North Waipā - South Hamilton Spatial Study
What’s happening
Future Proof is undertaking a high-level study that will ensure future growth needs in the North Waipā – South Hamilton area are clearly understood and identified and that growth and investment can be well-coordinated.
The study will aim to identify the key land use and infrastructure investments needed to support future development surrounding the Southern Links road project across locations such as Mystery Creek, Rukuhia, Hamilton Airport, and extending towards Ōhaupō while protecting the environmental attributes significant and unique to the region.
While the study aligns with the recently adopted Future Proof Strategy, it will also address any additional requirements not anticipated by it. The study will function as a comprehensive, scenario-based evaluation to inform and guide future FDS updates and/or the regional spatial plan.
The area we're looking at
This area spans over Hamilton City Council and Waipā District Council boundaries and includes Mystery Creek, Rukuhia, and Hamilton Airport.
There are also potential spillover effects into Waikato District (e.g. Tamahere) and further into Waipā District (e.g. towards Ōhaupō and Te Awamutu).
Click to engageThe key development happening in the area
A critical project planned for the area is Hamilton Southern Links.
Hamilton Southern Links is a transport network that includes a state highway and a collection of urban arterials that will:
- link State Highway 1 from Kahikatea Drive in Hamilton to Tamahere and the Waikato Expressway in the south
- link State Highway 3 from Hamilton Airport to central and east Hamilton
- establish a key transport network in Peacocke
Southern Links is key to enabling further urban development in the region. Future Proof is keen to collaborate to unlock the potential this network offers.
We’re also aware that the future of the North Waipā – South Hamilton area depends in part on proposed changes to the Resource Management Act, and current / future Fast Track proposals, but details of these are still to come.
What is the study focusing on?
There are six critical questions this study aims to answer for the North Waipā – South Hamilton area.
1. Hamilton Southern Links
How can we ensure land use and infrastructure investments along the Hamilton Southern Links corridor are aligned so we can fully realise the benefits of this investment?
2. Unanticipated or out of sequence development proposals
How do we respond to unanticipated or out of sequence development proposals that differ from the settlement patterns already identified in the Future Proof Development Strategy?
3. Funding challenges
How can we generate the necessary funds and resources to meet the infrastructure demands caused by the planned and unplanned expansion of housing and industrial land in the study area?
4. Staging and sequencing
How can we take a strategic approach to staging and sequencing infrastructure packages to achieve better outcomes?
5. Hamilton Airport area
How can we better understand and maximise the benefits of land use around the Hamilton Airport area to ensure more efficient and effective targeting of infrastructure investment? How can we manage competing and/or conflicting land uses? Are there opportunities with Mystery Creek?
6. Protecting the environment
How do we balance economic benefits with the need to protect and enhance our natural environment?
Where we are at now
We want to get an understanding of the aspirations that people have for this area and also get an overview of the development that’s already planned, as well as development that has been proposed, but not yet agreed to or confirmed.
We’re not starting from scratch. There are a lot of planning documents already in place that guide certain development types across the North Waipā – South Hamilton area.
We’re currently doing a stocktake of all of these documents so we can start to paint a picture of what things have already been confirmed for the area and what things still need to be explored and discussed so we can provide answers to our six critical questions. We’ll test this with stakeholders to make sure we don’t miss anything.
Things already confirmed include decisions made through District Plan processes, community planning processes such as the Ahu Ake Waipā Community Spatial Plan and various growth strategies.
Gap analysis report
This stock take has resulted in the creation of a gap analysis report.
This gap analysis forms the initial phase for the North Waipā/South Hamilton area spatial study. It identifies the current knowledge and key information gaps across several major themes affecting growth, infrastructure provision, land use integration, and environmental constraints.
Sourced from an extensive literature review, it sets out to establish a clear understanding of what we currently know — and what remains uncertain — about the area's development potential.
Importantly, this gap analysis report provides insights into possible future states for the area, which have been either partially described by asset owners or technical reports prepared by Future Proof partners, but have not yet been comprehensively defined and/or agreed on.
Draft vision and outcome statements
We have also developed a draft vision and outcome statements. These outcome statements define what success looks like for this Spatial Study and links to the Future Proof Strategy’s key transformational moves.
What’s next
Once we have a clear picture of current state, which we will test with stakeholders, a suite of scenarios will be developed. These scenarios will explore different options for how we can deliver on our six critical focus areas.
These scenarios will be tested amongst Future Proof partners and key stakeholders and then will be used to inform the final report for the North Waipā – South Hamilton Spatial Study.
The Study will then be used to inform the Future Proof Development Strategy which is due to be reviewed in 2026.
Want to be involved?
We can’t do this alone – nor do we want to! We want to collaborate with others so we can identify priorities and solutions that will really make a difference for the North Waipā – South Hamilton area.
If you want to find out more or have a chat, get in touch via email.