Public to be consulted over Cranford Basin

The Christchurch City Council has advanced its plan to allow houses to be built in the Cranford Basin, but some councillors have aired concerns about the proposal.

The draft Cranford Basin Regeneration Plan relates to about 125 hectares of rural land on the western side of the upper end of Cranford St.

The council proposes to rezone about 38ha for housing.

Yesterday, the council decided to put the plan out for public comment, but some councillors – Pauline Cotter, Deon Swiggs and Glenn Livingstone – voted against the move.

Head of planning and strategic transport Richard Osborne said the land proposed for housing posed ‘‘geo-technical and hydro-technical challenges’’, but technical reports indicated the issues could be addressed.

Livingstone asked if the work needed to be done when the city had ‘‘plenty of land at the moment‘‘.

Swiggs alluded to reports of an excess of housing in the city.

‘‘I can see the end goal of what we’re trying to achieve here, but at the same time I just struggle this soon after the earthquakes, looking at building back on areas like this, when we’ve got a whole central city that’s got a whole lot of area that needs to be developed,’’ he said.

Swiggs also expressed concerns about stormwater runoff and transport issues.

Councillor David East said the land had been the subject of rezoning attempts for ‘‘years and years and years’’. ‘‘I think this regeneration plan has been very thorough and I believe it’s an opportunity to put this problem behind us and move on,’’ he said.

Councillor Yani Johanson said issues in developing the land could be worked through during the notification process.

‘‘I think the important thing is to hear from people on the merits of this plan and, until we’ve done that, I personally don’t feel in a position to say it’s a bad idea,’’ he said. ‘‘Fundamentally there’s been a huge amount of work done to get to this point.’’

Public comment on the draft plan opens on March 30.