Central Otago's ongoing housing crisis is showing no signs of slowing ahead of a proposed rates rise in 2024.

Mayor Tim Cadogan said a day never went by where he wasn’t confronted with an email or phone call from someone desperate for somewhere to live.

In equal amounts was the correspondence from 'Nimbys', which stands for 'not in my backyard', and comes from people who were concerned developers were going to build a ‘ghetto’ in their neighbourhood.

“My response to them is short and it’s getting a lot shorter,” he said.

People were going to have to accept that intensive development was needed, and the current proposed Plan Change 19 could help enable that, he said. 

“We are going to have to get used to accepting taller houses on smaller sections."

Tim said his sympathies would always lie with the ‘have nots’ rather than the ‘haves,’ because he was a single father once and knew what it was like to be struggling.

Just last week he warned community board members in Alexandra and Teviot to “buckle up” as next year was going to be tough, with rates looking to increase over 20 percent.

New drinking water regulations, old bridges, audits and insurance costs were through the roof, and yet many people moving into the area were still struggling to find anywhere to live.

Predictions show that by 2073 Central Otago could have as many as 83,000 residents, but given the significant increase over the past 10 years it could also be as high as 131,000, he said.

“And, we can’t put them all on 2ha blocks,” Tim said.

He has been in talks with developers of the Simplicity Living programme in Auckland where they have been able to build bulk housing for around $2500/sqm and rent them to those who might never be able to afford their own home.

The key to that model’s success and what could also work here was offering residents a long-term secure, efficient, warm rental property.

It would be up to developers to make that model happen locally and run with it. The other option was that council invested in it themselves, like it had done with the 98 elderly people’s housing units.

Tim said council could look at building 20 apartments, for example, to show how the model worked.

“But, the problem is we have a huge rates increase happening, so is that the right time to be doing something else?” 

The public will be able to have their say on more of these issues in mid-2024 when submissions will be made on the next Long Term Plan (2024-2034).

For more on the issue:

Read more: Mayor's column.

Read more: Central Otago Mayor warns of rates increase.

Read more: Shortage of Central rentals hit home.

Read more: Affordable housing issues widespread.