SECTION 42A REPORT Designations
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
SECTION 42a REPORT Designations 1 Executive summary ................................................................................. 3 2 Introduction ........................................................................................... 4 2.1 Author and qualifications ........................................................................... 4 2.2 Code of Conduct ........................................................................................ 4 2.3 The Council versus NPDC ........................................................................... 4 2.4 Expert Advice ............................................................................................ 4 3 Scope / Purpose of Report ...................................................................... 5 4 Statutory Requirements .......................................................................... 5 4.1 Designation requirements .......................................................................... 5 4.2 Procedural matters .................................................................................... 6 4.3 Section 32AA evaluation .......................................................................... 13 5 Consideration of designations ............................................................... 13 5.1 Overview of submissions received ............................................................ 13 5.2 Chorus New Zealand Limited .................................................................... 14 5.3 First Gas Limited...................................................................................... 15 5.4 KiwiRail Holdings Limited ......................................................................... 17 5.5 Kordia Limited ......................................................................................... 18 5.6 Meteorological Service of New Zealand Limited ......................................... 21 5.7 Minister for Courts ................................................................................... 22 5.8 Minister of Education ............................................................................... 23 5.9 New Plymouth District Council General Designations ................................. 27 5.10 New Plymouth District Council Specific Designations ................................. 74 5.11 New Zealand Transport Agency ................................................................ 98 5.12 NZME Radio Limited ...............................................................................103 5.13 Powerco Limited .....................................................................................103 5.14 Spark New Zealand Trading Limited ........................................................104 5.15 Taranaki Regional Council .......................................................................105 5.16 Transpower New Zealand Limited ...........................................................108 5.17 All Designations ......................................................................................110 6 Conclusion .......................................................................................... 111 Appendix 1: Rolled Over Designations with no Modifications not under Submission Appendix 2: Designations that have been withdrawn Appendix 3: Recommended Decisions on Designations and Submissions Appendix 4: Recommended Amendments to Designations Chapter Appendix 5: Recommended Amendments to Planning Maps Appendix 6: Decision Report on Non-Notified Alteration to NOR Application for MEDU-47 Appendix 7: Recommended Amendments to TPR-5: Junction Road Switching Station Appendix 8: Recommended Amendments to TPR-6: Junction Road National Grid Line 1 Executive summary The Proposed District Plan (“PDP”) for New Plymouth district was publicly notified in September 2019. Designations is one of the headings under Part 3: Area Specific Matters. Under the Designations heading there are chapters for each requiring authority. Within each chapter designations are listed numerically in standardised tables. On the planning maps each designation is mapped spatially using a blue polygon. Designations authorise the use of land for a particular project or public work (such as a school, police station, state highway, substation or other infrastructure). The PDP rules do not apply to a public work, project or work undertaken by a requiring authority pursuant to the designation. However, if the designated land is used for a purpose other than the designated purpose, then the provisions of the PDP do apply. Other people may not, without the prior written consent of the requiring authority, do anything in relation to the designated land that would impede the public work, project or work. 16 requiring authorities lodged notices of requirement for 260 designations in the PDP. Forty one original submissions and seven further submissions were received. These submissions covered 17 designations in the PDP and requests for two new designations. The majority of original submissions and further submissions received were on road widening designations requested for inclusion in the PDP by New Plymouth District Council (“the Council or NPDC”). The majority of submitters opposed their inclusion. Since the notification of the PDP, some designations have been withdrawn by NPDC, Powerco Limited and Radio New Zealand Limited. Any submissions received on these designations become null and void. This report has been prepared in accordance with section 42A of the Resource Management Act 1991 (“RMA”). It outlines recommendations in response to the submissions received. The report is intended to assist the PDP hearings commissioners (“the Hearings Panel”) to make decisions on the original submissions and further submissions on the PDP, and to provide submitters with an opportunity to see how their submissions have been evaluated and the recommendations made by officers, prior to the hearing. It also outlines recommendations on whether a designation should be included in the PDP or not. The report is intended to assist the Hearings Panel to make decisions on the designations, and to provide requiring authorities with an opportunity to see how their notices of requirement have been evaluated and the recommendations made by officers, prior to the hearing. 3 2 Introduction 2.1 Author and qualifications My full name is Lauren Theresa O’Byrne, and I am a Senior Policy Adviser in the District Plan Team at the Council. I hold the qualifications of Bachelor of Arts (Social Sciences) majoring in Geography from Massey University, Palmerston North and Master of Planning Practice from University of Auckland, Auckland. I am a full member of the New Zealand Planning Institute. I have 20 years of experience in planning and resource management, including 19 years in the District Plan Team at the Council. Early on my experience included developing policy, writing section 32 reports, summarising submissions, writing section 42a reports and appearing at hearings for numerous variations and plan changes to the previous district plan in both its proposed and operative form on matters such as scheduled items, rezoning of land, renewable electricity generation and off-street parking requirements in the city centre. In recent years I have been involved in the development of the Draft District Plan, the Draft Digital District Plan and the PDP, which included many consultation processes with stakeholders and the community. I have developed policy, written section 32 reports and summarised submissions for these topics in the PDP: Designations, Viewshafts, Historic Heritage, Design Guides, Commercial and Mixed Use Zones and the Special Purpose Zone: Hospital Zone. 2.2 Code of Conduct I confirm that I have read the Code of Conduct for Expert Witnesses in the Environment Court Practice Note 2014 and that I have complied with it when preparing this report. Other than when I state that I am relying on the advice or evidence of another person, this evidence is within my area of expertise. I have not omitted to consider material facts known to me that might alter or detract from the opinions that I express. I am authorised to give this evidence on the Council's behalf to the Hearings Panel. 2.3 The Council versus NPDC Throughout my report I refer to New Plymouth District Council in two ways. Where I refer to “the Council” this is the Council generally. Where I refer to “NPDC” I am referring to the Council as the requiring authority. 2.4 Expert Advice In preparing this report I have relied on expert advice from several people at NPDC: • John Eagles (Network Management Lead, Transport Team) on the matters of NPDC withdrawing some of its road widening designations and service lane designations, and on future plans regarding NPDC- 29, NPDC-40 and NPDC-122; 4 • Stuart Knarston (Network Planning Engineer, Transport Team) on the matters of NPDC withdrawing some of its road widening designations and service lane designations, and on future plans regarding NPDC-29, NPDC-40 and NPDC-122; and • Graeme Pool (Principal Operations Engineer, Three Waters Team) on these matters: conditions for NPDC-71 (New Plymouth Wastewater Treatment and Disposal Facility), upgrades that have occurred since the PDP was notified to NPDC-74 (Oakura Water Treatment Plant), a potential landscaping condition for NPDC-140 (Corbett Park Sewer Pump Station) and a potential accidental discovery protocol condition for NPDC-146 (West Quay Pump Station). 3 Scope / Purpose of Report This report has been prepared in accordance