Our strategic framework | te aka rautaki

Our strategic framework | te aka rautaki

The DCC’s current strategic framework

The DCC’s strategic framework was developed through a city-wide engagement process that started in 2011. Developed over a period of approximately 8 years, the first of the eight strategies was adopted in 2010 and the last completed in 2017. Each of the strategies within the framework set the pathway to supporting a connected and vibrant Ōtepoti Dunedin, one of the world’s great small cities.

The current strategic framework encompasses 8 strategies, focused on long term outcomes for Dunedin.

• The 3 Waters Strategic Direction Statement sets out how the DCC will ensure the city has a reliable supply of clean, safe drinking water and effective wastewater services.
• The Future Development Strategy (previously the Spatial Plan) sets out a long-term strategic planning approach to achieve a well-functioning city for existing and future community needs.
• The Economic Development Strategy sets out priorities for growing Ōtepoti Dunedin’s economy.
• The Social Wellbeing Strategy outlines how we achieve a city with connected people, cohesive communities and quality lifestyles for all.
• The Integrated Transport Strategy sets priorities for how the safe and efficient movement of people and goods will be supported.
• Ara Toi Ōtepoti Arts and Culture Strategy roadmaps strategic actions to support the creative sector in Ōtepoti Dunedin and develop an environment which acknowledges the intrinsic value of the arts.
• Te Ao Tūroa, Dunedin’s Environment Strategy sets a pathway to improve and maintain the health of Dunedin’s natural environment.
• The Parks and Recreation Strategy develops the use of Ōtepoti Dunedin’s open spaces, recreation facilities and parks that are connected and valued to encourage communities to be more active.

The DCC’s work to achieve these strategic goals is underpinned by two commitments: Te Tiriti o Waitangi / The Treaty of Waitangi and Sustainability.

Refreshing DCC strategies

A comprehensive stocktake of the strategic framework was completed in 2020.  As part of this process, and aligning with the initial framework, we are ensuring we work in partnership with mana whenua and the wider Māori community. Additionally, we are integrating the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals to reinforce our commitment to sustainability.

In 2024, the Council adopted and formed an implementation plan for Te Taki Haruru (Māori Strategic Framework) which is the DCC guide to partnering with mana whenua and fulfilling its commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi / The Treaty of Waitangi.

Te Taki Haruru is a city-wide commitment to collective wellbeing. The framework was developed through genuine collaboration to bring to life the vision Kāika Ōtepoti, Kāika Oraka – A Thriving Home, a Thriving Village, shaping a future where our tamariki and mokopuna inherit a city that nurtures their cultural, social, economic, and environmental wellbeing.

Development on a sustainability framework is underway, to provide the Council with a foundation to adopt a sustainable approach that balances present cultural, social, economic, and environmental interests of Dunedin’s communities and the needs of future generations.

In April and May 2025, DCC engaged with communities on the Ara Toi, Economic Development, Social Wellbeing, and Te Ao Tūroa strategies to gather feedback and enhance collaboration as we progress through the next phase of the refresh work.

Key objectives of the refresh project include:

• Strengthening partnership with the Ōtepoti Dunedin community and promoting the collaborative effort needed for success.
• Enabling the implementation of defined strategic and sustainable outcomes with ongoing monitoring and adjustment of the strategic objectives, while maintaining an integrated and collaborative approach.
• Reviewing Levels of Service in alignment with the updated strategic priorities.

Key outcomes of the refresh project will be to ensure reviews, monitoring, and evaluation occur on a regular basis, in line with long term planning. This is to ensure each strategy within the framework is up to date and enables effective decision making.

Achieving great outcomes as a community

The purpose of a strategic approach to decision making is ultimately to achieve great outcomes for the city. The hard work is done by everyone in the city when it comes to achieving our goals and the Council is just one of many stakeholders working to support Dunedin being one of the world’s great small cities.

The following summary outlines the community outcome priorities, and the indicators of success used to monitor progress towards these outcomes.

Reducing Emissions and Adapting to Climate Change

Climate change is already having an impact on Ōtepoti Dunedin. The city is experiencing more frequent extreme weather events, rising sea levels, and increased pressure on local ecosystems. These changes are introducing new risks and challenges for our communities, adding pressure to other big challenges like stress on housing and infrastructure, and rising inequality.

While adaptation is necessary, it will only be possible if emissions are also reduced. A low emissions Ōtepoti Dunedin means better local infrastructure, more efficient systems and improved public health, as well as contributing to global climate goals.

How we measure emissions, and our reduction targets

The DCC is taking action to reduce both the city’s emissions, and the DCC’s own emissions.

For the Dunedin City territorial area, we have a Zero Carbon target to:

1. Reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 (excluding biogenic methane), and
2. Reduce biogenic methane emissions in line with Government targets (relative to 2017, a 10% reduction by 2030, and a 24-47% reduction by 2050).

