Direction 1: Develop a quality compact urban form to accommodate Auckland’s growth

​Auckland's population will increase significantly over the next 30 years and its urban form will continue to develop and change as a result.

Auckland will follow a quality compact urban form approach to growth in order to realise the environmental, social and economic benefits and opportunities this approach brings.

The development strategy sets out what this means.

Some of the benefits of this approach are that it:

• allows opportunities for more intensive living and working environments, and for more housing to be built around hubs of activity and close to good transport options
• improves the efficiency of the substantial investment required in infrastructure – such as transport and wastewater – and other services. This also results in the best asset management and infrastructure provision
• means lower travel costs for people and businesses and increased economic agglomeration benefits
• helps to protect our natural environment and maintain Auckland's rural productivity by limiting urban sprawl.

A quality compact approach to future development will be achieved by:

• enabling sufficient capacity for growth across Auckland
• embedding good design in all development
• sequencing and prioritising what gets delivered
• aligning the timing of infrastructure provision with development.