Consultation on a Heart for Churton Park

Wellington City Council is asking residents of Churton Park what they would like to see in a new neighbourhood centre planned for the suburb.

A leaflet and questionnaire will be going out to residents next week asking for input into the potential development of the site at the corner of Lakewood Avenue and Westchester Drive.

The Council has received strong support from Churton Park residents for a community hub that provides basic local services such as a small supermarket, a daycare centre and perhaps retirement housing.

Councillor Andy Foster, the Council's Urban Development Portfolio leader, says it is important the neighbourhood centre reflects the character of Churton Park. 

"This is an excellent opportunity for people in Churton Park to let the Council know how it can best meet the needs of residents."

Northern ward Councillors Robert Armstrong, Helene Ritchie and Hayley Wain say Churton Park is a fast-growing residential area and is the only suburb in Wellington lacking neighbourhood facilities.

"We hope that people will soon have somewhere to meet their neighbours and purchase their daily goods without having to travel out of the area."

The project is part of the Northern Growth Management Framework which was developed during 2002-2003 as a means of encouraging and managing growth in the northern suburbs. The framework recognized that Churton Park lacked a heart and that a new neighbourhood centre could provide it by creating a focal point in the community.

The land at the corner of Lakewood Avenue and Westchester Drive was set aside by the developer in the 1970s when the area was first developed and zoned commercial. This site is still vacant, but in the 1990s was zoned to residential and now cannot be developed as a neighbourhood centre without a District Plan change.

The consultation will be followed by a Centre Plan and Development Strategy that will outline key development principles and desired outcomes, and recommend the next steps for its implementation. This will involve either the adoption of a District Plan change or other methods to enable development and provide a framework for the neighbourhood centre.

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