The land in Pukehangi would be freed up to allow for residential housing. Photo / Supplied
The land in Pukehangi would be freed up to allow for residential housing. Photo / Supplied
Rezoning land in Pukehangi could allow more houses to be built in the area but a decision on the change may not be able to be appealed once made.
At a meeting today Rotorua Lakes Council approved an application be made to the Environment Minister to use the Streamlined Plan Change Process to rezone pockets of land in Pukehangi Heights to allow for residential development.
Under that process, any final decisions on rezoning the land will lie with the Environment Minister. The public, council or landowners will not be able to appeal.
The council also approved the public notification of the Plan Change.
The three pockets of land concerned are on either side of Parklands Estate, off Pukehangi Rd.
At the meeting, operations group manager Henry Weston said the development of that area had been signalled in the District and Spatial plans as needed after 2021, but the city was growing faster than predicted.
The Rotorua Lakes Council met in the council chambers. Photo / File
"If we're going to meet the growth needs of the district we do need to see some significant changes in terms of capacity to develop."
Weston said following a streamlined process would likely mean more houses faster and consultation had already happened with the regional council, tangata whenua, government ministries, landowners and residents.
"We think there's been a significant process that's been run over a number of years to alleviate the concerns the public may have about the loss of appeal rights."
Staff have also done assessments on stormwater, geotechnics, cultural impacts and the traffic network.
The council's RMA policy team lead Kate Dahm said the council had been working with landowners, Te Arawa Group Holdings, Paul Sumner and the Hunt family, since 2016.
Rotorua is classed as a medium-growth area. Photo / File
"We're wanting to make sure the landowners are happy with what we're proposing and what we're proposing is realistic.
"Our goal is facilitating housing."
Dahm said full modelling of the Utuhina Stream would determine how many houses could go on the land and would have to be finished before subdivisions could have consent.
Dahm said while going through a streamlined process would remove appeal rights, the public would still be able to have a say during hearings.
The standard plan change process would take between seven months and two years while the streamlined plan change process would take nine to 11 months.
Mayor Steve Chadwick said she felt the Resource Management Act Policy Committee had been thorough.
"For me this has always been a piece of land that we've looked at and said 'perfect for housing'.
"We've got 7 per cent growth and it's ramping up very fast. The first thing I hear from new people coming into our region is difficulty in finding the house they are looking for ... This helps us with that."
Speaking to the Rotorua Daily Post after the council meeting, landowner Paul Sumner said he welcomed the decision to go through the streamlined process as he had been trying to subdivide his land for several years.
"Rotorua needs it [housing]. It's been frustrating having the land there and not being able to do anything with it."
Sumner said he didn't think the plan change would come against opposition as there had already been consultation.
"I don't think there's anything that's outlandish being mooted."
Te Arawa Group Holdings investment manager Stacey Beer said they were happy to be working with the council on the plan change process "to make land available for new homes for our growing city" and would be guided by the council as to the appropriate pathway for the process.
