Thousands of homes for city
Thousands of new homes are expected to be built in Palmerston North over the next few years, which should help ease the city’s rapidly overheating housing market.
A slew of residential developments is under way and a new influx of housing can’t come soon enough for prospective buyers faced with median house prices hitting all-time highs of $460,000.
City council planner David Murphy said an estimated 4600 new homes were needed in the next decade and the city was on track to meet that.
More than 1140 new residential sections were expected to become available for development in the next two years and a further 2500 sections could open up by 2021, in a potential rezoning on the border of Highbury and Awapuni.
The council was in the final stages of getting consent to subdivide council-owned land in Whakarongo into 115 sections of different sizes.
‘‘All going well, we’ll be able to start construction there this summer,’’ Murphy said.
Parts of the Kikiwhenua residential area to the south-west of the city, which is earmarked for long-term development, are set to be made available early to meet the increased housing demand.
Murphy said that would start soon with a submissions hearing on developing a triangle of land bordered by Pioneer Highway, Te Wanaka Rd and the Mangaone Stream, which could accommodate 200-220 new sections.
Consultations were also about to begin on developing another 940 sections at Aokautere.
After that the council’s focus will switch to rezoning a 2500-section block of land in Kakatangiata for residential use by the end of 2020.
Murphy said the council was working with landowners and private companies towards further development along Napier Rd and Flygers Line, and encouraging infill housing in areas such as Hokowhitu.
One of the city’s biggest housing developments is on the former Massey University Teachers’ College site near the Hokowhitu Lagoon. Wallace Development Company managing director Jonathan Wallace has likened the $130 million project to building an entire new suburb.
Wallace Development plans to put 130 sections on the 10.3-hectare block and construction began in March after years of back and forth to get the land zoned for residential use.
The first 28-section stage, on the north side of the block, is expected to be finished by the end of December, with work on the 50-section second stage scheduled to begin early next year.
Brain Green Property Group project manager Phil Sanson said the first three stages of the group’s ongoing Pacific Drive housing development created more than 200 sections and it was about to open up 63 sections for stage four near Atlantic Drive.
Another 37 sections would be added in stage five, which the developer was waiting for resource consent for and for which the group hoped to begin construction this summer.
The group was also in the initial planning stages of another couple of housing developments in Palmerston North.