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Plan Change 21

Plan Change 21: Greenbelt Residential & Urban Growth

Status: Appealed to Environment Court

Publicly Notified: 10 January 2009

Submissions Closed: 27 February 2009

Summary of Submissions Notified: 26 March 2009

Further Submissions Closed: 27 April 2009

Hearing Details: Hearing held 11, 12, 13 August 2009

Decision Adopted by Council: 3 February 2010

Adopted Decision Publicly Notified: 17 February 2010

Plan Change Description
Plan Change 21 seeks to introduce new provisions to the District Plan for Greenbelt Residential areas and to manage new urban growth areas for residential development.

Whilst the Development Plan was adopted by Council in July 2008, the District Plan currently makes no provision for Greenbelt Residential development or for development of the identified growth areas in the Development Plan. This Plan Change introduces the necessary provisions to the District Plan to enable parts of the Development Plan to be implemented.

Not all areas of the Development Plan would be addressed through this Plan Change. This Plan Change only addresses the Greenbelt Residential and Residential urban growth areas. The identified Retail, Wholesale and Industrial areas in the Development Plan do not form part of this plan change.

It is important to understand that as a result of this Plan Change, not all Greenbelt Residential and Urban Growth Areas will be rezoned at the same time. As these identified areas rely on the provision of Council services and infrastructure, it has been necessary for the expenditure and provision of such services and infrastructure to be prioritised and spread over a number of years. For areas where the infrastructure is not included in the Council’s programme of works for the next 10 years, a deferred zoning would apply until such time that the necessary infrastructure or services have been provided.

In most cases, this Plan Change would provide landowners that are to be rezoned with opportunities for more intensive development than they would be entitled to under the current District Plan provisions.

The Plan Change would see the introduction of Structure Plans for the Greenbelt Residential Areas and Urban Growth Areas (apart from the deferred areas). Structure Plans are spatial plans that set out the overall broad pattern and form of subdivision development for a specific area, including the layout and nature of infrastructure/servicing and open space/reserves.

This Plan Change should be considered together with Plan Change 20 (Rural Subdivision), which provides new provisions to reduce fragmentation of the rural environment for intensive rural-residential development by recognising and protecting rural production and landscape character values.

Submissions
The first phase of public submission on Plan Change 21 closed on 27 February 2009 with over 90 submissions received. These submission have been collated in the Summary of Submission reports below.

Summary of Submissions - Plan Change 21 (PDF 419 KB)

Full Submissions for Plan Change 21 can be viewed at Council's Customer Service Centres. Alternatively, this file is also available free on CD by request to districtplan@horowhenua.govt.nz.

Further submissions on Plan Change 21 closed 27 April 2009, with 20 submissions received. To view copies of the further submissions please contact the Council Planning Department to arrange this.

Hearing
The hearing for Plan Change 21 was held on 11, 12 and 13 August 2009.

Decision

The Hearing Panel, consisting of three Commissioners, has made recommendations on all the submissions received. These recommendations were presented at the Council meeting held on 3 February 2010.

At this meeting the recommendations of the Commissioners were adopted in full by Council. The adopted decision was publicly notified on 17 February 2010.

Plan Change 21: Adopted Decision Report (PDF, 2 MB)
Plan Change 21: Adopted Decision Appendix (PDF, 1 MB)

A track changes version of Plan Change 21 has been prepared to assist with identifying the changes that have been adopted since the plan change was first notified.

Plan Change 21: Plan Text and Map Amendments as Adopted (PDF, 1 MB)

Submitters had 30 working days from being notified of the adopted decision to lodge an appeal with the Environment Court.

Two appeals have been lodged with the Environment Court in relation to the decision on this plan change.

Public Notices & News Items
10 Jan 2009 - Notification of Proposed Plan Changes 20 & 21
10 Jan 2009 - Public Notice - Plan Change 20 & 21 (PDF, 79 KB)
17 Feb 2009 - Submissions Close Soon on Proposed Plan Changes
28 Feb 2009 - First Phase of Public Submissions Close on Proposed Plan Changes
26 Mar 2009 - Further Submissions Called on Plan Changes 20 & 21
26 Mar 2009 - Public Notice - Summary of Submissions on Plan Changes 20 & 21 to the Horowhenua District Plan
26 Mar 2009 - Further Submissions on Plan Changes Close Soon
28 Apr 2009 - Further Submissions Close on Plan Changes 20 & 21
13 July 2009 - Dates Set for Plan Change Hearings
6 Aug 2009 - Council Appoints Commissioners for Plan Changes
17 Feb 2010 - Public Notice Adoption Decisions of Submissions on Plan Changes 20 and 21

Reference Documents
Environmental Guidelines for Rural Living - Kapiti & Horowhenua (2001) (PDF, 3 MB)
Landscape Assessment of the Rural Environment of the Horowhenua District (October 2008) (PDF, 1 MB)
The Impact of Rural Subdivision and Development on Landscape Values (July 2000) MFE (PDF, 1 MB)