‘Town of the future’: The rise and rise of Rolleston

Thursday, 26 September 2024

Rolleston commuters are 'fed up' with Selwyn District Council for planning roadworks that are causing major traffic congestion on the main routes in and out of the town.

Rolleston, the main centre in the Selwyn district, was once dubbed “town of the future”.

Now, with the town’s population almost tripling in the last decade, that dream appears to be coming true.

Selwyn mayor Sam Broughton said the district’s population “will be bigger than Dunedin in 10 years time”.

In the early 1970s, the then-prime minister Norman Kirk dreamt of turning Rolleston - a once quiet town on the outskirts of Christchurch home to less than 1000 people - into a thriving city.

Rolleston’s population has nearly tripled over the past decade.

Development plans were drawn up in 1973, the Government started buying land, and road signs were erected on State Highway 1. They proclaimed: “Welcome to Rolleston – Town of the Future”.

Now, it appears that dream is coming true.

Rolleston, near Christchurch, is the main town in the Selwyn District - New Zealand’s fastest growing territorial authority.

Rolleston’s population was 29,600 in 2023, almost triple what it was in 2013.

Selwyn District’s total population was 81,300 in 2023, up 5.2% from the year before. Total population grew by 2.1% in New Zealand over the same period.

Mayor Sam Broughton said the district “will be bigger than Dunedin in 10 years time”.

Stuff investigates how the “town of the future” is faring on its journey to becoming a big city.

Infrastructure

Rolleston’s population increase has not been without growing pains.

Rolleston local Rowena Holder said she was frustrated with overlapping roadworks.

Many locals said they were “fed up” with overlapping roadworks in the town that were causing “incredible congestion and delays”.

People who would normally have used one of the three main routes in and out of Rolleston were now heading down Rolleston Drive - one of the only fully open routes onto SH1 - local Rowena Holder told Stuff in August.

But more jams are now expected on Rolleston Drive, after the council announced on Thursday that traffic will be disrupted on some town roads at various times through to mid-2025, during work to install a new watermain.

Rolleston’s town centre was recently developed and now hosts many retail and hospitality businesses.

Broughton said he understood the frustration but “the development that’s required is going to cause disruption”.

He said over 85% of all capital expenditure over the next 30 years would be spent on roads, transport and water infrastructure.

“As we grow, the current network won’t sustain the increased population.”

Shopping

Rolleston is due to get the largest Pak ‘n’ Save in the South Island.

A recent Infometrics report showed consumer spending in Selwyn had grown by 13% between 2023 and 2024, much higher than the population increase of 5.2%.

That indicated an increase of spending by Selwyn residents, and perhaps more local spending taking place.

The town will also get a new supermarket opening in late 2025 - and it’s set to be the largest Pak ‘n’ Save in the South Island.

Selwyn District Council opened a “health hub” opposite its main building in Rolleston to accommodate the community’s growing needs.

Costing $35 million to build, Foodstuffs South Island general manager Tim Donaldson said the supermarket would cover 8100 square metres and provide around 200 jobs.

Donaldson said the store would be “at the heart of the growing community”.

Healthcare

Infometrics data showed enrolment in Selwyn healthcare providers had increased by 4.9% between 2023 and 2024.

Mayor Sam Broughton said the council had focused on creating “family-focused” facilities.

Broughton said the council had built its own “health hub” in 2022 to cope with the growing healthcare demands of the local population.

Toka Hāpai Selwyn Health Hub, opposite the council building in Rolleston, is now leased to Te Whatu Ora and hosts Pacific Radiology and a birthing unit.

Schools

West Rolleston Primary School principal Sylvia Fidow was concerned about traffic safety as Rolleston’s population grows.

Broughton said the council had invested in playgrounds and other “family-focused” facilities.

“Many of the people that have moved here over the last 10 years have young kids,” he said.

With that has come increased pressure on local schools.

West Rolleston Primary principal Sylvia Fidow said the school was at capacity with just over 800 children enrolled and it would be opening another classroom in 2025 to accommodate for “rapid growth”.

Rolleston is the main town in NZ’s fastest growing district.

Fidow also welcomed the plan to open another school, Rolleston South Primary in 2026.

She said she was concerned about traffic safety for children on their way to and from school as changes to roads in the town meant the road West Rolleston Primary is on, Dunns Crossing Road, would become a main entrance into Rolleston.

Fidow said it was estimated traffic on the road would increase from 2000 vehicles per day to 10,000.

Broughton said the decision around the new southern entrance to Rolleston was taken by NZTA, and Selwyn Council was looking to mitigate safety issues that followed, including the installation of traffic lights outside the school.

Housing

Upgrades to accommodate Rolleston’s rapid growth had caused some disruption.

According to CoreLogic, the median value of Rolleston homes in September 2024 was $816,750.

There was a huge surge in prices between 2020 and 2021 when median values rose 41.7% to $834,200.

CoreLogic NZ’s Chief Property Economist Kelvin Davidson said at the time, “part of that reflects the lower starting price points of these areas and therefore better affordability”.

“People are recognising better affordability and looking to buy, and that demand has begun to flow through to prices,” he said.

Broughton said people came to Rolleston for an “opportunity for change”.

“Sometimes it’s an opportunity to spend less on a home in a more affordable environment. Usually, if it’s in Rolleston, a new home. So being able to get not just a more affordable space, but a healthier place for your family, it’s double glazed and usually with a bit more space.”

Jobs

Infometrics data showed the number of Jobseeker Support recipients in Selwyn had increased by 18% between 2023 and 2024 - the third highest rise in the country.

However, the district’s unemployment rate of 2.8% was well below the national average of 4.6%.

The number of businesses in Selwyn has grown by 4.4%, ahead of the national average of 1.5%, creating a variety of new job opportunities for Selwyn residents.

Broughton said the development of Rolleston’s industrial area, iZone, had provided over 1500 jobs.

He said the project was initiated to create jobs locally so people would not need to travel to Christchurch for work.

Broughton also acknowledged the need for more services across the board. He said the focus needed to go beyond building houses and improving transport networks.

“Communities need far more than just a house to live in and the street to be on,” he said.

“And it’s not just Rolleston - Lincoln and Prebbleton have seen huge growth too.”

CORRECTION: Rolleston is a town near Christchurch. A headline in an earlier version of this story incorrectly said it was a suburb of Christchurch. (Amended: September 26, 2024, 8.40am)