Hill’s family, American billionaire Ric Kayne and his business partner Jim Rohrstaff have teamed up to upgrade The Hills championship course, including the clubhouse, and build up to 107 dwellings for visitor, residential and staff accommodation.
The project is one of 149 the government has approved for inclusion in the Fast-track Approvals Bill.
"We’re quite welcoming [of] a more streamlined approach," Sir Michael said.
"When I built this golf course [in the mid 2000s], you didn’t need a consent at all.
"Now, if you move a fairway, like 3m, I need a resource consent that takes up to two or three years.
"So this is trying to simplify things, to make things sane rather than insane."
Sir Michael said the houses would be "very discreet and beautifully done, akin with nature, which the whole development will be".
"I think I owe it to the community that I have the honour and privilege to have this most beautiful piece of land."
He had been approached by lots of people wanting to develop The Hills.
"But most of them were just greedy people in the sense all they wanted to do was fill the place with houses and sell them off and make a quick profit - I can’t think of anything worse."
He teamed up with Mr Kayne and Mr Rohrstaff after seeing their Tara Iti and Te Arai Links golf courses near Mangawhai, north of Auckland.
"We found the perfect people to go in with that will create possibly ... one of the great golf courses and destinations in the world.
"It’ll become a legacy for the whole area of total excellence."
Despite a model in which existing golf members would reportedly pay up to $295,000 in return for a stake in the new club and course, "we’ll never lose the touch and the feel of what we’ve built up", Sir Michael said.
The Hills general manager Rob Selley said though the new membership model presented "a financial hurdle upfront, it’s the best way to keep The Hills as the best version of itself".
"When you look at the model that’s been in existence, there was a risk for both the members and the Hill family."
By contrast, the new model offered "pretty much sustainability in perpetuity".
Meanwhile, Mr Rohrstaff said "we were thrilled to have been selected for the fast track".
"We are eagerly waiting to see what it means and how it can hopefully assist the process in getting through the various consents we need in a timely manner.
"Processes are long and expensive all throughout New Zealand, so any kind of assistance we can get while still respecting the landscape and density requirements that are approved would be great."
As at Tara Iti and Te Arai Links, he said their buildings would not overwhelm the landscape.
Work is set to start on the golf course in April, 2026, but there is a chance construction work could start as soon as the third quarter of next year.
