The interactive map generally works best if you have a specific address or road name to input into the map, or you can get a general overview of where these trees are located by zooming in and out of this map.

Interactive Map - Tree Protection in Auckland

You will need to sit down with a cuppa to read this article, as it is rather long, but I would recommend doing so. It raises some interesting points about both the economic and social costs of basement/car parking buildings and describes briefly the history and demand (in L.A) for these structures. Some of the salient points in the article, that are very relevant to the review and formation of District Plan rules here, point to the requirement of a minimum numbers of car parking spaces for any new development in over-providing for spaces and creating poor quality developments; that funds collected from meters could go to the immediate surrounding businesses and residents and that meter prices should reflect demand (electronic metering).

“It turned out that Pasadena, which didn’t mandate parking when its single-family bungalows were built in the 1920s, now required eight parking spots for a building where four people might live,” says Cole, a Shoupista who is now the city manager of Ventura. “Subterranean parking was too expensive, so a thing called ‘tuck-under’—or semisubterranean—parking was invented.” With tuck-under buildings, residents park half a story below street level and enter their entombed front doors from the garage. Everything is hidden from the street, including the residents who call it home. “Parking requirements,” says Cole, “had created whole communities of new blank walls that faced other blank walls. I hated it.”

This article has inspired me to locate (hopefully an electronic copy) of Donald Shoup’s ‘The High Cost of Free Parking’, as he sounds quite the character:

Shoup can often be found dallying around parking meters and brings a camera to photograph illegally parked cars. Not long ago you could have spotted Shoup clicking on the corner of Pico and Fairfax, where the city had quadrupled its meter rates. (“Rates had gone too high there—sometimes there wasn’t a car on the street.”) In Westwood Village Shoup once rode the Raleigh back and forth for weeks tailing cars. He discovered that the average driver had to circle the block two and a half times before locating an open metered space. Westwood became a model for Shoup; the “cruising” he observed there occurs wherever drivers seek out inexpensive metered space to avoid pricier garages and lots. (A similar study in Manhattan in 1995 revealed that New Yorkers spent 11 minutes on average searching for a space.) In a year’s time in Westwood, space hunting by drivers consumed an extra 47,000 gallons of gas. It stalled traffic, increased accidents, and required 950,000 extra vehicle miles, about four trips to the moon and back.

Article from lamag.com - Between the Lines

Enforcement action -

Enforcement action is when (generally) councils take some form of action to ensure that people are complying with: the Resource Management Act, regulations, a resource consent, a requirement, with district/regional plans including proposed plans or if someone is not complying with their duty to avoid, remedy or mitigate environmental effects or to avoid making unreasonable noise.  Enforcement action is usually initiated by compliant(s) received by councils about a particular activity or structure.

Some of the most common types of enforcement action are: action taken for non-compliance’s with either a District or Regional Plan, for breaching the Resource Management Act or for breaching the conditions of an approved resource consent.

Breaching a District or Regional Plan:

A breach of a District or Regional Plan can be unintentional, when property owners or business owners are not aware of all relevant rules within plans. An example of a potential breach is if the Plan requires discretionary activity resource consent for the establishment of a childcare centre and no consent is obtained.

Breaching the Resource Management Act:

Common breaches of the Resource Management Act include contravening the duties within sections 16 and 17 of the Act. An example of a breach of the section 16 duty is undertaking or allowing an activity to be undertaken that exceeds a reasonable noise level. An example of a breach of the section 17 duty is undertaking or allowing an activity to be undertaken that creates adverse effects such as allowing rubbish, tyres and/or abandoned vehicles to create adverse amenity effects to the surrounding environment.

Breaching a Condition of an Approved Resource Consent:

A breach of an approved resource consent can be unintentional when new property owners or lease holders or business owners are not aware that there are resource consent conditions to be complied with. An example of this is where an activity such as a childcare centre has obtained resource consent to operate and the resource consent is subject to conditions regarding operating hours and maximum number of children (and/or staff).

What Action Can Be Undertaken -

The type of enforcement action that can be undertaken to remedy breaches of the Act, Plan or resource consent conditions depends on the type of breach. In most cases, Council will take informal action i.e phone calls, site visits to talk to the persons involved to remedy a breach. This might involve making someone reduce the noise of the activity they are undertaking (i.e turning down or turning off amplified sound), or modifying their activity to comply (i.e reducing operating hours of a childcare centre to comply with the conditions).

