8/10/2019 City Fringe Flyer Issue #62 2014

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E D I T I O N 5 7

2OO4 - 2O14 Celebrating a decade of teamwork & results

AS community unease grows overfast-track Special Housing Areadevelopments across Auckland, localproperty owners are watching withinterest and concern at the likelyimpact on their neighbourhoods.

Two blocks of Housing New Zealandland in Mt Albert one at 33 AsquithAve and the other known as the MtAlbert cluster bordered by Jennings

St, Jersey Ave, Newcastle Tce, NewNorth Rd and Bollard Ave havebeen granted SHA status underthe Housing Accord between theGovernment and Auckland Council.

They are among 80 SHAs across thecity, including St Lukes, Pt Chev, NewWindsor and Sandringham.

The status is designed to encouragedevelopers, including Housing NZ, todeliver new housing quickly to catchup with demand in a fast-growingcity. But the rights of local residentsto have a say and an influenceon developments are seriously

handicapped by the non-notificationclauses of the empoweringlegislation.

As the law stands, a SHA can bedeclared and a development giventhe go-ahead by council plannerswithout any reference to thecommunity.

Height and density rules under thedraft Unitary Plan can be pushedaside with no right of objection byneighbours - if the planners decidethe development is a good one thatmeets the more houses, quicklyimperative of the accord.

The Mt Albert cluster involves apool of several existing HousingNZ sites on which the departmentintends to build a development ofperhaps 50 units. But with no obvioussign yet of any pre-developmentwork, it may be some way off.

Its a different story at AsquithAve. Housing NZ has begun pre-demolition work on the 8093sqm block to get rid of 34 small,dilapidated units built in theearly 1970s and used primarily aspensioner housing.

Full demolition begins in the NewYear and architects have beenappointed to come up with a designfor a new development that will bemuch bigger. No one is saying howbig, but it seems it will certainly be

Darragh and his new brother Liam

Real estate supremo Anne addsdelivery know-how to her CVIF Anne Duncan ever tires of realestate (though thats not going tohappen!), she now has a secondcareer to fall back on. It might be a little late to startwondering about a career change,but Anne has acquired some rawexperience that is as far awayas its possible to get from openhomes and auctions. The mum of three daughtershas just helped to deliver her third

grandchild and the job was alldone in about 15 minutes flat. The excitement began in lateOctober when Anne got the callfrom daughter Helen and husbandOwen that their baby was on theway and off everyone headed toAuckland City Hospital. As Anne and Helen wereushered into a room, Owen

popped back to park the carand pick up a medical file givingHelens progress during thepregnancy. But it wasnt needed. The babywas born before Owen could getback upstairs! The action proper began whenthe midwife momentarily leftthe room and the baby startedmaking its entry quicker than anauctioneers hammer.

The midwife and a doctor wereon hand for the final minute orso and Owen was still on his wayback when he took Annes mobilecall: Your son is born! Mum and baby son Liam abrother to 18-month-old Darragh are doing just fine, and Anne(a teacher in an earlier life) hasadded another skill to her CV.

CONTINUED ON BACK PAGE

much larger than the 40 substantialunits allowed under the draft UnitaryPlans present mixed housing

suburban zoning.

That zoning permits one dwelling to200sq m, with an effective height oftwo storeys. But the rules becomeelastic under the accord; Housing

NZ could seek a resource consent

now at greater density and height

and, if the planners thought the

development had merit, it would be

approved, most likely without local

input or appeal.

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City Fringe FLYER

Merry Christmasfrom the Team

8/10/2019 City Fringe Flyer Issue #62 2014

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8/10/2019 City Fringe Flyer Issue #62 2014

3/3I dont know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody(Bill Cosby)

A chat with

Tony Whyte

What would others say aboutyou? That Im open - to learningand understanding people, theirneeds and requirements. AndIm determined to stick with anissue until it has been resolvedto the satisfaction of all parties.

What brightens your day?Music- I like most popular songs, fromthe eighties through to today.And humour- I like a laugh andit doesnt take much to make mesmile.

One thing that you have learnedabout life and will take to thegrave?That people are capableof anything, both good and evil

Who do you look up to, whoinspires you?Anyone who hasbettered themselves, no matterhow apparently trivial.

Who would you share the dinnertable of your dreams?NelsonMandela, Sachin Tendulkar, PhilCollins.

What would you eat?A widevariety of dishes. From Africa,India, and USA.

My favourite food:French (anycourse); tipple: red wine - pinotnoir or syrah; movie: Silence ofthe Lambs; sports: cricket, rugbyunion and golf.

