The allowed shape

The district plan’s density map, 1,827 records across 3,410 hectares of how the city may grow: seven residential overlay standings from the suburban section to the central city’s stack, the CBD build-height limits at 22 to 39 metres, the hill density lines the Port Hills keep, and the Peninsula’s numbered bach settlements. Where /zones is the parcel’s own word, this is the shape the plan permits overall.

Overlay areas

1,737

the density standings, parcel by parcel

Build-height limits

the centre’s ceiling, 22–39 m

Hill density lines

above them, the hills stay low

Bach settlements

the Peninsula’s kept-small holiday places

The shape the plan allows

Pale to ink, the overlay standings grade from the suburban section to the central city’s stack. Red outlines cap the centre’s height; the dashed lines hold the hills low; the dots are the numbered bach settlements; blue dashes mark the walking catchment, purple Akaroa’s character. Hover any area for its standing. A point’s own answer is at /before.

The standings

Four instruments on the city’s shape, the overlay’s standing, the centre’s ceiling, the hills' low line, and the bach settlements' kept smallness.

The residential overlays

The density standings over the residential zones: Suburban keeps the section, Medium Density lets the city stack, Central City expects height, and the Density Transition band marks where one standing hands over to the next.

Residential Suburban Overlay

Residential Medium Density Overlay 549 areas · 811 ha

Residential Suburban Density Transition Overlay 390 areas · 662 ha

Residential New Neighbourhood Overlay 29 areas · 217 ha

Residential Central City Overlay 78 areas · 86 ha

Residential Hills Overlay 5 areas · 4 ha

Residential Banks Peninsula Overlay 12 areas · 3 ha

The build-height limits

The centre’s ceiling, the CBD’s blocks capped between 22 and 39 metres, tall enough for a mid-rise city.

22 m build limit 10 areas · 12 ha

28 m build limit 1 areas · 2 ha

30 m build limit 1 areas · 2 ha

32 m build limit 6 areas · 5 ha

39 m build limit 3 areas · 5 ha

The hill density lines

The Port Hills’ low line: above it, density stays down where the slope and the view ask it to.

Hill density line 18 lines · 750.3 km

The bach settlements

The Peninsula’s numbered holiday places, the bach scale is the point, and subdivision answers to keeping it.

Bach settlements (scheduled) 30 settlements

Bach settlements 19 settlements

The named areas

Two singletons the plan names outright, the central city’s walking catchment and Akaroa’s heritage character area.

Central-city walking catchment 1 areas · 403 ha

Akaroa character area 1 areas · 48 ha

The suburbs in the shape

By share of outline inside the overlays, a sampled join, so a sliver still counts. The standing named is the suburb’s densest.

Edgeware76% inside the overlays, Residential Medium Density Overlay
Spreydon67% inside the overlays, Residential Medium Density Overlay
PAPANUI62% inside the overlays, Residential Medium Density Overlay
Upper Riccarton58% inside the overlays, Residential Medium Density Overlay
Linwood58% inside the overlays, Residential Medium Density Overlay
Riccarton53% inside the overlays, Residential Medium Density Overlay
Saint Albans52% inside the overlays, Residential Medium Density Overlay
Northcote49% inside the overlays, Residential Medium Density Overlay
Phillipstown48% inside the overlays, Residential Medium Density Overlay
Richmond41% inside the overlays, Residential Medium Density Overlay

Questions, answered briefly

What is this map?

The district plan’s allowed shape, 1,827 records across 3,410 hectares: the seven residential overlay standings that grade how closely the city may pack, the CBD build-height limits, the hill density lines, the bach settlements, the central-city walking catchment, and Akaroa’s heritage character area. Where /zones is the parcel’s own word, this is the shape the plan permits overall.

What is a residential overlay?

The plan’s density standings, an overlay sits over the residential zones and refines what they allow: Suburban keeps the section, Medium Density lets the city stack, Central City expects height, and the Density Transition band marks where one standing hands over to the next. Plan Change 14 drew most of these, the medium-density story the city argued over.

How tall can the centre rise?

The CBD build-height map caps the centre between 22 and 39 metres depending on the block: tall enough for a mid-rise city, low enough that no tower answers only to itself. The limit is a ceiling the plan draws, not a promise the market keeps.

What are the bach settlements?

Banks Peninsula’s small holiday settlements, 49 places the plan numbers rather than names, where the bach scale is the point and subdivision answers to keeping it. Thirty are scheduled in the plan; nineteen ride unscheduled but mapped.

How does this differ from /zones?

/zones is the parcel’s own standing, what this address may do. This page is the shape over the top, the overlay that refines the zone, the ceiling over the centre, the line above which the hills stay low. Same plan, different instrument.

The record behind this

Christchurch City Council’s open data, the DistrictPlanB service’s build-shape layers: the residential overlays, the CBD build-height limits, the hill density lines, the bach settlements, the central-city walking catchment, and the heritage character area. The plan’s permission, not a survey of what stands, a parcel’s own standing is at /zones, the exceptions at /matters.

This page as markdown: /density.md · the record as data: /density.json · /density.geojson.