Council drops 'out there' affordable housing plan

"A really out there idea" to put in the district plan rules to make Queenstown Lakes property developers stump up for affordable housing has been dropped.

At a full council meeting in Wānaka today the mayor and councillors voted to withdraw an inclusionary housing variation as recommended by an independent hearing panel.

Before the decision, Councillor Lisa Guy was one of several councillors to thank the staff that she said "gave this a shot".

The policy shake up would have been precedent setting - no other council in the country has attempted to use a district plan in such a way, and Councillor Guy acknowledged this calling the proposed variation "a really out there idea".

But, across the table, Councillor Barry Bruce likened it to a "Robin Hood tax".

He said if implemented it would potentially have resulted "in a neighbour subsidising a neighbour".

In his view, housing affordability is not a new issue in the district - he recalled the challenge of getting on the property ladder himself as an example - and he thinks "it will continue to be a challenge".

The proposed variation would have required most new residential subdivisions and developments to make a contribution of either land or money to the council.

The established and successful Queenstown Lakes Community Housing Trust would have been one recipient of these contributions, and its chief executive Julie Scott earlier this week told Crux she was "deeply disappointed" at the hearing panel's recommendation.

Today, Councillor Guy had a message for Ms Scott and the 1,300 people on the housing trust's waitlist: "I'm really sorry".

Others around the decision making table stressed the district plan variation was just one "tool" available to the council for addressing affordable housing.

In its report, the hearing panel said it would like to see more research by the council into some of these other options, which include generating funding through council rates and further regulation of residential visitor accommodation. 

Councillor Niki Gladding said she wants to see the council "moving as quickly as we possibly can with these other tools".

"It's done; I hate to think how much we've spent on it."

Councillor Gladding was the only vote against notifying the variation two years ago.

Councillor Cody Tucker said affordable housing is "a big, hairy thing to tackle" and made no apology for the council having a go with an ambitious policy shift.

"Failing is trying and trying is awesome," he said.

Deputy mayor Quentin Smith voiced his concern that affordable housing is "probably the greatest challenge in our district" and dropping the variation removed one of the potential levers the council had to pull to tackle it, putting the work of the housing trust at risk too.

The council for will continue with what it has been doing in this space until now - working with developers on a case by case basis to benefit affordable housing.

Read more: 'Groundbreaking' affordable housing plan on chopping block

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