Processing the Consent Application

This page contains information about the processing of a Building Consent.

The Building Act requires Horowhenua District Council to process a Building Consent application in twenty (20) working days.  The “clock” starts when the consent is accepted for processing by Council.  If the application includes plans and specifications in relation to which a national multi-use approval has been issued, the processing time is ten (10) working days.

At this stage the application is allocated to the various disciplines within Council for processing, ie planning, water, roading, building and drainage.  We check for compliance with Council bylaws and other legislation such as vehicle access, earthworks, water reticulation, public drainage and, in the case of commercial premises, areas such as health, trade waste, Building Warrant of Fitness and backflow prevention. 

Evaluating Building Consent applications

Our building control officers will evaluate the various aspects of your building consent application to ensure it meets the requirements of the Building Act and the Building Code.  Occasionally, due to the complexity or nature of the building design or resourcing, Council may opt to use an external consultant to help with processing.  In these situations the consultant is working on Council’s behalf.  If there are any questions or concerns, a letter will be sent to you requesting further information/clarification.  When a request for further information is sent the 20 working day “clock” is stopped until this information is provided.

There is a requirement for some applications to be sent to the NZ Fire Service, Design Review Unit (DRU).  Additional fees for DRU processing are passed on to the applicant.

In some instances Producer Statements may be accepted as means of establishing compliance.  This is generally where the work involves specific design, such as structural or fire designs.