Homes for our peopleHe kāinga mō tātau

One of the key pillars of our Council’s long term plan vision 2018/2028 is to provide or facilitate the provision of homes for our people.

From social housing to conventional housing, there is a big need for more housing in the Hastings district that’s tailored to meet the diverse needs of our district.

Warm, affordable housing is a priority for some, for others it’s about freeing up land in a strategic, sensitive way that protects our prime fertile soils while giving people an opportunity to own, or build their own home.

Place-based housing partnerships

In 2019, Hastings became a pilot for the government’s place-based housing initiatives that provide suitable housing solutions for individual communities.

Hastings District Council has partnered with a number of other agencies, organisers and stakeholders to deliver warm, dry and secure housing needed for people and whānau in Hastings.

These partners include: Ngāti Kahungunu, Te Taiwhenua o Heretaunga, Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, Ministry of Social Development, Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities, Te Puni Kōkiri, Hawke's Bay District Health Board and other housing providers.

There is a significant pipeline of work underway to provide a mix of public housing, affordable housing, papakāinga and additional transitional housing.

Greenfield developments

A key aspect of council’s housing strategy is a residential development programme that provides certainty for developers and choice in the housing market, being staged at a rate that balances the cost to council of installing the required infrastructure against market demand.

This is taking place across Flaxmere, Frimley, Havelock North and Te Awanga, and other greenfield areas rezoned residential are going through the development process at Howard St, Parkvale, and Iona and Brookfield Rd in Havelock North.

Inner city living

Providing housing while using urban land in an efficient, sustainable way prompted council to make a variation to the proposed district plan to allow residential activity in the upper floors of buildings in the Hastings central commercial zone.

There are other changes to encourage inner-city living, including a car parking and outdoor living space exemption in the central blocks of the City. People living in inner-city housing will be protected by district plan noise controls and those buildings in heritage areas may be subject to additional heritage protections.

Having people living in the heart of the city will contribute to its vibrancy by supporting commercial activities and services, as well as improve community safety with a 24-hour presence of people in the city.

More information can be found on the Variations to the District Plan page of our website.

Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) accommodation

Council has made changes to the district plan to better provide for seasonal workers accommodation within the district. These changes have been notified and been through a public submission and hearing process under the Resource Management Act.

The change allows for seasonal worker accommodation to be built in the light industrial and general industrial zones at Omahu and Irongate.

These buildings would require a certain level of outdoor open space per resident around them for undertaking recreation activities, comply with noise limits and the buildings would be relocatable to enable industrial use of the site once the accommodation facilities were no longer required.

The variation would also allow for a restricted level of seasonal workers accommodation within the plains production zone.

Limits around this would ensure minimal encroachment on quality growing soils coupled with the requirement that the buildings are relocatable.

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