Formal action that can be undertake includes: an excessive noise direction, a water shortage direction, an infringement notice, an abatement notice, an enforcement order or prosecution. These are explained in more detail as follows:

• Excessive Noise Direction – An excessive noise direction issued by a council means that you must immediately stop making unreasonable noise or risk having the source of the noise (amplifier, stereo etc) taken from you. If you do not comply with the excessive noise direction and have your equipment confiscated – you may have to pay a fine to recover the confiscated items;
• Water Shortage Direction – A water shortage direction issued by a Regional Council requires you to stop or reduce your water use (i.e water take or water discharge) for any period up to 14 days. If you do not comply with the water shortage direction you may be prosecuted;
• Infringement Notice – An infringement notice issued by a council is a fine. If you do not pay the fine and continue with the activity you may be issued a further infringement notice or you may be prosecuted;
• Abatement Notice – An abatement notice requires you to stop an activity or it may require you to undertake certain works or activities to either stop a breach or stop a likely breach;
• Enforcement Order – An enforcement order is issued by the Environment Court (but are usually applied for by Councils) and will require you to to stop an activity or undertake works to stop a breach;
• Prosecution – prosecution occurs when a council takes you to Court (criminal proceedings).  Sentences can include: fines, prison terms, community work and reparation (such as donations).

Do you need help? –

We can help you if you have been asked by a council to stop an activity or if you have been requested to undertake works to remedy a breach or likely breach.  In most cases, in the first instance it is a case of working out if there has or will be a breach or if there has been a misunderstanding. If you would like help with a compliance and/or enforcement issue, please contact us.

]]> http://www.cheaptitles.co.nz/2011/06/compliance-andor-enforcement-issues-under-the-resource-management-act/feed/ 0 http://www.cheaptitles.co.nz/2011/06/compliance-andor-enforcement-issues-under-the-resource-management-act/ http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/CheapTitles/~3/Sp4y4RryomE/ http://www.cheaptitles.co.nz/2011/06/proposed-plan-change-160-introduction-of-the-helensville-residential-heritage-policy-and-other-changes/#comments Tue, 07 Jun 2011 07:38:53 +0000 Cindy http://www.cheaptitles.co.nz/?p=629 Proposed Plan Change 160: Introduction of Helensville Residential Heritage Policy and Other Changes seeks to change the provisions of the Auckland Council District Plan (Rodney Section) to better protect heritage values and resources in the older residential areas of Helensville.

The Plan Change implements a policy area (the Helensville Residential Heritage Policy Area) that overlies existing zones of the District Plan (the Residential M zone) so that there are additional rules that apply to these areas (in addition to the zone rules). The are affected by the Proposed Helensville Residential Heritage Policy Area is attached and is shown on the picture below:

The extent of the Helensville Residential Heritage Policy Area

Legend for the Extent of the Helensville Residential Heritage Policy Area

As illustrated on the picture above, the properties that are affected by the policy area are identified as being of an ‘establishing value’, or ‘supporting value’ or ‘neutral value’.

The promoted provisions include additional rules and development controls that will mean that resource consent will be required in the affected areas/zones for external building works, rather than the status quo which is that these external works are permitted (i.e no resource consent is required).

In summary, the promoted rules and development controls include the following:

• That the construction of buildings (including additions and external alterations – which includes demolition of less than 30% by volume) is a restricted discretionary activity (this generally means that resource consent is required for all external building works);
• That the demolition of some buildings (demolition is removal works greater than 30% by volume of buildings which are identified as ‘establishing value’ or ‘supporting value’) is a restricted discretionary activity;
• That the required minimum front yard is the average setback of the existing buildings on the two adjoining sites (which face the same street); and
• That no fence, wall or other structure in the front yard shall exceed a maximum height of 1.4 metres (i.e this would include garages, carports and swimming pools).

The zone maps that are affected by Plan Change 160 are zone maps 104, 105 and 106 as follows:

Map 104 affected by Plan Change 160

Map 105 affected by Plan Change 160

Zone Map 106 affected by Plan Change 160

Submissions close on Friday 1st July 2011. Submissions can be made by email or by post. If you would like help with preparing a submission regarding the promoted provisions of Plan Change 160 contact us and we will be able to help you.

The Certificate of Title is identified by a number (called the land title number, identifier, certificate of title number or CT/COT number). This number will usually be a series of numbers such as 34567 or 897625 or it will look something like the following: WN516/98, OT17A/765, or MB23C/987. The first two letters denote the region in New Zealand where the title is located. This reference is the older way to identify a title, so new titles will usually be a series of numbers.

