The Road Map to a Good Supply and Mix of Healthy, Affordable Homes in Queenstown Lakes
Produced by Catalyst and the Queenstown Lakes Affordable Housing Community Work Group, published February 15, 2016:
- Affordable Housing Road Map; Our goal and what people want from affordable housing
- Road Map – two, 10 and 30 year horizons – and policy recommendations
Catalyst Trust held the “Affordable Housing – an Im/Possible Dream?” forum In July 2015, attracting over 200 locals. Economist Shamubeel Eaqub, developer and community housing trustee Peter Southwick, Community Housing Aotearoa CEO Scott Figenshow and urbanist Tommy Honey outlined issues and some solutions before questions and discussion.
At this event, Catalyst called for volunteers for a community working group. In the intervening months, we had around 40 locals from financial, development, planning, infrastructure, building, architectural, landscape and community sectors involved in three brainstorming sessions.
The results were the group’s top five recommendations for local government, central government and the broader community – and a road map identifying what was needed on two, 10 and 30 year horizons to create a good supply and mix of healthy, affordable homes in the Queenstown Lakes, pulled together by Catalyst from input to the workshops and the original forum.
We presented the attached to councillors, planners, local MP Todd Barclay, Queenstown Lakes Community Housing Trust and representatives from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment on February 15, 2016. Good discussion and engagement flowed. Media and public interest has since been high, with queries and response from throughout the country.
Next steps?
The road map and policy recommendations will be going formally to Council at an extraordinary meeting on March 1. Todd Barclay has said he will have discussions with MBIE on possible Central government moves. The report has gone to Local Government New Zealand’s affordable housing workgroup and others involved in looking for solutions across the country.
Catalyst said at the February 15 meeting that it was now passing the mantle over to QLDC as the logical primary agency to create, lobby for and encourage necessary changes. This is the end of Catalyst’s formal part of the process, but with the community work group, we have produced some clear guidelines of what is wanted, where, when and who should be involved. It is likely the group formed will continue to be a community focus group going forward.