The District Plan Review commenced in 2020 with a review of how well the Operative District Plan was working, discussions with key stakeholders and technical investigations. This identified which rules and provisions are still relevant, any new issues which have arisen, and assessed which provisions are working or are not working well. The initial issue-scoping process concluded in 2022. In October 2022 the Councils released to the public a non-statutory Draft District Plan for community consultation. The Joint Committee considered all written feedback received, and took this into account as part of the development of the Proposed District Plan.
The Proposed District Plan was released in October 2023 and underwent a formal 9-week submission period to the 19th December 2023.
The Proposed District Plan can be found here.
The Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA), requires that a summary document of submissions received on a proposed district plan be prepared and made available to the public.
There are two versions of the ‘Summary of Decisions Requested’ document, one ordered by submitter, the other ordered by Plan chapter. Both contain the same data in different formats.
Hard copies are also available to view at District Council offices and libraries.
Copies of the original submissions are available below. The original submissions are organised by submission number. There is also a list of submitters in alphabetical order and numerical order.
Further submissions were then invited. This formal submission process ran from 22 March until 23 April 2024.
Further submissions were also sought on submission points in an Errata. This submission period closed on 29 May 2024. No further submissions on the Errata were received.
Hearings
The District Plan Review has undergone extensive public engagement which has included an informal feedback and a formal submissions process.
The next step is the hearings process. Further information will be issued soon.
The District Plan Review Process can be broken into three key phases of work as illustrated below:
To ensure we make progress at a good pace, and to allow sufficient time for proper community and stakeholder dialogue, a work programme spanning more than three years to notification of the Plan has been agreed to. Phase Two is now complete.
The formal engagement process relating to the Proposed Plan took place in late 2023.
The Proposed District Plan submissions process has now closed. Any ensuing consultation is now limited to those who made a submission before the closing date. Submissions on the Proposed District Plan are available here. A further submission period ran from 22 March until 23 April 2024. This is was an opportunity for people to make submissions in support or opposition to points raised in an original submission. The Review is now moving to the Council hearings phase and subsequent decisions on submissions including amendments to the Proposed District Plan. Any submitter can then lodge an appeal to the Environment Court for any decision they are dissatisfied with
A further submission is a submission made in support of, or opposition to, another person or party’s submission point made in the first round of submissions.
Further submissions are an opportunity for you to assess the effect an original submission may have on you, and to have your views considered by the Hearing Panel alongside the original submission. You do not need to have made an original submission on the Proposed District Plan to be able to make a further submission.
A further submission may only be made by someone who:
Further submissions can also be made by local authorities, such as District Councils.
For details on how to make a further submission, visit the Contact page, How do I make a further submission?
All submissions and further submissions received will made available on this website.
If a person making a submission or further submission asks to be heard in support of their submission, a hearing must be held.
At the hearing of submissions, you will have an opportunity to speak in support of your submission. Hearing dates have not yet been set down but will likely commence in mid-2024.
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