error, wages 5yr legal battle to ID recipient

Businessman loses $11.5k in bank transfer error, wages 5yr legal battle to ID recipient

05 Jul 08:00 PM
From early mornings to easy living
sponsored

From early mornings to easy living

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP
search by queryly Advanced Search