Housing for Everyone - Plan Change 9 consultation closed
Consultation on District Plan changes to enable greater housing choice and supply in Rotorua has now closed with 96 submissions received.
Housing for Everyone – Plan Change 9 incorporates giving effect to the government’s Medium Density Residential Standards (MDRS).
It also aims to:
- Enable a greater supply and variety of homes that meet the needs of Rotorua residents;
- Achieve a well-functioning urban environment and efficient use of land;
- Better enable and encourage papakāinga development;
- Ensure development is integrated with infrastructure planning and funding for open space;
- Ensure that significant risks from natural hazards are appropriately managed in relation to increased development potential.
“This is an important plan change as part of addressing Rotorua’s critical housing shortage and creating thriving communities,” DCE District Development, Jean-Paul Gaston says.
Fundamentally, the urban residential zones in Rotorua are being amended to better enable medium and high density living, in line with government policy and legislation.
“We need all types of homes so encouraging intensification and building up rather than out will help increase supply and give people more housing choice.”
It has also been important to ensure more housing is enabled and encouraged in a way that also protects and enhances the district through more efficient use of land, Mr Gaston says.
While more submissions would have been welcomed, there was good feedback from pre-consultation engagement.
“We undertook more than 30 sessions with groups including tangata whenua, community groups, government agencies, schools, consultants, developers, technical advisory groups, neighbouring councils and other stakeholders. These sessions helped develop an understanding and knowledge of the direction being proposed.”
Following the notification of the plan change, information sessions on the plan change and submission process were held with consultants; tangata whenua; architects and designers; developers, real estate agents and valuers; and community groups
Changes that took effect when PC9 was notified, on 20 August 2022:
Development standards in the District Plan have been changed in two of Rotorua’s residential zones to enable landowners to build up to three homes of up to three storeys each on most residential sites, without requiring a resource consent.
See more about this change HERE and more about the MDRS HERE
Proposed changes that were open for submissions until 14 October:
- Introducing a High Density Residential Zone to enable more people to live in areas with access to amenities and employment through active and public transport modes. This will involve amendments across all urban zones to align development heights and densities with the National Policy Statement on Urban Development (2020).
- Enabling increased development density in the Commercial and City Centre Zones by enabling a greater height in these locations.
- Amending rules for papakāinga development to make these developments easier to do and enable papakāinga to occur in both urban and rural areas;
- Amendments to better manage flood risk and geothermal hazards;
- Amendments to ensure protection of heritage values of cultural heritage features to protect these from inappropriate subdivision and development;
- Setting of financial contributions from development for reserves (NOTE: this does not refer to Development Contributions).
The process from here
Council is now summarising the submissions received. The summary will be publicly notified and will be available on Council’s website, along with submissions received.
People will then have until a specified date to make any further submissions and hearings of any further submissions will follow.
The timeframe for the notification and further submissions process is still to be confirmed.
Final recommendations are expected to go to Council for its consideration and decision-making by late next year, possibly earlier, and the changes will become operative on or before 31 March 2024.
See a breakdown of PC9 HERE
For all available information and our explainer video see THIS LINK on Council’s Let’s Talk/Kōrero Mai platform.