Minister approves sweeping upzoning, rejects heritage changes

Housing minister Chris Bishop has announced his decision on the Wellington District Plan, approving a series of amendments to radically upzone most of Wellington, allowing tens of thousands of new townhouses and apartments that were previously illegal to build.

Decisions where Bishop sided with the council

• Adelaide Road will be part of the centre city zone
• The walkable catchment will be 15 minutes
• Smaller character precincts
• The Johnsonville train is a train [“mass rapid transit”]
• Ten-minute walking catchments around all train stations
• No setback requirements for townhouses
• Hay Street, Hania Street and Moir Streets will be zoned for high density

Decisions where Bishop sided with the independent hearings panel:

• Kilbirnie will be zoned for high density
• Every heritage removal is rejected

Other links:

• RMA Minister rejects Wellington council's bid to remove heritage protections from buildings -RNZ
• Wellington Mayor responds to Minister’s District Plan decision - WCC