The third spoke in the giant 330-hectare residential township project in Drury East has been referred for fast-track consent.
Oyster Capital’s Waihoehoe Precinct development, which includes 376 residential units and nine residential "super lots" for future development across a 35-hectare site on Waihoehoe Rd, will now head to an expert consenting panel for a decision.
The project comes with indicative construction and development costs of about $240 million and is part of a wider township planned by Oyster, Kiwi Property and Fulton Hogan.
The developments require a change in zoning for residential, commercial and open space use to go ahead.
Rezoning applications for both Fulton Hogan’s 184ha site and Kiwi Property’s 95ha of land were accepted for referral by the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) under the fast-track programme in September.
The development could see an additional 6,000 homes built, of which about 4,000 would be constructed by Kiwi Property. Oyster has had ownership of its sites since 2018.
The projects are being coupled with mass investment into infrastructure by Auckland council, Waka Kotahi NZ Transport and KiwiRail.
Transport projects include electrification of Kiwirail’s Papakura to Pukekohe line at $375m and a $495m new Drury central train station.
Population explosion
Waka Kotahi will spend $655m upgrading SH1 between Papakura and Drury while Auckland Transport is expected to manage a $486m upgrade of roads in Drury/Paerata.
Under the broader Drury-Opāheke plan, the small town could see as many as 22,000 new houses, potentially expanding its population by more than 60,000 people.
The fast-track clearance comes despite Auckland council estimating a $1 billion funding shortfall for roading and stormwater infrastructure.
The firm’s director, Cameron Wilson, said the plan is to package up the Waihoehoe development as a wholesale offering to Fletcher Living, the residential development arm of Fletcher Building.
In an economic assessment of the Waihoehoe project, Property Economics economist Phil Osborne estimated the total impact of the development at $403m over the next 10 years, with the creation of 920 jobs during the three-year construction period.
That's assuming it gets fast-track approval, Osborne said.
Oyster, a specialist greenfields developer, is also currently developing more than 30ha for its 651-home Whenuapai Village project.
