Te Awa Lakes welcomes IFF funding to unlock 1500-house development in Hamilton

Spurce: Te Awa Lakes

Te Awa Lakes has welcomed Government’s use of the Infrastructure Funding and Financing Act 2020 (IFF) to unlock 1500 houses in northern Hamilton’s largest greenfield development.

The IFF transaction, facilitated by National Infrastructure Funding and Financing Limited (NIFF), will provide $50 million of funding toward delivery of bulk infrastructure such as upgrade of roads, stormwater lake and outlets and other key bulk infrastructure to be delivered by the developer.

This funding is one of the first of its kind to support unlocking greenfield developments for housing, and is in line with the Government’s 3 pillars of “Going for Housing Growth.”

Te Awa Lakes is a fully master planned development that falls within the Future Proof Strategy Northwest Priority Development Area of the high-growth urban area of Hamilton. With an average annual population growth of 2%, demand for new dwellings and amenities is projected to increase by around 56% out to 2050, equating to a demand for an estimated 61,285 dwellings across the sub region.

Richard Coventry, Managing Partner of the Te Awa Lakes JV says, “The IFF funding tool is a game changer for Te Awa Lakes and the northern growth node of the region, as without this tool the infrastructure delivery would be fully reliant on direct developer funding, which is too slow and cannot keep pace with the demand for the region.

“We fully anticipate that this funding tool will not only accelerate the construction of housing for early stages of Te Awa Lakes, but it will also unlock other developable land in the northern node and gateway of the region.”