South Dunedin Future

What is at stake for South Dunedin?

We need to adapt South Dunedin’s infrastructure and environment in a way that protects space for people and the things that matter, while also creating more room for increasing levels of rain, sea and groundwater.

We are making a plan and figuring out what we can do with the South Dunedin community, mana whenua and stakeholders to work out what’s most important and to find the right balance between people, water and space.

A joint programme between Dunedin City Council (DCC) and Otago Regional Council (ORC), the South Dunedin Future programme has five phases. We are now at the second to last stage of “what can we do?” and will have a set of proposed futures to explore with the South Dunedin community, mana whenua, and stakeholders.

Following several years of technical work and community feedback, we are working on identifying proposed futures for South Dunedin. The futures seek to outline different ways of making South Dunedin safer – by managing flood risk and adapting to a changing climate – while also making it a better place to live – by improving infrastructure, housing, transport, and greenspace.

How will flood resilience be improved over the next 30 years?

The first workstream will develop an infrastructure investment package for South Dunedin covering the next 30 years. Building on existing stormwater projects, it will identify priority flood protection projects for delivery over the next 5 to 10 years.

Additional modelling, design work, and feasibility and constructability assessments will help further develop the 10 to 15 projects already identified through South Dunedin Future.

This work will complement the DCC's ongoing three waters infrastructure programme, including the three stormwater projects that are part of the $29.2 million package approved in January 2025.

The goal is to create a sequenced and costed programme of infrastructure investment, showing how much flood protection each project could provide and how projects could be staged over time.

Importantly, the package will be designed to support a range of possible long-term adaptation approaches, ensuring future options remain open.

This work is expected to be completed by December 2026 and will help inform both Councils’ Long Term Plans, along with the DCC's Infrastructure Strategy and Water Services Strategy.

Planning for South Dunedin’s long-term future

The second workstream will focus on planning for South Dunedin beyond the next 30 years.

This includes reviewing and refining the long-term adaptation options previously developed through South Dunedin Future to reflect the most recent Council feedback and emerging Government direction on climate adaptation.

The aim is to provide Councils with a revised set of long-term options that represent different approaches to managing flood risk and climate change. These could include combinations of infrastructure investment, nature-based solutions, and land-use change.

As part of this work, staff will develop an engineering-focused ‘pipes and pumps’ option that could sit alongside, supplement, or potentially replace one of the previously identified options.

These options will be tested against a range of climate scenarios and will include updated information on costs, benefits, levels of protection, and any potential property acquisition requirements.

The work will also show how investments made over the next 30 years could support different long-term pathways for South Dunedin.

What happens next?

A proposed infrastructure investment package covering the next 30 years, including priority projects for the first 5 to 10 years, is expected to be considered by Dunedin City Councillors in December as part of Long Term Plan deliberations.

If approved by Council, the package could be included in the draft Long Term Plan 2027-37 for public consultation in early 2027.
At the same time, staff are preparing advice for both Councils on the approach to reviewing long-term adaptation options, including the development of the engineering-focused ‘pipes and pumps’ option. This advice is expected to be presented to Councils in September.

Depending on Council decisions, work on the revised long-term options could begin later this year, with updated options presented to Councils in early 2027.

There will be future opportunities for the community to engage with and provide feedback on long-term adaptation options as Councils consider the next stages of decision-making.

South Dunedin Future – story map

With help from the Natural Hazards team at the Otago Regional Council, we have developed an interactive story map, mapping South Dunedin’s risks.

Mapping South Dunedin’s Risks

Click through the story map to learn more about the challenges South Dunedin faces from climate change, the key risks, social challenges and detailed maps outlining natural hazards and risk assessment layers.

What can you do?

We need you to get involved, tell us what you think about each of the futures, and let us know what matters most to you in South Dunedin.

There will be a wide range of opportunities to join in as we narrow options and finalise the plan.

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