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Mohammad Shadab Khan, University of Auckland, New Zealand
Urban authorities in many developed, as well as new world cities are making urban limits as mandates to deal with the negative outcomes of sprawl, such as loss of natural land, unplanned growth, car dependency, inefficient public services and expensive infrastructure. The growth of low density housing is a prime factor linked to this sprawl in cities such as Auckland (New Zealand), which is one of the best cities to live in according to the Mercer’s Annual Survey of World Class Cities. This is evident by the fact that, low density housing dominates and characterises the housing available in Auckland, reflecting a long held aspiration that contradicts compact housing strategies. “New Zealand was once famously described as the “quarter-acre pavlova paradise”, a country where owning a home in the suburbs with a garden was a common aspiration” (Preval, Chapman & Howden-Chapman 2010, p.34). However, emerging urbanisation trends and increasing living costs are some of the key factors leading to changes in the living environments and settlement patterns, which signal low density housing as unsustainable and unsuitable to meet future housing needs. It is important to consider that urban lifestyles are undergoing demographic changes and these changes play a vital role in the transition of housing patterns due to wider household formations occurring at different life cycle stages. The dynamics of demographics are resulting in changes to housing needs and preferences and therefore there is a growing demand for housing alternatives. Households such as couples, singles, students, single parents, and city workers prefer to dwell in compact or medium-high density housing types (apartments, town houses, units etc) close to urban amenities. The forecasted changes in population and household formation will significantly impact upon the existing low density housing stock and require the construction of more compact and attached housing typologies to meet the future demands. This paper aims to examine the relationships between compact housing and changing demographic trends as necessary aspects of the urban growth strategy of Auckland, which in turn contributes towards a more sustainable future.
Introduction
The Auckland region is the most urbanised and diverse city of New Zealand (NZ) with a current population of almost 1.5 million. Like other new world cities that are undergoing rapid urbanization, Auckland is growing due to population projections and also due to factors such as employment, trade, migration, and educational opportunities. Similarly, Auckland is an ’emerging’ city and likely to continue its growth at an even faster rate in the future, and will therefore need to accommodate future housing demands more efficiently. Moreover, the city is currently facing critical housing challenges such as housing shortages, unaffordable housing, increasing rental demands and lack of housing options. Researc