Izone, Rolleston

Izone was proposed by Selwyn District Council in August 2000 to attract business to their district. The council bought 130 hectares (320 acres) of rural land in April 2001 to start the venture. One year later, the council signed up The Warehouse Group to have their South Island distribution centre established on the site. The distribution centre, which opened in June 2003, was built for the council by Naylor Love and later sold it to an investment fund. It was the largest single-storey building in the South Island at 34,000 square metres (370,000 sq ft) and was extended by another 15,000 square metres (160,000 sq ft) in 2016.[3][4]

By 2010, Izone was New Zealand's biggest industrial subdivision.[3] In 2015, Port of Lyttelton and Port of Tauranga both built container handling facilities at Izone. Port of Lyttelton did so because the Christchurch Southern Motorway had caused congestion on Brougham Street, slowing down access to Canterbury's port. Port of Tauranga did so because it owns a half-share in PrimePort Timaru. Both these South Island ports are accessible via the Main South Line.[5] The PrimePort facility opened in July 2015[6][7] and Lyttelton's MidlandPort opened in June 2016.[8]

Izone is framed on two sides by railway lines. The Main South Line forms the southern boundary and the Midland Line forms the south-western boundary. Parallel to and just beyond the Main South Line is State Highway 1, and beyond the highway is the township of Rolleston.[4]

The intersection on State Highway 1 that is formed with Hoskyns Road was signalised in March 2007.[3] As State Highway 1 segregates the township from its industrial subdivision, a bridge is planned to connect Rolleston with Izone to be constructed in 2021.[9]

Rolleston Izone statistical area covers 2.43 km² (0.94 sq mi).[1] It had an estimated population of 40 as of June 2022,[2] with a population density of 16.5 people per km².

Rolleston Izone had a population of 33 at the 2018 New Zealand census, a decrease of 18 people (−35.3%) since the 2013 census, and a decrease of 30 people (−47.6%) since the 2006 census. There were 6 households, comprising 15 males and 18 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.83 males per female. The median age was 35.3 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 3 people (9.1%) aged under 15 years, 12 (36.4%) aged 15 to 29, 15 (45.5%) aged 30 to 64, and 3 (9.1%) aged 65 or older.

Ethnicities were 72.7% European/Pākehā, 27.3% Māori, 9.1% Asian, and 9.1% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.

The percentage of people born overseas was 9.1, compared with 27.1% nationally.

Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 63.6% had no religion, and 18.2% were Christian.

Of those at least 15 years old, 3 (10.0%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 3 (10.0%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $32,200, compared with $31,800 nationally. 3 people (10.0%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 21 (70.0%) people were employed full-time, and 3 (10.0%) were part-time.[10]

• Industrial suburb