Pushback against state housing in Hamilton’s south

A city politician has sought assurances Hamilton’s showpiece development in the south won’t include any intensive state housing.

Hamilton City Council staff held an online briefing with elected members yesterday to get feedback on the Peacocke structure plan.

The plan will set the rules for developing the area which one day is expected to be home to 20,000 residents.

Opening up Peacocke for development hasn’t been without controversy as the city council seeks to acquire property rights for 39 properties within the designation footprint.

Some landowners have spoken out against the process, saying they felt pressured to sell land.

Yesterday’s briefing, however, focused on how the city council can best ensure Peacocke is ‘‘an attractive and sustainable community’’, with staff covering issues such as housing density, transport links and green spaces.

Councillor Mark Bunting asked council staff if Ka¯ inga Ora (formerly Housing New Zealand) owned any land in Peacocke.

‘‘I’m not being mischievous at all ... I just don’t want a 75-house development in any of Peacocke, frankly,’’ Bunting said.

Ka¯inga Ora is proposing to build 70 units of two- and threestorey buildings on a 1.9 hectare site off Endeavour Ave in Hamilton’s Flagstaff suburb.

The proposal is part of Ka¯ inga Ora’s push to help ease the city’s housing crisis but has triggered strong pushback from Flagstaff residents. More than 2000 residents have signed a petition by National’s Hamilton East MP, David Bennett, calling for the development to be halted.

In reply to Bunting, council staffer Mark Roberts said he had no knowledge of Ka¯inga Ora owning land in Peacocke.

‘‘That doesn’t necessarily mean they [Ka¯ inga Ora] couldn’t or wouldn’t in the future, does it,’’ Hamilton Mayor Paula Southgate said.

Several elected members, such as Councillor Martin Gallagher and Deputy Mayor Geoff Taylor, called for the city’s urban design panel to have strong input into the design of buildings in Peacocke.