Dialogue was part of a multi-disciplinary team working with the Council to develop the District Growth Strategy (DGS) Dialogue was responsible for the consultation (including with Tangata Whenua), social inputs, and the write-up of the final report.
The DGS is part of Franklin District Council’s commitment to sustainable development. It seeks to meet local aspirations, expressed through the Vision, Mission and Community Outcomes, within the context of national, regional and local responsibilities and agreements. As the precursor to future district plans, it is designed to ensure that the strategic direction is consistent with the regional policy statements, while reflecting the particular needs and circumstances of the District.
Strategy development was framed first by the need to achieve national goals as the district develops. It is seeks to preserve of the natural character of the coastal environment, wetlands, lakes and rivers and their margins, outstanding natural features and landscapes and historic heritage and protect them from inappropriate subdivision, use, and development; to protect areas of significant indigenous vegetation and significant habitats of indigenous fauna; to maintain and enhance public access to and along the coastal marine area, lakes, and rivers; to respect the relationship of Maori and their culture and traditions with their ancestral lands, water, sites, waahi tapu, and other taonga; and to protect recognised customary activities.
A central theme of regional policies and plans is the containment and intensification of urban development. A wide range of scenarios, with radically differing degrees of concentration of development, were tested to determine which best met the community outcomes in preparing the strategy.
The preferred strategy meets the requirements to contain and intensify urban development and enhance transport networks by concentrating most of the growth within the existing urban boundaries of Pukekohe, Waiuku and Tuakau. At the same time, it meets lifestyle aspirations by providing for a broad range of living environments in appropriate locations, and allows for new development in selected places where there are specific opportunities. These include provision for countryside and coastal living in defined locations, while limiting subdivision elsewhere.
The strategy combines the allocation of growth between settlements with the enhancement of development within them. It sets out where growth should occur and its staging under the three themes of “live”, “work”, and “play”. In doing so it applies principles derived from the New Zealand Urban Design Protocol (to which the Council was an inaugural signatory) with “SMART Growth” and “Liveable Neighbourhoods” concepts to the design of Franklin’s settlements.
The main themes of the settlements strategy are the provision for future needs, including public infrastructure and business land; influencing the type of development to encourage mixed use, mixed densities, housing choice and well defined urban boundaries; and improving standards of design, including pedestrian access, road connections, and aesthetics.
The strategy also identifies a range of district-wide and local actions needed for implementation. These include participation in regional initiatives, joint action with other stakeholders, and local measures including changes to the District Plan. Together the strategy and actions provide a blueprint for the community of Franklin and other infrastructure providers to help guide decisions on future growth and investment in the District over the next 50 years.
