Hastings and Napier Future Development Strategy

Hastings District Council, Napier City Council, Hawke’s Bay Regional Council and iwi Post-Settlement Groups (Maungaharuru Tangitū Trust, Mana Ahuriri Trust and Tamatea Pōkai Whenua), with input from residents, interest groups and industry, have jointly developed the draft Hastings and Napier Future Development Strategy (FDS).

The draft is now available for public input (from November 23 until 5pm on December 23), following formal decisions by the three councils to accept the draft for public notification.

While the councils agreed on the majority of the plan, there was one site (Riverbend Rd) on which there were differing decisions. A covering note on the draft FDS notes that the divergence will be considered by the independent hearing panel considering submissions to the draft, following the public consultation. You can read that covering note and the draft FDS here.

What is the purpose of our FDS?

The FDS will guide the location of urban, industrial and commercial development in the two districts over the next 30 years. It is a requirement of the Government’s National Policy Statement – Urban Development. The FDS replaces the Hastings and Napier’s long-standing Heretaunga Urban Development Strategy prepared by the councils in 2010 and updated in 2017.

The FDS will ensure development areas are available to meet projected residential and business needs, while protecting the region’s highly productive soils, freshwater and natural environments, and sites and areas of significance to Māori. It also addresses the challenges natural hazards, including the affects posed by climate change, will have on development. The development constraints include flood risk information gathered post-Cyclone Gabrielle (2023). . It will allow us to plan and deliver the necessary infrastructure to support growth.

Land identified for development in the FDS will still need to go through Resource Management Approval and Building Consent processes, which will address issues specific to a site and any mitigations proposed.

It is also of note that all areas included in the plan are private property, so decisions on whether or not to develop those areas will be made by the owners of the properties. The councils will consider the public infrastructure required to enable these developments during their Long-term Plan and Annual Plan deliberations.

Consultation documents

Draft Napier Hastings Future Development Strategy 2024-2054 (PDF | 14 MB)
Summary of Information (PDF | 2.4 MB)
Technical Report (PDF | 5.5 MB)
Appendix 1 - Thematic Constraints Mapping (PDF | 2.7 MB)
Appendix 2 - Summary of feedback from Community Engagement November 2024 (PDF | 727 KB)
Appendix 3 - Refined Growth Areas MCA (PDF | 495 KB)
Appendix 4 - Refined Spatial Scenarios Site Summaries (PDF | 5.2 MB)
Appendix 5 - Housing and Business Capacity Assessment (PDF | 5.4 MB)
Appendix 6 - Transport Assessment (PDF | 5.7 MB)

Supporting documents (8)

Business Land Capacity Assessment (PDF | )
Hastings District Council: Napier-Hastings Future Development Strategy Joint Committee Meeting - 22 July & 23 October 2024 (PDF | )
Housing Development Capacity Assessment 2021 (PDF | )
Napier Hastings FDS Issues and Options Report DRAFT August 2023 (PDF | )
Residential Capacity Assessment Intensification options (PDF | )
Retirement Village Sector Housing Demand Forecasts 2023-2053 (PDF | )
Summary of Feedback from Community Engagement (PDF | )
Transport Assessment (PDF | )

What areas does the FDS cover?

The study area for the preparation of the draft FDS has been the existing urban areas of Napier and Hastings:

Napier
Taradale
Hastings
Havelock North
The surrounding Heretaunga Plains and,
Peripheral areas including Bay View and Whirinaki, Whakatu, Clive, Haumoana and Te Awanga and a number of settlements on the Heretaunga Plains.

Community input

Workshops, a pop-up information shop, presentations, and online survey (October and November 2023) garnered a lot of information from residents, organisations and businesses. A summary of that consultation can be found in the Summary of Feedback from Community Engagement.

That input, as well as technical and geographical information, has been used to develop the Draft Future Development Strategy, which is now available for formal public consultation (from November 23 to December 23, 2024).

To provide your feedback, visit My Voice My Choice.

What is a ‘well-functioning urban environment’?

