A planning change which will allow up to six-storey buildings to be built in parts of Nelson has been sent out for consultation by the city council today.
The idea is that the city will build upwards, rather than outwards, with homes being built in existing residential areas as opposed to developing new ones.
Nelson mayor Nick Smith said these are the largest planning changes in more than a generation.
"It will be a bit controversial because people don't like change but these are absolutely essential if we are to improve housing affordability," he said.
It would mean that two- to six-storey residential buildings will be allowed in certain parts of the city without resource consent.
"Both homeowners and developers will be able to look at putting a granny flat, putting another house on their section, redeveloping their property into townhouses, and in the central city area it will allow for multi-storey apartments," Smith said.
Nelson's housing situation is already dire. An extra 11,860 people is estimated to be living in the city By 2051 – a 27% population increase.
Locals 1News spoke to today had mixed views about the proposal, with the main concerns being about the location of potential large apartment blocks.
The Trust builds homes which are rented out to tenants on low to middle incomes.
"One of our most recent developments took seven months to get resource consent from when we lodged it, so easing that would help us paddle the boat faster."
Other proposed changes include extra checks required when building with natural hazards, and updates to the heritage precincts.
The public has until September 19 to make a submission.
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