Part of the proposed development borders Kerikeri River and Rainbow Falls. Photo: Supplied / Ash Boyd
- A new housing development could add as many as 3000 new homes to Kerikeri.
- The developer says it will fix the town's dire housing affordability problem.
- The council's not convinced, saying the land is flood-prone and not close enough to existing infrastructure.
A proposed housing development in Kerikeri could add as many as 3000 new homes to the Bay of Islands boom town - almost doubling the current 8000-strong population.
The development - if it goes ahead - would be built on farmland between Kerikeri township and the commercial centre of Waipapa.
The land is owned by Stephen Brownlie, owner of Hawke's Bay-based juice company Kiwi Fresh.
Brownlie bought his first block of land on State Highway 10 in 2012, originally planning an orange orchard.
He later bought several adjoining lots and now owns a total of 197ha. About 120ha of that could be developed.
The land is bordered by State Highway 10, Bay of Islands Golf Course, and the Kerikeri River.
Dennis Corbett, Northland representative on the Kiwi Fresh project group, said the development would make homes more affordable in Kerikeri, thanks to the economy of scale of a large, greenfields site.
"One of the keys is we can address affordable housing. It's a major issue in the area at the moment, and we'll be providing somewhere between 2500 to 3000 houses."
Corbett said the development would be built in stages with enough land to meet Kerikeri's needs for the next 30 years.
"It will change the town, but the way it's been planned is that Waipapa will remain the commercial centre, and Kerikeri will keep its village-type atmosphere."
Land within the development, known as Te Pae Waiora, had been set aside for a new school, a supermarket and a hotel.
Corbett, a former Harcourts Far North owner, said the project hinged on the land being rezoned from the current rural production to residential.
Kiwi Fresh had made a submission to the Far North District Council calling for a zoning change in the District Plan.
Corbett said the development would include a range of lot sizes and housing types, possibly including long-term rentals.
"Kerikeri definitely needs to expand. We haven't been able to provide the housing that the market is there for. We've got people travelling from out of town to work here in Kerikeri, because they can't get accommodation, or housing is just not affordable. We also want to address connectivity out onto State Highway 10 and Waipapa Road, and taking a little pressure off Kerikeri Road."
Aerial image showing the location of the proposed development relative to Kerikeri and Waipapa. Photo: Supplied
Previous development in the area had been stymied by flood risk.
But Corbett said that had been addressed by plans for a 120-metre wide spillway, which made use of a natural drainage path, an existing but little known waterfall, and wetlands draining into the Kerikeri River.
Corbett said the spillway would protect the area from a one-in-100-year flood risk.
It could also reduce flooding in Waipapa and along nearby Waitotara Drive, he said.
The spillway proposal is similar to a flood-prevention plan mooted by the Northland Regional Council in 2017, but abandoned after Brownlie appealed it in the Environment Court.
At the time Brownlie said he was keen to help the council reduce flooding but some aspects of the scheme were "wrong from the start".
Another barrier to development around Kerikeri is the limited capacity and reach of the town's sewage treatment plant, which was completed in 2020.
Corbett said during the initial stages of the project, until there was capacity to connect to a council scheme, wastewater would be treated on-site.
The project would also include new connecting roads between Golf View Road, State Highway 10 and Waipapa Road (via Waitotara Drive), as well as a new bridge over Kerikeri River and a network of walkways and cycle paths.
Three new golf holes would be built to replace greens lost to a new access road across golf club land.
Corbett said the "culturally themed" hotel near the golf course would ideally have 130-150 rooms, but hotel developers would not be approached until a decision on zoning had been made.
Meanwhile, the Far North District Council is considering five options for the future expansion of Kerikeri.
The long-awaited Kerikeri-Waipapa Spatial Plan will set out the council's preferred growth areas over the next 30 years, and weighs up the potential ratepayer cost of each option.
Consultation closed on 29 November. The council did not respond to a question about when a decision was expected.
The options for future growth are (A) increased intensification in central Kerikeri and more industry around Waipapa; (B) focusing new development on the southern side of Waipapa Road; (C) the north side of Waipapa Road; (D) along Kerikeri Road, between the town and SH10; (E) the eastern end of Waipapa Rd, near SH10; and (F) the Kiwi Fresh proposal, which the council described as the Kerikeri northwest expansion.
The Brownlie property includes a little-known waterfall on a tributary of the Kerikeri River. Photo: Supplied / Ash Boyd
In its consultation document, the council said option F did not align with its aim of discouraging development in flood-prone areas or away from existing infrastructure.
However, it had been included due to stakeholder feedback and high public interest.
Part of the Kiwi Fresh land was prone to flood hazards, and it was not close to existing wastewater, water or stormwater connections, or to transport infrastructure.
It was also "largely disconnected" from existing urban areas due to river boundaries, the council document stated.
The Kiwi Fresh proposal is unrelated to another major development currently underway on the so-called Bing Property in central Kerikeri.
The 20-hectare property, between the town centre and the Heritage Bypass, is already zoned residential but has been planted with gum trees for the past 90 years.
Felling of the gums began in earnest last month.
The Bing Property is now owned by Turnstone Ltd and developer Jamie Peters.
It is not clear what will replace the trees but an early version of the plan mooted 350 homes, a "lifestyle village" and new commercial development next to the town centre.
Population figures for Kerikeri, now the most populous town in the Far North District, vary widely.
According to Census 2023, urban Kerikeri has a population of 8070.
However, other frequently cited figures include 11,000, if Waipapa is included, or 16,000, if the wider hinterland is counted.
* An information day about the Kiwi Fresh development will be held from 10am to 5pm on 20 February, at the Harcourts office on the corner of Kerikeri Road and Homestead Road.
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