Turning-point for the heavyweights

The sale of the Rio Tinto Alcan block on Marsden Pt will pave the area for industrial development in the area and sale of six titles of land outlined. Photo / Supplied

Whangarei District Council has purchased a 20ha block of land at Marsden Pt for $40 a square metre, removing one of last obstacles for industrial growth in the area.

Jones Lang LaSalle agency manager Nick Hargreaves has sold the 20ha block, which is part of 100ha put on the market by Rio Tinto Alcan.

The sale clears the way for six separate titles of freehold industrial zoned land varying in size from 4 to 47ha, with frontage on to the port highway, to be sold.

The council will use the 20ha it has bought for wastewater disposal. In conjunction with other council wastewater disposal areas, it will provide capacity for the next 10 years or until an ocean outfall is established.

Hargreaves says Rio Tinto Alcan's deal with the council is key to creating the infrastructure for businesses to thrive in the area in a sustainable way. Combined with changes to the council's draft Structure Plan, the area could eventually be home to 42,000 people living and working in the Marsden Pt/Ruakaka districts.

"Until the sale of the Rio Tinto Alcan block, infrastructural issues were holding back development of the area," Hargreaves says.

Three to four years ago the council received a number of development applications for large industrial and residential subdivisions. Whangarei District Council infrastructure and services group manager Simon Weston says despite proposals to upgrade the existing wastewater treatment plant and disposal areas, there would not have been enough capacity for medium-term demand.

"The bigger developers in the area formed the Bream Bay Landowners Association and the council, with the association's support, began a series of studies aimed at obtaining long-term consents for wastewater capacity of up to 24,000 cubic metres per day."

Weston says buying the Rio Tinto Alcan land means the council and association can spend about $45 million on wastewater works, including upgrading the existing plant and utilising adjoining land disposal sites, so the Marsden Pt business and industrial hub can flourish.

There has been another spin-off. Hargreaves says Rio Tinto Alcan has been able to put the rest of its land on the market as a far more enticing subdivision. "There is a refreshed plan, rights of way and wastewater credits known as 'hues' available against a backdrop of council initiatives and strategies to help businesses get up and running."

The land at the Marsden Pt industrial hub is zoned Business 4, the heaviest classification available. "It is one of the few sites in New Zealand where heavy industrial uses are available as of right," says Hargreaves.

"The land will appeal to container and shipping industry businesses, agriculture, timber, dairy, car importation and chemical companies. There is potential for companies to partner with the main primary exporters in the region."

Acknowledging inevitable business expansion pressures, the council has introduced specific District Plan changes aimed at creating a "friendly regulatory environment" for industries wanting to be based in the Ruakaka/Marsden Pt areas.

Paul Dell, the council's environment group manager, says the updated draft Structure Plan identifies large areas of industrial land with a mix of business zoning and protects roads and rail by setting up buffer zones to prevent residential development constraining the port or industrial areas.

"The plan also has room for developing residential land, ensuring a work force is available. A range of residential developments will be allowed, including high-end subdivisions, such as Marsden Cove," says Dell.

The structure plan is expected to be finalised in the next few weeks after which changes will be made to the District Plan.

Hargreaves says the proximity of Rio Tinto Alcan's subdivision to Northport at Marsden Pt, the country's newest and deepest port, is the major drawcard for import/export businesses.

Northport says although the port is used mainly for log exports, the terminal is flexible and can cater for big multipurpose vehicles.

Tauranga and Auckland ports handle the majority of New Zealand's export/import containers, but Hargreaves says as pressure mounts to reduce the impact of Auckland's wharves on the CBD, there will be increased traffic through Northport.

"The deep water port could replicate the Port of Tauranga's success and assist with the region's growth."

Statistics on Northland show employment growth at 22.9 per cent and quarterly mean earnings up 6.1 per cent and 27.5 per cent in the five years to July.

Significant businesses in the area contributing to this growth include South Pacific Industrial, one of the major engineering contractors at Marsden Pt oil refinery and Carter Holt Harvey's Laminated Veneer Lumber plant, one of the biggest in the Southern Hemisphere.

Hargreaves says the Marsden Pt area has a good roading system, with a recently completed heavy vehicle highway connecting directly to SH1. There is also a proposed extended rail link to the port from Oakleigh.

Whangarei District Council CEO Mark Simpson says the changes to Ruakaka/Marsden Pt will "fulfil the vision of linking land use with transport infrastructure at the point where planning takes place. The level of private investment that developers are committing to the area shows their belief in the plans."