Tony is a property manager atAnne Duncan Real Estate, andhas been married to Donna (anadministrator at Anne Duncan)for 40 years. Auckland-born froma family of five, Tony has spentmost of his life in Auckland, withassignments in Wellington andBrisbane. He began his working

life as an insurance assessingclerk, and progressed to generalmanager of a large financialservices organisation.

E D I T I O N 5 7City Fringe FLYER

keep going up at the same raterelentlessly, she says. But the demand of a risingpopulation, relatively low interestrates and greater job certainty andstrong economy will all underpin

prices. And, as land is opened up onthe outer parts of the Auckland andapartment developments dominatethe inner-city, the attraction ofhouses on their own sections close tothe CBD will draw constant demand.

As we sit on the edge of summer,all the ingredients are there for acontinued upward trend in Aucklandhouse prices through the New Yearand the rest of 2015. The pace of rises has dipped a littlefrom the surge of 2013, but this yearhas still been very strong, boostedby migration both domestic andinternational low interest rates andmore confidence in the economy. A lack of supply and uncertaintyover the general election result isbehind the lower sales volumesthis year, but prices have held up

well. New rating capital valueshave landed in letterboxes andshow prices in the Anne Duncancatchment From Waterview,Pt Chevalier and New Windsorthrough Mt Albert, Owairaka andSandringham to Kingland are asstrong as anywhere. Mt Albert itself is up 38 per cent onaverage in the three years since thelast CVs were settled. BlockhouseBay (up 46 per cent) and Waterview(up 45 per cent) have been the bigmovers, and not far behind are PtChevalier (up 42 per cent), Kingsland

(up 41 per cent) and Sandringham (up40 per cent). Anne Duncan Real Estate is havingbrilliant results in the auction roomand over 94 per cent of all propertieshave sold under the hammer or inthe marketing period before auction. Anne says the rate of pricerises has slowed a little, but shesconfident 2015 will continue to showimprovement. Over time, as more developmentscome on stream, prices will tendto flatten out because they cant

On top of that, Housing NZ is makingsubmissions under the Unitary Planprocess to get the land re-zoned asmixed housing urban, and that willmake a big development inevitable.

There is no requirement fora developer of a SHA to liaiseor consult with neighbours orthe community. At Asquith Ave,Housing NZ is talking to theAsquith Community Group set up byresidents.

The group, a sub-committee of theMt Albert Residents Association,wanted to meet with the site projectteam and architects to try to have aninfluence on the final shape, but thathas been rejected.

Housing NZ says it has not yetdecided if the development willbe completely state housing, or acombination of state and privately-owned. It expects to reveal, designoptions (which will give height anddensity possibilities) early in 2015. Barrister Paul Cavanagh, QC, toldthe Herald recently that plannersare approving projects fitting a pro-intensification agenda... the deck isstacked against community groups. Anne Duncan, principal of Anne

Duncan Real Estate, agrees. She is astrong supporter of local moves forgreater transparency and stickingby the rules. Everyone else has to abide bythe rules the council makes, so

why should big developers be ableto stride in and have their projectsrubber-stamped when they gobeyond those rules? she says. Itshould be one rule for everyone. There needs to be more regardfor what the local community feelsabout their neighbourhood. It is

just not fair that a developmentexceeding planning rules can beplonked next door to them or downthe road without any right of appealor objection.

If you are interested in the Asquithdevelopment and want to keep intouch with progress, email yourdetails to the community group atasquithaction@gmail.com

FROM FRONT PAGE

WHEN Emer Collins finds anew city to explore, she getsright to the heart of things. Emer, an administrator at AnneDuncan Real Estate from DayOne 10 years ago, is an Irish-Kiwiwhos been living in Auckland for32 years.

She takes regular trips backhome to see her mum andsister south of Dublin, but timehas always been tight with littlechance to travel beyond Ireland. But all thats changing: with

her mums support, Emer andhusband Francis have decided toexplore at least one great city orsight on their forays north.

The first city on the itinerarywas Rome, just a month ago,

and Emer found herself wheremillions of others would love tobe - just a couple of metres fromPope Francis. After applying for tickets,she was allocated a seat forthe Popes weekly flit by thePopemobile through St PetersSquare in Vatican City and, amongthe thousands of tourists and faithdevotees, was in prime position. A selfie wasnt possible butEmer snapped this shot of thePope, who she described as

gracious and humble. She and Francis enjoyed thethree-hour celebration in thesquare a wonderful occasionand the highlight of fourmemorable days in Rome.

Up close with the Pope in Rome