We measure and report city emissions in line with an international standard for cities called the Global Protocol for Community-Scale GHG Inventories (GPC

- BASIC+ methodology). Under this methodology, the city’s biggest emissions sources are agriculture (46%) and transport (34%)1. Some emissions are absorbed by the city’s forests (sequestration). Embodied emissions relating to products produced elsewhere but consumed within the geographic area (e.g. imported food, cars, phones, clothes etc) are excluded.

‘Net zero’ means greenhouse gases that we emit into the atmosphere (excluding biogenic methane) are in balance with the amount of carbon dioxide absorbed by forests.

Biogenic methane is methane produced and released from living organisms like plants and animals, and in Dunedin is primarily produced by ruminant animals in agriculture, with a minority from waste and wastewater.

As an organisation we’re aiming to reduce annual gross emissions (relative to a 2018/19 baseline):

• 30% by 2026/27, and
• 42% by 2030/31.

The DCC measures and manages organisational emissions (the ones generated in the process of providing services to the city) in line with international standard ISO 14064 using the ‘operational control’ methodology. This includes emissions from activities undertaken by DCC staff when providing services (such as driving fleet cars, electricity usage) and emissions from DCC assets (such as LPG burnt at DCC pools, landfill gas from Green Island Landfill). It also includes emissions generated by contractors working on behalf of the DCC.

Tackling our emissions

Ōtepoti Dunedin’s Zero Carbon Plan, adopted in 2023, sets out key shifts required to achieve city targets. Changes are required across key sectors including transport, energy, agriculture, land-use, and waste. ‘Net zero’

was modelled with a 40% reduction in gross emissions (excluding biogenic methane) and a 63% increase in sequestration (both relative to 2018/19 levels).

The good news is that at last count, city emissions were decreasing - between 2018/19 and 2021/22, Dunedin’s gross emissions reduced by 9%. A 2025 modelling update suggested that Dunedin is still anticipated to meet the 2030 biogenic methane target. However, due to changes in context, including significant shifts in central

government policy, it is now very unlikely that the city will achieve net zero of all other emissions by 2030. Council will consider options to amend the target in early 2026, following an update to the city’s emissions inventory.

The DCC’s own emissions are also tracking down. Between 2018/19 and 2023/24, the DCC’s gross emissions reduced by almost 30%. As an organisation we’re aiming to reach 42% reduction below 2018/19 levels by 2030/31, and the 2025 modelling updated confirmed we remain on track to achieve that.

The 9 year plan includes investment in projects that will continue to bring both city and DCC emissions down, particularly from the waste and transport sectors.

Projects include:

• better resource recovery facilities, and improved gas capture at Green Island landfill,
• public and active transport improvements on Princes St and Albany St, and funding to fill other gaps in cycle and pedestrian networks (in the central city, close to schools, and in neighbourhood centres),
• improved bus priority, and better bus stops, and
• transition of most DCC fleet and buildings to clean energy.

There is also provision in the Plan to continue working with our partners to support their efforts and initiatives, for example through the Zero Carbon business support programme and Zero Carbon Alliance. While the DCC has an important role to play in making low emissions choices possible for businesses and organisations, communities and whānau, to become a Zero Carbon city, we need action from everyone.

Impacts of climate change on Dunedin

The impacts of climate change are being felt around the world. By the end of this century New Zealand will experience higher rainfall, more frequent extreme weather events, rising sea levels and higher temperatures. New Zealand communities are particularly vulnerable to changes in sea level and

extreme rainfall because many of New Zealand’s towns and cities are built on the coast or near rivers. The impacts of climate change may have a major impact on New Zealand society and everyday Kiwi’s wellbeing now and into the future.

The first comprehensive review of Dunedin’s climate change vulnerability and risk as a city was commissioned by the Dunedin City Council (DCC) in

2010. Dunedin may face significant risks from sea level rise and rainfall (resulting in flooding) and its impact on human health, critical infrastructure, water resources and ecosystems.

A citywide climate resilience framework is in development to guide Council and communities as they make decisions about how to respond to climate change hazards. These hazards threaten Council and community infrastructure and can cause major disruption to people’s lives and livelihoods – and many of them are expected to get worse with the growing impacts of climate change.

Areas of concern include communities that live near the coast or waterways, flat and low-lying areas, and the effects of drought on inland catchments. The framework sets out a process to help us better understand challenges, identify the options, and agree the best course of action. The 9 year plan budgets $700,000 over the 2025/26 and 2026/27 years to design and establish the framework.

South Dunedin

The DCC’s work on adapting to climate change currently has a focus on South Dunedin, as the area of highest risk to natural hazards. Prior to European settlement, most of the South Dunedin area comprised wetlands, salt marsh, mudflats, lagoon and low sand dunes.

South Dunedin now sits on reclaimed land, and much of this, when combined with high ground water, seasonal conditions, and tidal fluctuations, is susceptible to inundation, and infiltration of the stormwater and wastewater networks. Groundwater levels are projected to rise as sea levels rise, increasing the frequency of flooding and inundation. South Dunedin is also home

to a community of thousands of people along with schools, businesses, and a significant amount of city infrastructure. Along the coastline, the dune system at St Kilda and St Clair is eroding, reducing natural character and restricting access the beach. These existing coastal erosion issues will be exacerbated by climate change.

