BLOG BY PHIL KELLIHER.

Just two years ago the housing market was in a frenzy, with properties going for silly money. 

But now it’s the opposite.  For property manager Phil Kelliher, this was vividly illustrated when he noticed a large property in Mt Victoria listed for nearly one million dollars less than its RV.

Kāinga Ora has spent $800,000 hiring a vast team of lawyers, planners and architects to influence the outcome of the Wellington District Plan, drowning out local voices, says Wellington community and urban design advocacy group LIVE WELLington.

“Citizens who know and love their city and neighborhood attempt to get involved in the District Plan process however we struggle to compete with highly paid lawyers and planners flown in from other cities to argue for inappropriate planning rules that are not conducive to a liveable city,” says LIVE WELLington convenor Jane O’Loughlin.

The panel of Independent Commissioners at Wellington District Plan hearings (left) are well outnumbered by Kāinga Ora’s legal and planning team (right).