16 August 2021
Media: Local Democracy Reporter
Topic: MIQ facilities
Enquiry
Reporter sought comment from Mayor Chadwick regarding the following:
Last week I did this story : https://www.nzherald.co.nz/rotorua-daily-post/news/covid-19-coronavirus-miq-government-investigating-extra-isolation-facilities-health-staff-concerned/M4YFA6TPN4PMI5HYURC4B2J32I/
Today I'm following it up, gathering the thoughts of Rotorua's leaders on the topic.
Response
From Mayor Chadwick:
We were very clear with officials who met with Council, Te Arawa and RED representatives last week that Rotorua cannot sustain any more MIQ facilities.
Our community has taken on its fair share in that regard for quite some time now but we cannot take on any more.
Running MIQ facilities here impacts on local DHB, police and security resources, and those are resources our community misses out on.
Imposing more MIQ facilities on Rotorua will increase risk with regard to community safety and health services and that’s something we are very concerned about.
We also need to retain capacity for visitors – which we currently still have.
Rotorua has been willing to play its part, and we’ve taken that on while also trying to rebuild our economy, and despite existing challenges with housing that have required the use of accommodation stock to fulfil a critical need.
Ultimately, others will make the decisions but we have been clear about our views and concerns and have been assured these will be taken into account.
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Media: Rotorua Daily Post
Topic: Consent application for Wylie Court site
Enquiry
I have some follow up questions for the council on the Wylie Court resource consent submitted by Kainga Ora as a result of a letter circulating Glenholme residents at the weekend.
The letter makes several claims, including that it is "without question" the council has tried to keep this quiet, calling it "very naughty" and most likely not legal". The letter says it would have been approved unnoticed if a resident hadn't noticed it a few weeks ago.
- Do you have anything to say in response to that claim?
The letter is urging residents to contact the council and sign a petition asking the council to make the application notifiable, as well as any other applications involving Government housing on Fenton St. I asked the council last week if it would make the application publicly notifiable and the response was that it would be considered as part of the application. Given the public pressure starting to mount, I'm asking the question again in case the response has changed.
- Will the council consider making this a notifiable consent? What is the council's reaction to the response from Glenholme residents?
- The Government has recently announced it has bought the Boulevard Motel. Did the Government make a similar application for land use change for this motel to operate as transitional housing and if so, when was this application approved? If a land use consent was required for the Boulevard Motel, why wasn't this application process publicly notified?
Response
You can attribute this to Jean-Paul Gaston, Deputy Chief Executive District Development:
1. The suggestion that Council is not following the legislative process for this application is absolutely incorrect.
2. Whether a consent is notified or not is always a consideration for the processing planner. As previously confirmed, this consent is currently being processed and no decisions, including whether it will be notifiable, have been made as yet.
We expect that the decision around notification is likely to be made within the next three to four weeks.
2. A Land Use Consent was granted 9 July 2021.
The Rotorua District Plan allows through the resource consent process for motels on Fenton Street to be converted to housing.
In assessing any consent, Planners consider the level of effects of the new activity against the District Plan and the Resource Management Act and whether it would be significant enough to require notifying neighbours and/or the wider community.
In terms of Boulevard Motel it was determined that the effects of people staying in the accommodation as visitors and people staying in the motel for residential purposes would be relatively similar.
Response fromDarren Toy, Bay of Plenty Regional Director, Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities:
We continue, with urgency, to look at a range of opportunities to meet the increasing need in our community for housing for people in Rotorua.
We haven’t purchased the Wylie Court Motor Lodge, but have recently bought for housing, the vacant land on the corner of Ranolf Street/Malfroy Road, and the Boulevard Motel.
The resource consent application made by Kāinga Ora to permit the converted units at the Boulevard Motel to be used for transitional housing was granted by Rotorua Lakes Council on 9 July 2021.