The South Dunedin Future programme, a joint project between the DCC and the Otago Regional Council, is making good progress and will produce a long-term adaptation plan for the area by the end of 2026. The St Clair-St Kilda Coastal Plan work is also developing options for mitigating erosion along that stretch of the city’s coastline.

Following the flood event in South Dunedin in October 2024, there were calls from the community to get started on flood alleviation work as soon as possible, to make some initial improvements to the system while more comprehensive options are developed. The 9 year plan provides a capital budget of $44.2 million for this work.

The stormwater network in South Dunedin is complex. Much of the network is old and increasingly leaky. Over its lifetime, hard surfaces have also increased from around 45% of the area to around 60%. This means more rain goes into the stormwater system rather than soaking into the ground. All these factors, along with increased rainfall and higher groundwater levels, can push the system beyond its capacity.

Over the course of the 9 year plan, the Council will tackle South Dunedin’s flood issues in four ways:

1. continue day-to-day management of the stormwater and wastewater systems, including repairs and renewals.
2. deliver several short-term ‘no regrets’ projects that can be done to help reduce present day flood risk – with a budget of $29.2 million for years 1-5 of the 9 year plan, as follows:
   • Diverting the Bay View Road and New Street stormwater systems to a new stormwater pipe that would carry it directly to the Portobello Road pumping station – estimated cost $1.9 million (2025/26 to 2027/28)
   • Upgrading the capacity of the Forbury Road stormwater pipe – estimated cost $12 million (2025/26 to 2027/28)
   • Disconnecting the Hillside Road stormwater main from the Portobello Road system and pumping it to the Orari Street stormwater outfall instead – estimated cost $15.3 million (2025/26 to 2029/30).
   • start work on a mid-term/mid-scale project to reconfigure the stormwater system in South Dunedin, potentially splitting the catchment into two more manageable areas, once the South Dunedin Future adaptation plan is complete – with a budget of $15 million to begin work in the period from 2030/31 to 2033/34.
   • complete long-term/large-scale climate adaptation and flood resilience planning, including through development of the South Dunedin Adaptation Master Plan.

A growing city

Like many of New Zealand’s major urban centres, Dunedin is experiencing a period of rapid population growth. While this growth brings economic and social benefits, it also places pressure on land, infrastructure, and the housing market.

Dunedin’s population is projected to grow at a high rate (0.7-0.8%) until 2034, reaching a population of 146,100. After 2034, the growth rate is expected to slow to a medium rate (0.1-0.2%).

Dunedin’s population is also projected to continue aging. By 2054, people aged 65 and over are projected to make up 24% of the population, up from 19% in 2024.

Housing development is expected to follow similar trends to population growth. Dunedin’s dwelling numbers is projected to expand rapidly until 2034, reaching 61,700 dwellings, before slowing in line with population trends.

Under the National Policy Statement on Urban Development, Dunedin is categorised as a tier 2 urban environment. This brings into effect a range of provisions relating to growth planning, such as assessing the amount of development capacity that is required. The DCC is planning for growth in numerous ways.

The DCC proposed a new District Plan in September 2015 (the 2GP), which included additional housing opportunities. Development of the 2GP had started in 2012, when Dunedin’s population growth rate was low and projected to remain low over the life of the 2GP– the housing capacity provided in the 2GP reflected that growth rate. However, in 2019, an updated set of projections forecast higher growth than those on which the 2GP and prior housing capacity assessments had been based.

The DCC initiated a variation to its plan (Variation 2) in February 2021 to add significantly more housing capacity, primarily through opportunities for intensification, but also more greenfield land. Housing capacity was also added through resolution of zoning appeals on the 2GP.

The DCC’s Dunedin Future Development Strategy was released in April 2024, and as part of its preparation, the housing capacity assessment was updated to take population projection changes into account. The higher than anticipated population growth rates were mainly due to high national net migration following the COVID-19 pandemic. This update showed that Dunedin has sufficient development capacity for housing in the short, medium, and long term.

However, it is important to understand what types of homes are needed, not just how many.

Demand is expected to increase for ancillary residential units, retirement village units and small, easy- maintenance dwellings due to our ageing population. Recent changes to the 2GP have made it easier and more attractive to build ancillary residential units and small homes on small sections. Retirement villages, rest homes and social housing have special consenting pathways in residential areas that support their development even when they exceed the ‘normal’ residential density of the zone. However, in many areas, constraints in the 3 waters network currently make approval difficult for any development that proposes a housing density above the ‘standard’ for that area.

Additionally, by 2054, people identifying as Māori, Asian or Pacific peoples are expected to account for a larger share of the total Dunedin population. Different ethnic groups can have different housing needs, so these changes are considered when assessing the type of housing needed. For example, while all families are unique, research suggests that Māori and Asian families are more likely to live in intergenerational households and so may require larger houses.

Work has been undertaken to explore the housing needs and preferences of the senior population in more depth to ensure that they are adequately provided for.

Still didn't find what you were looking for?