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Taking on Auckland's Infrastructure Monopolies

by Matthew Gilligan 29 Jan 26

In 2024, GRA formed a not-for-profit property advocacy group, Subdivision Advocacy NZ (SANZ), with Kirsty Merriman (developer) and Simon Oconner (town planner). We formed this in reaction to some astonishingly concerning behaviours from Auckland Council, Vector, Veolia and Watercare. The most well-known include the surprise..

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We got a good result this month, pushing back on Auckland Council's egregious development contributions charges which were proposed last year.I, along with Kirsty Merriman (developer), Simon O'Connor from Sentinel Planning, and the team at SANZ (www.sanz.nz, which Kirsty and I lead as a non-profit..

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Development Contributions Increases

by Matthew Gilligan 12 Mar 25

Development contributions are proposed to increase in Auckland to frankly non-viable levels from a development perspective, especially for affordable or middle-end houses. The following graphic shows before and after the proposed costs.Auckland Council asserts that development fees have no impact on house prices, claiming that..

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  The Auckland Infrastructure Problem

by Matthew Gilligan 22 Nov 24

•Exorbitant development contributions proposed•Disconnect between Council and developers in Auckland•Red zones emerging for sewer and fresh water making sites non-developable•Abuse of monopolies by local government and utility providers•Concern this will spread across New Zealand to other councilsI have noticed many of our property developer clients..

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Distortion from the AUP

by Matthew Gilligan 18 Jun 17

The new Terrace Housing and Apartment Building (THAB) zone allows for the building of some high-density developments to meet Auckland's starved housing supply. Because of this massive potential density, you can go six-storeys high with no parking, and intensively use the land. This creates an..

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Auckland Unitary Plan Update

by Matthew Gilligan 26 Oct 15

As we move closer to the implementation of the Auckland Unitary Plan, it appears Auckland Council may have to make adjustments to the proposed rules as a result of analysis and community feedback.   One of the main issues Council will have to address is..

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Auckland’s House Price Inflation Problem

by Matthew Gilligan 10 Feb 15

House prices have been increasing in Auckland, and this is a hot topic in the media. It's little wonder prices keep going up when we have prime time TV and the front pages of newspapers pounding us with a message that Auckland has a supply..

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Auckland Unitary Plan and What It Really Means

by Matthew Gilligan 09 Apr 13

The Auckland Council is in the process of drafting Auckland's Unitary Plan. So what is the Unitary Plan and why should we all be interested?   The Unitary Plan is one of the key tools that will be used to formulate the Auckland Plan -..

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