Gair Ave subdivision sections will to be marketed for sale this year and offered to first home buyers, with an option to sell the balance of land to a developer being explored.
Nine sections will be up for sale in Stage 1, initially for a limited timeframe, to fulfil the Central Otago District Council (CODC) Cromwell Masterplan objectives to deliver a range of housing types. This includes more affordable options such as semi-detached and terraced housing on smaller building footprints.
“The board was really keen to lead the way in providing a range of housing types while taking care to meet our community expectations to ensure we create a liveable community with greenways and open spaces,” Cromwell Community Board Chair Anna Harrison said.
“It is exciting to see sections coming onto the market as we explore the options for bringing the plan to life.”
In 2022, the community board approved the five-stage approach for developing the remaining block of Council owned land, and a year later approved $2,093,410 to fund development of stage 1A and 1B (see plan) and to make the remainder of the 5.2-hectare block ready for the development of the next four stages. This is a rates-neutral project, profits from which will be used to fund other Council developments.
Bulk earthworks began on 10 March this year and are expected to be completed in mid-June, with civil infrastructure scheduled to begin during May and finished around October 2025.
Environmental controls to help stop dust during the earthworks are in place, and building the infrastructure such as stormwater drainage, water, services reticulation, streetlighting, and roading construction including footpaths and berms is happening over the next eight months.
CODC Property and Facilities Manager Garreth Robinson said this was good time to be looking at development options.
“It’s a good feeling to be at this point, that work is underway and that eventually there will be about 110 new houses in all, to cater for the projected growth in Cromwell.”
Council will explore all available options to deliver housing solutions through the Gair Avenue development, he said. This includes the potential sale of the entire block to a developer for comprehensive development, as well as investigating the potential for group homes companies and other alternative housing models such as Offsite Manufacturing (OSM) that could contribute to meeting the community’s needs.
