Mayor says DCC must take opportunities for urban renewal

Dunedin (Monday, 11 July 2016) – The Dunedin City Council must take opportunities offered for meaningful urban renewal in South Dunedin and would willingly work with any Government which also saw this as a priority, says Mayor of Dunedin Dave Cull.

"We know there are challenges facing South Dunedin. The quality of housing in the area has long been a concern, there are increasing demands on our infrastructure, and groundwater levels are high and are predicted to rise even further.

"However, the people of South Dunedin are resilient. There is a great opportunity to turn these challenges into opportunities and meaningful urban renewal in the area would give confidence for future public and private investment."

Mr Cull's comments follow the Labour Party's major housing announcement yesterday, in which the rejuvenation of South Dunedin was earmarked as a priority for an incoming Labour government.

"I am very keen to see our council work in partnership with central government to deliver the best housing outcomes for our communities.

"The Labour Party's announcement recognises that local government currently doesn't have the powers and resources to achieve meaningful urban renewal on its own. I note that the National government recently set up Affordable Housing Areas and has mooted Urban Development Authorities as well. It is an initiative whose time has come," he says.

Mr Cull says that aside from improving public infrastructure, improving the standard of the housing stock is one of his key priorities for the South Dunedin community.

"While Dunedin doesn't face the same growth pressures as somewhere like Auckland, it does still have issues with supply due to old and relatively poor housing stock, particularly in areas such as South Dunedin. We have over 18,000 homes in our city not warm or dry enough to keep people healthy and comfortable at reasonable cost.

"Our city has set the ambitious goal of having everyone in Dunedin living in a warm and cosy home by 2025 and the DCC has a number of initiatives in place to help achieve that vision.

However, we won't get there alone.

"I believe specific urban renewal proposals should form a major part of Council's next Long Term Plan and I look forward to working with central government to achieve these," Mr Cull says.

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