The Government’s National Policy Statement on Urban Development says that, at a minimum, ‘well-functioning urban environments’ are ones that:

have or enable a variety of homes that meet people’s needs in terms of type of housing, price and location
have a range of locations available for development that meet the needs of businesses
enable Māori to express their cultural traditions
support market competition
have good accessibility between where people live, work, play, access community services, natural places and open spaces; this must include walking, cycling and public transport
support reductions in greenhouse gas emissions
are resilient to the likely current and future effects of climate change.

These standards have guided the development of the draft FDS, including our conversations with our communities and the technical work required to support good decision-making.

Infrastructure rebuilding following Cyclone Gabrielle (roads and bridges etc) has influenced the issues and options and emerging scenarios during the development of the draft FDS. While cyclone recovery, expected to take up to 10 years, is a separate process from the FDS, we need to ensure each process works collaboratively to prevent overlap.

What happens to HPUDS?

Once finalised, the FDS will replace the current Heretaunga Plains Urban Development Strategy (HPUDS) as Napier and Hastings’ key strategic growth strategy. All priority areas under HPUDs were reassessed for appropriateness under the FDS. Given new information, in some cases areas have been removed, while new areas have been added.
The differences between HPUDS and the FDS:

Inclusions:

Ahuriri Station
Riverbend (NC4d only)
Portsmouth Rd
Irongate West (industrial)
Irongate South (industrial

Exclusions:

Wall Rd
Riverslea Rd
Bay View
Tōmoana and Whakatū industrial expansion
Rural and coastal settlements

What is the timing for delivering the FDS?

The FDS is scheduled for completion mid-2025. Following that, the strategy must be reviewed every three years to ensure it takes into account changes in population and business forecasts, changes to the environment, and climate change impacts. The accompanying implementation plan will be reviewed annually.

Who are the ‘FDS Partners’?

The Napier Hastings Future Development Strategy is being prepared by the Future Development Joint Committee, a partnership between the three councils (Hastings, Napier and Hawke’s Bay Regional) and three iwi authorities: Maungaharuru Tangitū Trust, Mana Ahuriri Trust and Tamatea Pōkai Whenua.

How can I provide input on the FDS?

You are strongly encouraged to provide input on all matters in the draft Napier Hasting Future Development Strategy, including the divergence, to inform the decisions that will finalise the plan. You can do so through the following ways:

Online: myvoicemychoice.co.nz
Email: policyteam@hdc.govt.nz with ‘FDS’ in the subject line
Post or drop off: Grab a survey from one of the Hastings or Napier libraries or a council customer service centre (Hastings, Napier or Hawke’s Bay Regional Council) and drop it back there once you’ve filled it in, or mail it to: Hastings District Council, Private Bag 9002, Hastings 4156, Attn: FDS (Note: The HBRC office will close 23 December)

Submissions close 5pm December 23, 2024.

FAQs

Does the FDS change zoning of land?

No. The FDS cannot directly change zoning. However, the Napier and Hastings councils’ future District Plan changes, the Regional Policy Statement, as well as infrastructure investment decisions, must have regard to the FDS. So, the FDS will strongly influence future land zoning decisions.

If land is identified in the FDS, does that mean it will definitely be developed?

No. The FDS does not indicate whether consents (resource and building) can or will be approved, and nor does it imply that there is funding for projects.

Like all developments, proposals on FDS-identified land will still have to go through a resource management process (either Government fast track, Plan Change or regular council-consenting) and will require building consents.

It is also of note that all areas included in the plan are private property, so decisions on whether or not to develop those areas will be made by the owners of the properties.

THE NPS-UD requires HDC, NCC and HBRC to consider the FDS when preparing their Long-Term Plans and Annual Plans – which is when funding decisions on the infrastructure that would service these areas are made.

The FDS will also inform the development of the regional land transport plans.

Have other infrastructure providers been involved?

Yes, infrastructure providers including Waka Kotahi, electricity suppliers and telecommunications companies have been involved in the process, helping evaluate infrastructure opportunities and issues related to the options.