Five Wellington sites could have heritage status removed or changed

The government will consider changing or completely removing the heritage status of five Wellington sites to free them up for development.

RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has also announced that he will also look at the height restrictions in the Courtenay Place heritage area.

The five heritage sites are the Karori Tunnel, Kelburn Viaduct, the former General Headquarters Building at the corner of Taranaki and Buckle streets, and the Miramar oil tank.

Bishop said that an investigation found some heritage provisions are having negative impacts on economic growth, and that modifying or removing them could enable around 770 additional apartments, generate $280 million in construction activity and support around 300 jobs.

The public can have their say on the proposals for 10 days from Wednesday.

"There are several statutory steps that must be completed before any regulations can be made. Wellington City Council has received the investigation report, and affected parties are now being invited to provide feedback on its findings," Bishop said.

Following consultation, the minister will consider feedback from affected parties alongside Wellington City Council's response to the investigation report, before deciding how to proceed.