Yesterday as my family and I drove through the suburbs of West Auckland, we reflected on the sheer volume of newly built multi-storey townhouses and units that have sprung up over the past year or so.
Homes so jammed together with barely any space for two blades of grass to grow on the postage-stamp 'lawn,' let alone room for even the tiniest of gardens or areas for kids to kick a ball.
We asked ourselves, 'Will this be the future for a Kiwi family in one of the new 20-minute cities?'.
Over the weekend a news article heralded the announcement of a series of new 20-minute cities in the North Island. Kiwi Property Group plans to expand the scope of Sylvia Park in South Auckland to become a "multifunctional hub where work, home, shops, entertainment, and healthcare will all be accessible by foot, bike, or public transport." Other regions with similar plans include New Lynn in West Auckland and Hamilton.
On the surface, this all sounds great. Imagine having everything you need within an easy walk or ride. Leave the car at home and save money on gas. Maybe even get better connected with those in your community. Awesome!
This kind of community connectedness is what VFF has been promoting since we began. So, aside from the 'build-to-rent,' sardine-like people-farming housing developments, what's the issue?
Well, there are a few red flags concerning us here at VFF:
- The problematic climate narrative underpinning the 'need' for these developments.
- Overseas experience with ultra-low emission zones and the monitoring and restricting of people's movements.
- The pattern of mission creep we have all lived through over the past three years during the Covid saga. We were labelled 'conspiracy theorists' for suggesting the government would seek to impose vaccine mandates months before they implemented them with tyrannical enthusiasm. Critical thinkers will be wary of promises regarding the curtailment of freedoms and the reframing of restrictions.
- The global march to develop, introduce, and enforce the use of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) and the potential for using such technology to control human behaviour.
- Similar developments with Universal Basic Income (UBI) schemes fostering reliance on government handouts for survival.
- How NZ authorities could use initiatives like the WHO's new Digital Covid Certificate and the Chinese social credit system to drive compliance in the NZ context.
These are areas we remain committed to continue exploring, investigating, and discussing over the coming months. We'd be keen to speak with people who are knowledgeable and experienced on these topics, so if you have a good lead and please drop the RCR Inbox team a line on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and let them know their name and any relevant links. Our goal at VFF and RCR is to inform Kiwis on the topics that matter & we appreciate all the help we can get!
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