Empowering Māori landowners through enhanced papakāinga opportunities

Western Bay of Plenty District Council is progressing plans towards enabling tangata whenua to build sustainable, culturally meaningful communities on their ancestral land.

Council’s He Kāinga Tahi – One Home Together (Papakāinga Plan Change 96), is designed to address long-standing barriers to papakāinga development, creating greater opportunities for Māori to build homes and other essential facilities on their whenua.

With a critical housing shortage affecting the District, and particularly impacting Māori communities, papakāinga development presents a unique and culturally aligned solution to address this crisis. By fostering vibrant, connected communities rooted in Te Ao Māori, papakāinga not only provide homes but strengthen whānau connections to the whenua.

"Papakāinga housing is about more than just building homes. It’s about supporting tangata whenua to live, connect, and prosper on their whenua in accordance with their tikanga and aspirations,” says Council’s Environmental Planning Manager, Natalie Rutland.

"The proposed plan change is designed to reduce barriers that we hope will ensure Māori are better placed to develop their land in a way that reflects their aspirations, while also contributing to the wider housing supply across the district."

The proposed changes reflect insights gathered through extensive collaboration and engagement with tangata whenua and key stakeholders and aim to simplify the process for developing papakāinga in the District.

Currently, the rules in the District Plan provide for papakāinga development in our rural zoned areas of the District, with limitations on where and how many houses can be built, as well as infrastructure requirements

"Through this mahi, we’ve been listening and working closely with our Māori communities to ensure the new rules are not just enabling, but empowering," says Natalie.

“Feedback highlighted the need for more flexible rules that support a holistic approach to housing on Māori land, allowing for the development of housing alongside associated community facilities that serve broader whānau needs.”

"We want to create a planning environment where Māori landowners are equipped to create the communities, they envision for themselves and future generations."

The proposed Plan Change 96 aims to reassess whether these requirements are necessary and how the District Plan could be more enabling by:

• Expanding opportunities for papakāinga housing and associated community facility development across other residential type zones.
• Providing more flexibility in housing density, site layouts and infrastructure solutions. Exploring ways to reduce financial contributions, which can be significant barriers to development.

"This is about creating a future where Māori landowners can thrive on their whenua, living according to their cultural values and strengthening their connections to the whenua," says Natalie.

"We’re excited to move forward together and create positive change for the District.”

Join the Kōrero

Online | Wānanga ipurangi

Visit yourplace.westernbay.govt.nz/papakainga to review the proposed changes and submit your feedback.

Hard copy | Pepa mārō

Feedback forms are available at all Western Bay of Plenty Library and Service Centres in Katikati, Te Puke, Ōmokoroa, and Waihī Beach, or at our Barkes Corner office.

Email | Īmēra

Send your feedback to yourplace@westernbay.govt.nz

In Person | Ā kanohi

If you wish to book a 30min slot with someone from council to provide feedback in person please email districtplan@westernbay.govt.nz by 13 November.

Feedback closes 5pm, Thursday 14 November 2024.

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