New development with 72 apartments proposed for Wellington suburb of Newtown

Monday, 9 July 2018

An artist impression from a resource consent lodged to build six, four-storey buildings that will have 72 apartments at 16-18 Constable St and 13 Newtown Ave, pictured.

The Wellington suburb of Newtown looks set for a major development.

A resource consent application has been lodged to build six, four-storey buildings that will contain a total of 72 apartments but does not indicate how much they would be sold for.

Existing view of the site on Constable St.

Urban Edge Planning submitted the application to Wellington City Council on behalf of developers Greg and Craig Walton (DTE Limited), who are seeking consent for the sites at 16-18 Constable St and 13 Newtown Ave.

The proposed development, for 40 single and 32 two-bed apartments but no vehicle access or on-site parking, is currently being assessed by the council and a resource consent decision is expected to be made during the next month.

The internal courtyard as show in the consent application.

The site is currently occupied by three buildings and a car parking area.

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A view across the courtyard from an upper apartment.

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Artist impression of the proposed apartments to be built facing Constable St.

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Two buildings currently fronting constable St are two-storey and were occupied by the Salvation Army, while a vacant two storey building also fronts Newtown Av.

A map of the site that reaches across from Constable St to Newtown Ave.

The consent application asks for permission to demolish the existing buildings, and replace with 12 metre high apartments that would be constructed around a central courtyard.

The dwellings would be about 2m taller than the current buildings.

Four buildings would have direct road frontage, while two larger buildings would face the private, internal courtyard.

The application includes a proposal for an off-site loading bay, adjacent to the Newtown Ave site, which is currently a kerb crossing.

The proposal states the development would be sympathetic to the character of the area and would promote sustainable living by supporting a bicycle and pedestrian friendly development.

The residential activity had been identified as being discretionary and therefore was precluded from public notification. It was considered that limited notification (to potentially affected persons) was also not required.

'There are several non-notification clauses that prevent the council from finding the neighbouring property owners and occupiers affected by the development,' the application says.

Newtown Residents' Association chairwoman Rhona Carson said the community was looking forward to seeing final designs and expected to be consulted in any discussions.

They had concerns about the scale and if the buildings would fit the streetscape, but accepted people had to live somewhere, she said.