Christchurch Mayor Phil Mauger has voiced his frustration at the Government’s refusal to grant the city council more time to finalise housing intensification plans, while also speaking candidly about long-running issues with traffic signals, water infrastructure upgrades, and the political return of former councillor James Daniels.
Speaking to chrislynchmedia.com, Mauger said the council had been working consistently on the housing intensification process, but was hoping for “a little bit of breathing space” once the Government’s new Resource Management Act changes come into force in August.
“We might be given the power to opt out under the new law — but until it’s actually passed, we don’t know,” he said. “All we were asking for was a bit of time to get the legislation in our hot little hands and digest it properly.”
Mauger said his personal concern was the controversial ‘three-by-three’ intensification rule, which allows three-storey buildings across three units on a single residential section — even in newly developed subdivisions.
“That wouldn’t stop someone from buying the section next door to you and putting up a building three storeys high, with three units. In some parts of town, that’s not appropriate,” he said. “That’s the bit I feel we should opt out of — not being predetermined, of course.”
On the issue of Manchester Street traffic lights, which have long frustrated commuters, Mauger admitted the issue had dragged on too long.
“I don’t know why it’s taken so long,” he said. “Everywhere I go, traffic gets under people’s skin — Park Terrace Cycleway and Manchester Street are always top of the list.”
He explained the original design for Manchester Street included sensors to detect when buses arrived and trigger the lights — but those sensors were never installed correctly.
“The lights just keep cycling, even when there’s no bus in sight. That drives people mad,” he said. “I walked down there with staff and said, ‘Can we actually do something here to make it better?’ They’ve now suggested covering the sensors for a trial period — I’d like to see that go longer.”
Mauger added a personal plea to drivers: “If you see a bus with its indicator on, just let them out. If we all do that, we might avoid having those bus gates come back for good.”
Asked whether Christchurch residents can expect chlorine to be removed from the city’s drinking water, Mauger was optimistic — but realistic.
“If any city can get rid of it, it should be us,” he said. “The water regulator came down and told us they’re very happy with our wells — they’re deep and safe. That’s a huge win for us.”
He said Christchurch had moved away from shallow sources and risks like protozoa contamination, which caused serious issues in Queenstown.
“Our issue now is water leakage,” Mauger said. “It’s sitting at around 27 percent — and that’s what we’ve got to get down. But every time we replace an old water main, we find leaks we didn’t even know were there.”
He said there’s no set date for chlorine removal, but it will likely happen “area by area”, depending on the infrastructure in place.
“It’s not a case of turning off the chlorine city-wide tomorrow. But the more we upgrade, the closer we get.”
When asked about complaints from some Sumner residents about the Cave Rock mast lights, Mauger said the matter sits with the local community board.
“They’ll sort it out,” he said. “There’ll be a meeting, submissions, and eventually a decision. It won’t make everyone happy, but it’s their backyard.”
Mauger also addressed former councillor James Daniels’ announcement that he’ll stand again in the Coastal Ward at this year’s local elections.
“When I was on council and the community board, James and I got along like a house on fire,” he said. “We both worked hard for the east.”
Asked whether Daniels’ return would strengthen the council, Mauger said, “He brings a different lens to things. If he gets elected, I’ll work with him — just like I’d work with anyone else. That’s the job.”
