Invitations for expressions of interest (EOI) in the Tāmaki redevelopment reaffirm the Government's commitment to a large-scale transformation of housing in Auckland, Ministers Bill English and Dr Nick Smith say.

The redevelopment of 2500 state-owned houses in the area is being led by the Tāmaki Regeneration Company (TRC), a joint venture between Auckland Council and the Government.

TRC was established in 2012 to lead the Tāmaki Regeneration Programme, which will deliver of 7500 social, affordable and private homes in Auckland over the next 10-15 years.

TRC has today issued an EOI invitation for the first phase of the redevelopment, looking for developers and investors with the capability to deliver on large-scale construction projects.

The Minister Responsible for Housing New Zealand Corporation, Bill English, says this first phase will see about 1000 existing social houses transformed into about 2500 new, mixed-tenure houses.

'The redevelopment of Tāmaki sits alongside other measures in the Government's Comprehensive Housing Plan to speed up housing development in Auckland and other high-growth areas around the country.

'The creation of TRC was in response to opportunities we've found to build more and better houses on large, under-utilised parcels of Crown land, in this case, on Housing New Zealand land.

'Departments across the board are working to identify other opportunities which we will confirm when appropriate,” he says.

Building and Housing Minister, Dr Nick Smith, says the Government is pulling all available levers to get scale developments up and running at pace.

'This Tamaki project is an important part of the Government's housing programme as it is the largest urban redevelopment ever undertaken in New Zealand. It is being supported by changes to the planning rules through the HASHA legislation, Auckland's new Unitary Plan and the Resource Management Act reforms,” he says.

The closing date for submissions is 27 September, with development expected to begin by the end of next year.

Source: Office of Bill English and Nick Smith.