Environment Canterbury councillors accepted the recommendations made by its external commissioners on the Regional Policy Statement Proposed Change 1 yesterday. The change addresses land use and urban growth management in Greater Christchurch until 2041, underpinning the continuing success of the Greater Christchurch Urban Development Strategy.
Environment Canterbury chair Alec Neill says the decision represents a significant milestone in planning to manage growth in Greater Christchurch.
“This milestone has been achieved through strong and effective collaboration between the Greater Christchurch Urban Development Strategy partners. That bodes well for future relationships and will be of significant benefit to the Greater Christchurch community,” says Cr Neill.
“The importance of integrating land-use with transport, the principle of intensified land use, the protection of the Christchurch’s drinking water aquifer recharge zone, the 50 decibel noise contour around the airport and the need for stormwater and catchment management are all endorsed by this decision,” says Cr Neill.
“I would like to take this opportunity to commend the commissioners on making timely and considered recommendations from a complex range of issues and interests. I would also like to thank them for their part in helping take the Urban Development Strategy another sizeable stride forward,” says Cr Neill.
Mayor Bob Parker of Christchurch City Council says that Proposed Change 1 is the landmark planning document that will bring the Greater Christchurch Urban Development Strategy to life, bringing certainty for the UDS partners, developers and the wider community.
Ron Keating, Mayor of Waimakariri District Council says that the decision represents a very valuable and significant step forward. “Plan Change 1 provides better defined parameters by which the Waimakariri District and its partners can plan for land use and the effects of future population growth.”
Selwyn District Mayor Kelvin Coe says that his Council is pleased that the commissioners and Environment Canterbury have kept sight of the big picture and says that he applauds the recommendations as a resounding endorsement of the overall vision of coordinated urban development in Christchurch, Selwyn and Waimakariri districts.
Bill Wasley, Chairman of the Urban Development Strategy Implementation Committee says that the decision to accept the commissioners’ recommendations reaffirms the collaborative and integrated approach to managing growth in Greater Christchurch. “It endorses the work of the partnership in addressing growth management issues from a strategic and long-term perspective and brings us closer to a framework that will ensure urban growth can be addressed effectively.”
Cr Neill says that Environment Canterbury will continue to discuss the implications of the amendments to Proposed Change 1 with the Urban Development Strategy Partners over the next few weeks.
Today’s council decision clears the way for decisions on submissions on Proposed Change 1 to be publicly notified on December 19, 2009 which is the next step towards it becoming operative, subject to appeals to the Environment Court. Potential appellants will have the 40 working days up to the March 5, to lodge an appeal.
For information on the Regional Policy Statement Plan Change 1: http://ecan.govt.nz/RPS
For more information contact Alec Neill, Environment Canterbury Chairman, 027 440 3731.
Supplementary Information
The UDS partners are: Environment Canterbury, the Christchurch City Council, Selwyn and Waimakariri District Councils, and the New Zealand Transport Agency.
To look at a printable map of the urban limits and Greenfields sites go to: http://ecan.govt.nz/publications/Plans/A3Version.pdf
Summary Note on Commissioners’ Recommendations on Proposed Change 1, including Variations 1-4, to the Regional Policy Statement.
1. The Recommendations accept that Proposed Change 1(“PC1”) is an appropriate response to the urban development issues of Greater Christchurch. With amendments, the Commissioners recommend that decisions be made on submissions and further submissions as part of the Resource Management Act process for PC1, subject to any appeals to the Environment Court, becoming operative.
2. The overall concept of PC1 looking out 35 years and providing for the residential and business land needs of the projected population (75,000 households) is endorsed as is the use of Urban Limits.
3. The statutory context within which PC1 was prepared and the need to integrate land use, transport and infrastructure is supported and concurs with the submissions made by legal counsel as part of the Officer Report. The Recommendations endorse the integration between plans prepared under the Local Government Act, Land Transport Act and Resource Management Act so as to create more efficient and effective provision of urban development and improved social, economic, environmental and community outcomes.
4. The substantial public consultation for PC1, drawing as it does on the Urban Development Strategy and the cooperative partnership relationship between the City, District Councils, New Zealand Transport Agency and Environment Canterbury is commended.
