District Plan Changes

Summaries of previous plan changes

These plan changes are now operative, so they are included within the current version of the District Plan. Here is a brief summary of each District Plan change and its purpose.

Plan Change 1: Minor Changes

Plan Change 1 corrected minor errors and inconsistencies in the District Plan and adds cross-references between sections where gaps have been identified.

Plan Change 2: Pukehāngi Heights

The plan change sought to alter the zoning to enable residential and rural residential development within the Pukehāngi Heights area. To guide any development, a structure plan along with specific provisions (including rules and performance standards) was included.

Plan Change 3: Significant Natural Areas (SNAs)

Plan Change 3 proposed changes to the maps of significant natural areas (SNAs) and the associated schedule of SNAs in Appendix 2 - Natural Heritage Inventory of the District Plan.

The plan change involved:

• Adding new significant natural areas to the planning maps and District Plan’s list of significant natural areas
• Extending some existing significant natural areas
• Removing several significant natural areas or parts of significant natural areas from the District Plan due to alternative legal protection for these sites
• Reconsidering the boundaries of some existing significant natural areas.

Plan Change 4: Noise

The plan change intended to clarify and improve the provisions for managing noise, as well provide clear references to the New Zealand standard.

Plan Change 5: Signage and Miscellaneous Changes

The purpose of this Plan Change is to make some minor additions and miscellaneous changes to the Rotorua District Plan and a number of alterations to the sign provisions across all zone chapters of the Plan and in the general district wide matters chapter. It also made a number of minor additions and alterations to the provisions of the Plan to:

• Remove redundant provisions or duplications
• Provide greater clarity for the provisions and improve implementation (allowance for sponsorship signs and non-site related community information signs)
• Align conflicting rules relating to status
• Include matters over which the Plan reserves control or restricts discretion
• Align provisions with objectives and policies, including some new objectives and policies for signs.

Plan Change 6: Holiday Rentals

The plan change allows smaller holiday rental accommodation to operate without resource consent in residential and rural zones and requires resource consent for larger holiday rental accommodation in these zones.

Plan Change 9: Housing for Everyone

Housing for Everyone – Plan Change 9 was a Plan change that encourages greater development and housing choice. Specifically, Housing for Everyone – Plan Change 9 better supports intensification through enabling medium density living across most of our urban area, and high density living close to and in the city centre and in our commercial centres.