Submissions on the controversial Plan Change 9 have been released. Photo / Laura Smith
Submissions on the controversial Plan Change 9 have been released. Photo / Laura Smith
A Rotorua school is concerned a controversial plan that would allow for higher-density living in the city could risk the privacy of its children.
The Rotorua Seventh-day Adventist School Board was among the 100 people and entities to voice opinions as part of the submission period for the proposed Housingfor Everyone - Plan Change 9.
The plan change aimed for higher-density living in Rotorua, and proposed to allow medium-density living across most urban areas and high-density living close to and in the city centre, and in commercial centres.
Rotorua Lakes Council said the plan change would help reduce build times, reduce consenting costs and improve opportunities for development and infill housing.
The aim was to tackle the city’s chronic housing supply shortage, and would allow for building up, rather than out.
Concerns included the potential impact the increased height could have on existing homeowners and what implications this could have, with no need for consultation with neighbours.
The proposed standards enable landowners to build up to three homes of up to three storeys high each on most residential sites without requiring resource consent. In some cases, homes up to six storeys high could be built.
Close to the city centre, the height limit would be 19.5 metres.
Submissions on the proposal closed on December 9, after an extension. Summaries of the submissions were released at the end of December.
In its submission, Rotorua Seventh-day Adventist School Board sought for the proposal to be amended, saying it had concerns for the privacy of vulnerable children.
The school specifically asked for properties surrounding the school to be prohibited from building up to three storeys.
Rotorua's Seventh-day Adventist School's board does not want nearby residential buildings to be built three storeys high. Photo / Laura Smith
The school said in its submission that if nearby residential buildings were to be built to three storeys, there would be a detrimental impact on both staff and children.
Glenbrae Village Limited, given its recent purchase of a site it wished to develop, supported the proposal - in part.
If it developed an Ensor Place site to include three properties, it would be for residential purposes, but under the district plan it was considered a rest home, and as such needed resource consent, Glenbrae said in its submission.
Consequently, it asked for such situations to be allowed, provided it complied with relevant performance standards.
Grenbrae requested an amendment on the definition of what “residential activity” and “residential unit” meant.
More than 30,000 ratepayers and owners of buildings in the affected areas were notified, and Residential Zone 1 - a low-density area - resident Ruth Thomas was fully supportive of the proposed change.
Thomas approved of, from a sustainability point of view, having denser housing close to amenities and services, reducing carbon emissions and improving wellbeing through active transport options.
“The changes make complete sense,” she said in her submission.
Another resident living in a low-density area was John Kershaw, who agreed with higher-density housing but not with the proposed yard and height limit and the lack of requirement for on-site parking, saying existing rules allowed for privacy and natural light.
He felt a lack of those features could drive an “exodus” from these areas.
“This will create pressure for development of fringe farming land.”
Other submissions cited concerns about a lack of existing infrastructure to deal with issues such as stormwater and sewerage, while others worried about property value and attractiveness.
Te Arawa Lakes Trust submitted that “in the haste” to respond to the housing crisis, Rotorua Lakes Council must ensure fundamental principles of the Te Tiriti o Waitangi partnership and kaitiakitanga are not ignored in the process.
The trust recommended the council partner with Te Arawa on a number of topics, including climate change impacts and information on the environmental sustainability of the proposed plan.
A hearing was set for August 14 - 25 as an indicative date for a decision to be made by December. The proposed plan change would be operative by March 31, 2024.
