79Spatial plan for Auckland

1. The Auckland Council must prepare and adopt a spatial plan for Auckland.

2. The purpose of the spatial plan is to contribute to Auckland's social, economic, environmental, and cultural well-being through a comprehensive and effective long-term (20- to 30-year) strategy for Auckland's growth and development.

3. For the purposes of subsection (2), the spatial plan will—

4. set a strategic direction for Auckland and its communities that integrates social, economic, environmental, and cultural objectives; and
5. outline a high-level development strategy that will achieve that direction and those objectives; and
6. enable coherent and co-ordinated decision making by the Auckland Council (as the spatial planning agency) and other parties to determine the future location and timing of critical infrastructure, services, and investment within Auckland in accordance with the strategy; and
7. provide a basis for aligning the implementation plans, regulatory plans, and funding programmes of the Auckland Council.

8. The spatial plan must—

9. recognise and describe Auckland's role in New Zealand; and
10. visually illustrate how Auckland may develop in the future, including how growth may be sequenced and how infrastructure may be provided; and
11. provide an evidential base to support decision making for Auckland, including evidence of trends, opportunities, and constraints within Auckland; and
12. identify the existing and future location and mix of—
    1. residential, business, rural production, and industrial activities within specific geographic areas within Auckland; and
    2. critical infrastructure, services, and investment within Auckland (including, for example, services relating to cultural and social infrastructure, transport, open space, water supply, wastewater and stormwater, and services managed by network utility operators); and
13. identify nationally and regionally significant—
    1. recreational areas and open-space areas within Auckland; and
    2. ecological areas within Auckland that should be protected from development; and
    3. environmental constraints on development within Auckland (for example, flood-prone or unstable land); and
    4. landscapes, areas of historic heritage value, and natural features within Auckland; and
14. identify policies, priorities, land allocations, and programmes and investments to implement the strategic direction and specify how resources will be provided to implement the strategic direction.