On 1 May 2026, Property Council submitted on Hamilton City Council’s Financial Contributions Policy 2026.
Why this matters to our members
Under Hamilton City Council’s Financial Contributions Policy, a new charge of $996 per PUD (per unit of demand) is proposed on new growth development in Hamilton to fund Waikato River revitalisation and regeneration efforts.
Our view
Property Council recognises the importance of improving the health of the Waikato River and its catchment for both the region and New Zealand as a whole. However, we do not support recovering these costs from new development through financial contributions. Instead, we support a funding approach where costs are more broadly shared and clearly allocated to those who directly benefit from the investment.
At a high level, Property Council recommended:
- Funding is collected via a general rate, where the cost of river improvements is spread across all beneficiaries;
- A reconciliation/refund mechanism is established to reconcile contributions with the final built form to incentivise efficient outcomes;
- The Policy includes clear reporting provisions, such as annual public reporting on amounts collected, expenditure by project, and remaining balances;
- The Policy recognises exemptions where it can be demonstrated that equivalent infrastructure provision and effect mitigation is achieved; and
- The Policy clearly defines when financial contribution obligations are fixed, including transitional provisions for developments already underway to ensure certainty of costs.