5. The Section 32 analysis (consideration of alternatives, benefits and costs) is considered appropriate.
6. The Issues, Objectives and most of the Policies of PC1 are recommended to remain substantially unchanged. The 50 dBA Ldn noise contour is retained around Christchurch International Airport as the limit for noise sensitive activities.
7. The major recommended changes are to the Maps (all other submissions are recommended to be declined) and the detailed implementation provisions in PC1. These include:
a. Adding in a further 5650 households within Greenfields Residential Areas in order to avoid the risks of undersupply and provide further choice of living environment. No infrastructure or transport issues or undermining of the objectives and policies of PC1 are foreseen by the Commissioners in recommending this addition.
b. In Waimakariri District:
• 2000 additional households are located in Greenfields Residential Areas at Woodend and within part of MR 873 adjacent to Woodend (this recommendation is to ensure sufficient regard to tangata whenua issues),
• 1000 additional households at Kaiapoi where the “hole” under the airport noise contour is filled for urban design and efficiency reasons.
• The area to the east of McIntosh’s Drain is deleted but the Kaiapoi Golf Club land is included within the Urban Limits.
c. In Selwyn District:
• an additional 110 households recommended at Prebbleton
• an additional 269ha Greenfields Business land at Izone, Rolleston.
d. In Christchurch City,
• 2200 additional households are located in Greenfields Residential Area in western Marshlands (the Mill Road, Hills Road blocks).
• New Policy 12, Special Treatment Areas covering all of Hendersons Basin (both above and below the 19m flood ponding contour), Cranford Street Basin, and North west Christchurch (between the existing urban boundary and the airport) requiring Christchurch City to investigate appropriate land uses in these areas by 2012 and include zoning and/or other provisions in the City Plan.
• An additional 60 ha Greenfields Business land at Hornby and Memorial Avenue.
• Two further Key Activity Centres at Belfast and New Brighton (the airport is rejected as an Activity Centre).
• Deletion of the L2, L3 and L4 City Plan zoning areas from PC1 and providing for intensification to occur in the Central City area and adjacent suburbs.
e. Other overall changes recommended are:
• to alter the sequencing of Greenfields Residential Areas so as to provide for two periods rather than three until 2041 (2007 – 2020 and 2021-2041) with no sequencing for Greenfields Business Areas.
• to alter the objectives and policies so that strategic infrastructure in Greater Christchurch is not specifically identified (eg Christchurch International Airport or Burnham Military Camp) but referred to as examples in the definition of strategic infrastructure. (Objective 8,Policy 10),
• Alter the policy on noise sensitive activities within the 50 dBA Ldn from “avoid” to “limit” (Policy 14)
• Alter the policy on avoiding rural residential development within the groundwater recharge zone for Christchurch’s drinking water, to “avoid adversely affecting…” (Policy 14)
• Alter the policy on Residential Density from “shall achieve…” to “shall generally achieve…” (Policy 11)
• Resource consents or plan changes may provide for urban activities outside the Urban Limits, only where the site has been used for industrial, business or rural activities resulting in contamination or environmental degradation, long term environmental benefit will result and there is no conflict with the objectives and policies of the RPS (Policy 13(b)),
• Urban development may occur outside the Urban Limits where a Change is underway to the RPS, the land is contiguous to the existing Urban Limits and the policies (Policy 13(a) iii and iv) for economies of scale of infrastructure and Outline Development Plan provisions are complied with. (Policy 13(c)
• Clearer and enhanced provision for monitoring and review.(Policy 16)
Timeline for PC1 to become operative
• 19 December 2009 - Notification Decisions on Submissions on PC1
• 22 December 2009 – Submitters receive Decisions on Submissions on PC1
• 5 March 2010 – Appeal period closes
• 26 March 2010 – S274 Notice period closes (opportunity for parties other than submitters/further submitters to join in on appeals)
• April/May 2010, analyse appeals (mediation/jurisdiction/hearings)
• May/June 2010, liaise with UDS partners
• July 2010 Pre Hearing conference?
• August-October 2010 – Mediation
• Further Environment Court Hearings