On September 19 2022, Property Council submitted to Waka Kotahi (New Zealand Transport Agency) on the Reshaping Streets consultation.
Why this matters to our members
Property Council advocates for opportunities to unlock growth and urban development that meets New Zealand’s social, economic and environmental needs. The Reshaping Streets consultation proposes a suite of legislative and regulatory changes that would redefine the ability of local government entities (as road controlling authorities) to make changes to our city’s streets.
Under the proposals, local government would be empowered to ‘pilot’ significant changes to street layouts and design for up to two years, as an alternative form of public consultation. Amongst other changes, local government would have enhanced abilities to change street layouts, and introduce ‘Traffic Controlling Devices’ and modal filters.
Changes to our city’s streets have a distinct impact on the property sector and as such are of keen interest to Property Council.
Our view
Our submission expressed serious concerns with the proposed timeframes of a two-year street pilot and two-week notice periods for consultation. A balance needs to be set so that a pilot is not long enough to create uncertainty for the property sector, and that a consultation period is not so short that there is no ability to appear before the local council at a public deputation.
Our key recommendation is to amend the proposal for a two-year street pilot to a maximum 12-month timeframe and amend the proposal for a two-week public notification period to a minimum of eight weeks for street pilots. We have also provided recommendations around traffic-controlling devices and modal filters.