 housing development plan in New Zealand has been scuppered by Lord of the Rings director Sir Peter Jackson. He and his wife Dame Fran Walsh, who co-wrote the film trilogy, have bought the former Air Force Base at Shelly Bay in the country's capital, Wellington. It means that plans to build hundreds of houses, as well as commercial businesses, will no longer take place. Mr Jackson and Ms Walsh say they want to restore the bay's "natural beauty". "It's a wonderful coastline that holds a great deal of cultural and historical significance," Mr Jackson and Ms Walsh said in a statement. The pair, who are both from the Wellington area, have been long-term opponents of the development. "Our immediate goal is to start the landscaping and replanting work required to return Shelly Bay to its natural state." Mr Jackson and Ms Walsh said they would look at ways the land could be used for both arts and recreation in the longer term. The price they paid for the land was not revealed. Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau said she looked forward to sitting down with them and the council to discuss what their vision was for the land's future use. However, Ms Whanau added she was sorry to see that an increase in low-cost housing, which was part of the development, would now be lost. Wellington, like much of New Zealand, is in the midst of a housing crisis brought on by sky-high private property prices and rents, as well as a shortage of state housing. It is an issue on voters' minds ahead of the country's general election next month. "Wellington's housing crisis just got worse," tweeted opposition MP Christopher Bishop, the National Party's housing spokesperson, in response to the news. The announcement about the land's sale to Mr Jackson and Ms Walsh follows a long-running dispute over what to do with the land,){kind=link}
A controversial NZ$500m ($298m) housing development plan in New Zealand has been scuppered by Lord of the Rings director Sir Peter Jackson.
He and his wife Dame Fran Walsh, who co-wrote the film trilogy, have bought the former Air Force Base at Shelly Bay in the country’s capital, Wellington.
It means that plans to build hundreds of houses, as well as commercial businesses, will no longer take place.
Mr Jackson and Ms Walsh say they want to restore the bay’s “natural beauty”.
“It’s a wonderful coastline that holds a great deal of cultural and historical significance,” Mr Jackson and Ms Walsh said in a statement.