Rural-Residential Land Use Strategy Discussion Document - May

Monitoring of development trends
The Council collects a range of information and statistics about population, demographics, employment,
building development, resource consents and land subdivision. This information is available from a range
of Council sources and is used to inform policy development and new land use rules:
• Census - Household Projections for Palmerston North
• Annual Growth Monitoring Reports
• State of the Environment Monitoring Report
• Housing Needs Assessments
Some summary statistics and information relevant to the Rural Residential Land Use Strategy and the
Rural Zone Review include:
Population Growth
• Palmerston North is growing. By 2031 the population is projected to increase by nearly 20% to
94,000 people.
Household Projections
• A household is defined as one person usually living alone, or two or more people usually living
together and sharing facilities (eg: eating and cooking facilities, bathrooms, toilet facilities and
living areas) in a private dwelling.
• The average annual growth in the number of households between 2001 and 2031 in Palmerston
North is projected to be 1.1%, resulting in 9300 additional households between 2006 and 2031.
• Household projections reflect trends towards smaller households – one person households will
account for 31% of households in 2031 compared with 24% currently.
• Household growth is expanding at a greater rate than the number of new houses being built.
Subdivision and building development trends monitoring
The subdivision of land is an important stage of the land development process, creating additional
sections (lots with legal title) within existing urban areas, new greenfield suburbs and lifestyle lots in
rural areas. Subdivision generally precedes the construction of houses.
The following table shows the number of building consent applications processed by the Council for the
three main types of residential environments in the City:
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