Consultation on Auckland city centre planning provisions

Overview

The Resource Management (Consenting and Other System Changes) Amendment Act 2025 introduced a power under section 360I of the Resource Management Act 1991 for regulations to remove or modify local authority plan provisions that negatively affect economic growth, development capacity or employment. The legislation requires the Minister to investigate the relevant provisions, prepare a public report and consult affected parties before deciding whether to make regulations.

Read more about this regulation-making power.

Read the public consultation factsheet.

Investigation into Auckland city centre planning provisions

The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform has initiated an investigation into specified provisions of the Auckland Unitary Plan that apply in Auckland’s city centre. The investigation concluded that the specified provisions constrain development capacity and that amending them could support additional housing and employment in the city centre, with associated productivity and economic benefits.

The investigation report recommends: 

• enabling unlimited height under the general building-height standard across most of the City Centre Zone, unless another height restriction applies; 
• removing the maximum tower dimension, boundary setback and separation standard and the maximum east-west tower dimension standard; 
• removing building frontage heights and setback from boundaries requirements; 
• removing site-intensity/floor area ratio standards from the Britomart, Central Wharves, Viaduct Harbour and Wynyard precincts; and 
• removing non-contributing sites from the mapped extent of the Karangahape Road Historic Heritage Area. 

New buildings in the City Centre Zone would continue to require resource consent from Auckland Council. Other applicable provisions, including protected viewshafts, sunlight controls, precinct provisions, scheduled heritage protections and relevant resource consent requirements, would continue to apply. 

See the investigation report and supporting assessments.

The Government is now seeking feedback on the recommendations in the investigation report before deciding whether to make regulations to remove or modify the specified provisions of the Auckland Unitary Plan. 

Why we are consulting 

Before deciding whether to make regulations, the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform must consult people and organisations likely to be affected. The consultation is open to the public.  

The Ministry for Cities, Environment, Regions and Transport is undertaking this consultation on behalf of the Minister. Feedback received will inform the Minister’s decision on whether to make regulations.