Joint plan for councils looks likely

The Nelson and Tasman councils look set to have joint planning documents under new legislation to replace the Resource Management Act.

Environment Minister David Parker this week wrote to the mayor and chief executives of Nelson city, Tasman district and Marlborough district councils as well as representatives of the eight Te Tauihi iwi and Nga¯i Tahu outlining the Government’s proposal for the top of the south.

The Resource Management Review Panel, chaired by retired judge Tony Randerson KC, and upon whose 2020 report the reform is based, considered Te Tauihu to be one region for the purposes of planmaking.

Under that scenario, the Marlborough, Tasman and Nelson councils would have a combined Regional Spatial Strategy (RSS) plan – providing long-term, high-level strategic direction for integrated planning – and a combined Natural and Built Environment (NBA) plan, covering resource allocation and land use.

Parker says the Government considered this option and four others. It favoured one of the other four options, which would lead to Marlborough having its own RSS and NBA plans while Nelson and Tasman would have joint documents.

‘‘TDC and NCC working together in this way recognises the benefit spatial planning will provide to Tasman and Nelson, and the existing commonalities between the district and the city,’’ Parker says in the letter.

‘‘In this regard, I note the work NCC, TDC and iwi have undertaken to develop the Nelson Tasman Future Development Strategy, the councils’ co-operation in the joint committee of Tasman district and Nelson city councils, and the high level of shared services between the councils.’’

Given Marlborough’s physical separation from Nelson and Tasman by the Richmond Range, ‘‘there does not appear to be a similarly strong case for requiring the preparation by MDC, TDC and NCC of a combined RSS and a combined NBA plan’’.

The Government would provide for its favoured option in the new legislation, which Parker intended to introduce to Parliament ‘‘soon’’.

That new legislation – the Spatial Planning Bill and the Natural and Built Environment Bill – would be subject to ‘‘a full select committee process’’, which included submissions.

Tasman district mayor Tim King told his fellow elected members on Thursday that there was still ‘‘a lot of work to be done’’ around the ‘‘pragmatic practicalities of how all that might work’’.

‘‘It isn’t simple,’’ King said. ‘‘Nelson City Council’s plan is halfway complete, on hold at the point of notification. Ours is – as you know – at the early stage of inception with pre-consultation.’’