The Whakatāne District Council has made decisions on its Proposed District Plan, following a comprehensive hearings and deliberations process. From 4 December 2015, Council’s planning staff will be required to consider any resource consent applications against both the Operative and Proposed District Plan (‘Amended by Decisions’ version). Those who have previously made submissions on the proposed changes will have until 5 February 2016 to appeal the decisions to the Environment Court, should they wish to do so.
The revision of the Operative District Plan began in 2010—with the primary goal of enabling use and development, while protecting the places we value—and the Proposed District Plan was made available for submissions in September 2013.
The Council received 392 submissions and 132 further submissions, which included more than 6,400 submission points. A Hearings Committee, chaired by Councillor Russell Orr, was established to hear and deliberate on each of those submission points, a process which took a number of months.
Mr Orr says the Council is pleased to have arrived at this stage, after carefully considering all submissions. “We realise how important this plan is to our future and how much it affects everyone, so we really took the time to fully understand the submissions. Committee members believe that the decisions we made have produced a robust, forward-looking plan which, although it may not please everyone, will provide certainty and direction for the future,” he says. “On behalf of the Committee, I thank everyone who contributed to the process.”
Copies of the decision documents on the Proposed Whakatāne District Plan, including a track-changed decisions version of the Proposed Whakatāne District Plan, are available for inspection at Council offices and District libraries. Copies of the decisions documents, including the track-changed decisions version of the Proposed Whakatāne District Plan, may also be obtained on data stick or via the Council’s website free of charge. Alternatively, a hard copy can be purchased for $65 for text and $60 for the Planning Maps.