Land Districts - Land Registration Districts in New Zealand

There are 12 regions in New Zealand as follows (with the relevant reference letters used on the titles provided in brackets):

North Auckland (NA)
South Auckland (SA)
Gisborne (GS)
Taranaki (TN)
Hawkes Bay (HB)
Wellington (WN)
Nelson (NL)
Marlborough (MB)
Westland (WS)
Canterbury (CB)
Otago (OT)
Southland (SL)

The legal description listed on the title can also vary greatly. Commonly a legal description will contain a Lot Number and a Legal Description number so it will look something like the following: Lot 15 DP 34567 however, older legal descriptions are varied. In place of a Lot number there could be a Section, Accessory Unit, Block or Unit number such as Accessory Unit 1B and Unit 1 on DP 12356. In the place of a Deposited Plan number there can be the following references: Survey Office Plan number, Block number, City of …, Parish of …, Suburb of … or Township of … . Some examples of Legal Descriptions are: Lot 65 Dro Blue 2, Pt Allot 2 Sec 11 Suburbs of Auckland, Lot 5 DP 81579 and Pt Lot 2 DP 125985 and Flat 1 DP 134675 on Lot 1 DP 1287663.

When ordering a title from Cheap Titles, you can use a property address or you can use a title identifier number or legal description.

Some tips to assist with your order are as follows:

• If you are entering a title identifier number, if it is the older style of reference (that includes the region) please make sure that you include this as well ie please enter WN34A/987 instead of 34A/987;
• If you are entering a legal description, it is helpful to also enter the suburb/region of the property to ensure that the correct title is obtained ie please enter Lot 2 DP 897656, Brookland, Wellington, instead of just Lot 2 DP 897656; and
• It is also helpful to add your phone number, including area code into your order (there is field to add this to) as this will help to resolve any problems with your title order request more quickly.

If a resource consent is required it will be classified by the Plan as a type or status (if the Plan does not explicitly state the type or status of consent required it may default to being the most complex type of resource consent, being a non-complying activity – but you can confirm that with us).

It is important to note that more than one rule applies to any activity – so even if your activity is permitted or is a certain type of resource consent, this can be modified by other rules in the District or Regional Plan. For example, a childcare centre of no more than 50 children may be a permitted activity as specified by the relevant Plan however, resource consent may be required pursuant to another rule in the District Plan for a car parking area that exceeds the allowable maximum impermeable paved surface rule.

Every council plan (and district plan zones) is different, so a childcare centre of less than 50 children may not be permitted in another suburb/area/district/region.

A permitted activity may be a specifically listed activity i.e. the Plan states that a childcare centre is a permitted activity or it could be a permitted activity as it does not fall within any of the controlled, discretionary or non-complying rules.

The types of resource consents are identified below and are listed in order from the least to the most complex or applications with greater risk (of being refused). Resource consent for a controlled activities (with some exceptions) must be granted. Resource consent for the other activity types can be refused.

1. Controlled (or Restricted Controlled) Activity – Controlled activities require consent, but if they meet all the relevant standards of the Plan and are consistent with the relevant assessment matters they are generally low risk consents. Controlled activity applications can usually not be refused consent – but council can impose conditions.
2. Restricted Discretionary Activity (also sometimes referred to as a Limited Discretionary Activity) – Limited Discretionary Activities require resource consent, and are subject to the standards specified in the Plan. When assessing an application of this type, Council limits its discretion to those identified matters only. Activities may also be listed as Limited Discretionary where they do not meet specified standards. The Council may, subject to limiting itself to the matters for discretion, grant or refuse consent to a Limited Discretionary Activity and, if granting consent, may impose conditions in respect of the matters to which it has restricted its discretion.
3. Discretionary Activity – Discretionary Activities may be appropriate and are assessed against criteria which are included in the Plan, the Objectives and Policies of the Plan and the relevant matters set out in the Act. The Council may grant or refuse consent to a Discretionary Activity and, if granting consent, may impose conditions.
4. Non-complying Activity – A resource consent is required for a non-complying activity. The Council may grant or refuse consent to a non-complying activity and, if granting consent, may impose conditions.
5. Prohibited Activity – you cannot apply for resource consent for a prohibited activity and you cannot undertake a prohibited activity. Generally, most District Plans do not specify many prohibited activities, but they will include the use of radioactive material for power generation. The prohibited activities specified by the Auckland City (Isthmus) District Plan are as follows:

Prohibited Activities in the Auckland City (Isthmus) District Plan

When a resource consent is granted it will usually be subject to conditions. These conditions may require certain works to be performed prior to, during or after construction works.

