Special housing areas have nothing to do with housing affordability, and Tauranga Mayor Stuart Crosby says he has that from Housing Minister Nick Smith himself.

Stuart was speaking during discussion on the application to turn the Golden Grove Kiwi Holiday Park into a special housing area.

Council has recommended the Golden Grove scheme to the government.

Objectors say the application breaches the city plan in several respects.

Resident Don Sweet objects that the proposal doesn't improve housing affordability, as stated in the Housing Accord, and it doesn't increase the availability of housing land - which is also part of the housing accord policy.

Stuart says Nick Smith told him after signing the accord that he wasn't concerned about housing affordability under the accord, he just wanted more houses built.

'We were pushing for an element of affordability,” says Stuart. 'The Minister said: ‘I'm not interested. I just want more houses. I don't care how big they are, how much they cost, I just want more houses'.”

Don was also critical of the development's 115 children child care facility and café.

The childcare is against council policy because it will not be "ancillary to the residential development", says Don. Many of the 66 residential units are designed for empty nesters.

The child care centre and café also reduce the amount of land in the golden Grove available for residential purposes, and thus they also are against the purpose of the Resource Management Act and the Housing Accord.

The application by the developer SNG Investments No 2 Limited to turn the Golden Grove Kiwi Holiday park into a special housing area will be recommended by the Tauranga City Council to the to the Minister of Housing for approval as a special housing area.

The proposed development will consist of about 66, two and three level townhouses and apartments, as well as the café and childcare facility.

If the special housing area is approved by the minister, the developer will then be able to lodge a qualifying development for the Council to consider under the Resource Management Act and the city plan.

The development application will also have to include detailed information on subjects raised in the objections, including a traffic impact assessment and stormwater management.

The qualifying development lodged with the Council will be assessed and considered on its own merits.

Don says it may be time for the council to work with the community and develop a framework for how the whole area may be developed.

'The time may be right to review the Arataki intensification proposal and get the whole community Involved,” says Don. 'This area of the city is undergoing a rapid social transformation and sometimes a proposal such as this can be the catalyst for a much better outcome overall.”