Marlborough Express - Weekend Express
Minimum section sizes to stay
A new document set for release later this week is expected to keep the minimum size for a residential section in much of suburban Blenheim at 400 square metres, after the region’s new environment plan suggested an increase.
Marlborough’s newly minted ‘‘master plan’’, fusing three planning documents into one, was formally released at Omaka Marae in Blenheim on Thursday, with sections of the Proposed Marlborough Environment Plan published on the Marlborough District Council website that afternoon.
The original version of the Proposed Marlborough Environment Plan, drafted by staff, advisers and working groups, had increased the minimum size of new sections in Residential Zone 2 from 400 square metres to 450sqm.
Gilbert Haymes Associates surveyor Tony Hawke said last week after reading the documents published online it seemed the increase stood, depleting the number of sections that could be subdivided as ‘‘infill’’ – touted by the council has a way to ease Blenheim’s housing shortage.
’‘A lot of people buy sections thinking they will subdivide it in the future. People possibly aren’t going to invest if they don’t know they can subdivide,’’ he said last week.
Stuff reported on Monday that the minimum section size had been increased to 450sqm, meaning some people with large sections may no longer be able to subdivide as planned.
Council chief executive Mark Wheeler explained this week an independent panel making final decisions on the plan had decided to keep the minimum size at 400sqm.
Their decision followed recommendations from external commissioners, who spent roughly two years sifting through 1300 public submissions.
Recommendations rejected by the panel were detailed in a separate ‘‘Decision’’ document.
Although the Proposed Marlborough Environment Plan was released at noon on Thursday, the ‘‘Decision’’ document was published online in sections on Thursday, Friday and Monday.
A further ‘‘Tracked Changes’’ document, yet to be published on the council website, would show the original Proposed Marlborough Environment Plan along with all changes made, including the decision to keep the minimum section size in Residential
Zone 2 at 400sqm, Wheeler said.
Wheeler hoped it would be released by the end of Tuesday, but staff were still writing it at noon.
Hawke said after discussions with council staff on Monday and reviewing the online documents available, he would wait to see the ‘‘Tracked Changes’’ document before advising clients.
‘‘They should have just released a final copy with all the changes in there. How the average Joe Bloggs is supposed to read all these documents online I don’t know. No-one can understand it.’’
Wheeler said on Tuesday he understood people were considering asking the Environment Court for an extension of the April 3 deadline for appeals, due to the delayed release of key documents, including the ‘‘Tracked Changes’’ document.
‘‘Because of the number of submissions made, and because some of the topics are quite complex and technical, it’s quite hard to read. I don’t think it would ever be totally simple to read. But the Tracked Changes document will make it easier for people and that’s being worked on by a team quite frantically,’’ Wheeler said.
‘‘It’s a big document and we would have preferred to have that out sooner.’’
The council had received applications for 263 residential sections to be built on since the start of this year, including 131 sections at the Nikau Drive development, extending to Alabama Rd, 56 at Rose Manor on Old Renwick Rd, and 40 on Turnbull Drive at Boulevard Park on Taylor.
‘‘We will work alongside developers to ensure the required services, such as sewer, water, stormwater and roading, can be constructed to enable these lots to be available as soon as possible,’’ Wheeler said.
Last year, there were 20 urban subdivisions creating 39 extra sections, 29 of which were infill.