Eden Park consultation on planning rules
The Government has launched a public consultation on proposed changes to planning rules for events at Auckland’s Eden Park that will run from 5-19 November 2025.
Minister for RMA Reform Hon Chris Bishop commissioned Ministry for the Environment to provide an investigative report on the Eden Park planning provisions, looking at whether restrictions could be impacting economic growth or job creation for the Auckland region.
The report found that strict limits on the number, timing, and size of events at Eden Park were holding back the stadium’s potential to drive economic growth and create employment opportunities.
The report estimates that unless changes are made, existing restrictions will cost around $430 million or more in lost income for the Auckland region and result in around 750 fewer jobs over the next 10 years. These losses stem from limitations on the number and timing of concerts and sporting fixtures, as well as restrictions on conferences and large functions.
The recommendations from the report include:
- Enabling a broader range of uses, such as markets, fairs, trade fairs, and cultural/community events.
- Permitting up to 12 large concerts (30,000+ people) and 20 medium concerts (10,000–30,000 people) each calendar year.
- Allowing more flexibility on concert timings, including events up to eight hours long.
- Increasing flexibility for sports games.
- Introducing three levels of noise standards for everyday activities, sports games, and concerts.
- Removing size limits for conferences and large functions.
Currently, Eden Park is limited to six artists for a total of 12 concerts per year, with strict controls on timing and duration. There are also caps on night-time sporting fixtures and a maximum of 2,000 attendees for conferences and functions.
Details on the consultation are here and the report is here: Auckland Unitary Plan – Eden Park Precinct Provisions.
The Minister’s PR is here: Next steps on Eden Park restrictions | Beehive.govt.nz