In Defence of Kāinga Ora

Given the headlines around the recent findings of the ‘independent’ review of Kāinga Ora by Bill English, you might assume this post will be about social housing, Kāinga Ora’s most prominent role. While that is indeed something that requires defending, I want to talk about the other core purpose of Kāinga Ora – its role as an Urban Development Authority (UDA).…
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Children’s Voices in Auckland’s Future

Recently, the transport consultancy Crank publicly released a report about children’s vision for transport in Auckland. It was produced in 2023 to help shape Auckland Council’s Vehicle Kilometres Travelled (VKT) Reduction Strategy. That got me thinking, and after going back to the recent Long Term Plan Consultation Feedback results, one thing stuck out to me.…
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How Government’s road obsession is ruining Auckland’s transport plans

“TL;DR: The reality is that Central Government’s transport policy and direction makes zero sense for Auckland, and if the draft GPS doesn’t change from its original form, then Auckland will be on a collision course with Wellington.” Auckland’s draft Regional Land Transport Plan (RLTP) 2024 is now out for consultation, with feedback open until 17 June.…
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After much debate, the Auckland Future Fund was approved. So what should it be used for?

On Thursday 17 May, the Mayoral Proposal for Auckland’s Long Term Plan 2024-2034 was passed by Auckland Council, 20 to 1. It is set to be formally adopted by the Governing Body at its June 27th meeting. The entire process took 8 hours, with the vast majority of that time revolving around the only contentious topic of the day: the proposed Auckland Future Fund.…
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On the LTP 2024 Feedback

A few weeks ago, Auckland Council released the results of consultation on the Long Term Plan (LTP) that occurred in March. With almost 28,000 submissions, it received the most feedback of any Auckland LTP. The consultation covered a wide range of topics soliciting feedback on different areas of council funded services and investment, as well as questions around the proposed Future Fund, the North Harbour Stadium and the Port of Auckland.…
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