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More than 1200 high-risk Auckland properties bought out after the 2023 extreme weather events are now at the centre of what is expected to become one of New Zealand’s largest land acquisition and redevelopment programmes.
Auckland Council says deciding the future use of the storm-affected Category 3 land will take several years, with options ranging from flood resilience projects and parkland expansion to carefully managed redevelopment and sales to neighbouring property owners.
“We are carefully deciding what to do with this storm-affected land, with decisions expected to take years – we do not expect to confirm many in 2026,” Auckland Council said.
It said it is assessing a range of possible long-term uses for storm-affected land, with decisions to balance public safety, housing needs and value for ratepayers.
The council said future uses would depend on whether properties are retained or sold, with options being tested site-by-site under its Future Land Use Policy to ensure land is used effectively while managing ongoing natural hazard risks.
If retained by council, the land could be used for flood resilience and stream management projects, incorporated into neighbouring parks or bush areas, or managed as high-hazard land.
Where land is not retained, options being considered include sales for safe redevelopment, sales with strict conditions to manage risk — such as restricting ground-floor use to storage — or sales to neighbouring property owners as additional backyard space.
“We expect many properties will be needed for flood resilience projects – but confirming this may take years to investigate, from feasibility and design to funding approval,” council said.
Auckland Council said it expects to retain about half of the Category 3 properties, while exploring opportunities to sell other sites for safe uses in an effort to reduce costs to ratepayers.
“In some situations, the land may be suitable for safer redevelopment such as building on a different part of the site, or with new mitigations put in place. Properties in this situation will be sold on the open market with relevant requirements attached, under a transparent process via Auckland Council’s property team.”
In the case of properties that won’t be used for resilience projects, or can’t be carefully developed, the land may be offered to adjacent neighbours to purchase as additional backyard space.
Because of the hazard risk on the land, there will be legal limits on what can be done with the land.
“While decisions for the future of all 1200 Category 3 sites will take some time, we know this uncertainty can be difficult for neighbours, and particularly for shared ownership neighbours,” council said.
“Where Category 3 properties are part of a cross-lease or unit title, council will work with shared owners to resolve its involvement, with each site handled individually. Given the number of properties in this complex situation, it will take time to get to, and work through, each.
“We will continue keeping neighbours informed on the removal of storm-affected homes, including seeking any written consent that may be required from cross-lease owners.”
In the meantime, Auckland Council said a range of temporary uses for storm-affected Category 3 land had already been approved where safe to do so, including planting, movie production, police training, grazing and community activities.
The council said some interim uses could remain in place for several years while long-term flood resilience and redevelopment decisions are worked through.