An example of a pre-construction condition is erecting protective fencing around a tree prior to earthworks commencing. A during construction condition could state that no roots greater than 50mm are to be cut. A post-construction condition might be that a minimum of 3 trees of no less than 2 metres in height are to be planted in close adjacent to the completed works.

Other conditions may not require physical works. For example, the most common condition on resource consents is that the proposal is carried out in accordance with the application (and plans) submitted.

If you have any questions about the activity status of an activity please contact Cindy.

There are also other restrictions to subdividing or constructing additional buildings on a site – including any limitations noted within the ‘Interests” of the relevant Certificate of Title or if there are capacity issues in servicing the site – i.e. water supply, storm water and waste connections). To discuss any of these additional restrictions and limitations contact us.

In this post, I have used an example from the former North Shore Council District Plan. Figure 1 below is a snapshot of land within the former North Shore City Council area that has a mix of different zones.

Figure 1: Zoning maps

Extract of a Zoning Map from the former North Shore City Area

To find out the specific zones identified in Figure 1 above, I refer to the legend, in Figure 2 below:

Figure 2: Zoning Map Legend

Extract of the Legend for the North Shore City District Plan Maps

Accordingly, the zones illustrated in Figure 1 (above) include the Residential 4B zone.

Chapter 16 of the North Shore City District Plan sets out the rules and development controls for residential zones. The following permitted activity rules (ie that do not require resource consent) apply in the Residential 4B zone:

• Residential units where each unit has a minimum site area of 450 square metres or greater;
• Minor residential units on sites with a minimum net site area of 600 square metres or greater; and
• A density of one residential unit per 450 square metres.

The above activities are subject to all the other development controls in Chapter 16 of the District Plan as well as the District Wide rules.

Please contact us if you have a question regarding the development potential of a property – we are more than happy to help.

Generally, I am supportive of any improvements to walking and cycling paths but I had a few issues with these particular modifications which included the extension of a cycle/pedestrian path along the western side of Ian McKinnon Drive – my reason being is that there is effectively no where to go – as Ian McKinnon Drive narrows as it heads north past Piwakawaka Street.

I would have thought that it would be better to upgrade the existing path along the eastern side of Ian McKinnon Drive as this has better connections to the existing cycle path etc. and would, I assume, cost less than the creation of a new path (and probably less disruptive for traffic as well).

So I drafted up an email with some comments to this effect and well …. my feedback went nowhere really as this is the ‘personal’ response that I got back from Auckland Council:

All in all I wonder how much value is placed on this consultation – but I would probably provide feedback again.

Existing use rights are different from having an activity that resource consent or planning permission was sought.

Existing use rights can be lost if the character, intensity and scale of these rights are modified or if the activity was discontinued for more than 12 months. For example, a childcare centre accommodating 25 children may have been legally established many years ago, but if this childcare centre were to increase in size so say 100 children, this would not have the same character, intensity or scale as when it was originally established.

If this childcare centre with 100 children contravened a rule in the current District Plan it would require resource consent regardless of the fact that when it was first established it did not need resource consent.

It can be difficult to prove existing use rights apply, as when an activity is permitted, there is no resource consent application sought and not always building consent documentation that you can refer to.

For example, in the situation that retail, office and warehousing activities are all permitted on a property, the building consent plans may refer to the activities that were being undertaken (or proposed to be undertaken) when the building was first constructed, but these activities may have changed and there may not be a corresponding building consent plan to reflect this change. This creates difficulties down the line when you are trying to establish the history of the use of the property.

In this case, it may be appropriate to apply for a Certificate of Compliance (which is a type of resource consent) for a permitted activity. There is a cost associated with applying for and receiving this Certificate of Compliance. You will need to make an application to the council with sufficient information to demonstrate that your proposed activity complies with the District Plan. The council will then process your application and issue you with a certificate of compliance.

The costs of a Certificate of Compliance depend on the time that the council spends in processing the application – but the deposit fees for a Certificate of Compliance for several councils is illustrated below:

Auckland Council – $570
Lakes Environmental (Queenstown Lakes District Council) – $150
Taupo District Council – $511
Rotorua District Council – $475

One situation where applying for a Certificate of Compliance may be useful is in pre-purchase negotiations where the purchase is reliant on a certain activity being undertaken on the property. You may not wish to make an offer on a property unconditional unless you have this Certificate of Compliance to demonstrate that an activity, such as a hairdressing salon can be operated from a room in a house.

For any further questions on Existing Use Rights or for help in applying for a Certificate of Compliance, please contact Cindy.