Back
729 days ago

New West Coast plan draws 500 submissions

Nicole Mathewson Reporter from The Press

From local democracy reporter Brendon McMahon:

The Te Tai o Poutini Plan (TTPP) has drawn about 500 submissions.
Submissions opened on July 21 and formally closed on Friday after two extensions. Now the work begins.

The draft which will combine the West Coast's three district plans into one is acknowledged as a 'test case' for the Government's RMA reform.

Grey District Council district planner Michael McEnaney, who led the submission for the largest Coast council, said it had taken months for Grey alone, but the bigger process was only really beginning now submissions were in.

The draft had its "pros and cons" but a much bigger process to work through the submissions had to begin, McEnaney said.
"The hard part is starting, where everyone in the world gets to pull it apart and have their say."

They awaited with interest to see what "big players" like the Department of Conservation and Forest and Bird had to say.

"I think most people involved in the process are waiting with bated breath. The submissions now are going to shape where the plan is going to head. There's so much water under the bridge yet."

TTPP project manager Jo Armstrong said staff at the West Coast Regional Council had a big day yesterday counting and logging submissions into a format for summary.

The 500 or so submissions reflected a good level of interest given the region's comparatively low population, she said.

"While we got lots of submissions, it doesn't mean it's a bad plan."
All submissions would be summarised into topic areas, and presented to the TTPP Committee to consider, by about January.

"It's a huge amount to process and then summarise."

A 'resubmissions' period would then be called for those who had already made formal submissions. This would give registered submitters the opportunity to "see the lie of the land" reflected in the submissions to the plan.

It was likely the TTPP Committee would convene pre-hearing meetings to bring together common topics from the submissions.

A formal hearing panel was expected to be convened in the second half of 2023.

Armstrong said she expected it would be over a year before the committee received any recommendations from the hearing panel.

McEnaney said the bulk of his time since July had been spent writing the submission for Grey.

"It's 800 and something pages and I must have read it cover to cover three times in the last three months."

It had also involved significant time coordinating in-house and other local experts to address particular areas in the plan, as well as work-shopping elected members in a democratic approach to a whole plan submission from Grey.

McEnaney said he could not give a page number, as it was across a spreadsheet, but the Grey District contribution was "massive".

There had been issues as parts of the TTPP had also evolved since submissions opened -- with the later chapter on sites and areas of significance to Māori throwing implications for earlier chapters such as rural and subdivision.

*Public interest journalism funded through NZ On Air

More messages from your neighbours
2 hours ago

What's your favourite recipe for courgettes?

Mei Leng Wong Reporter from NZ Gardener & Get Growing

Kia ora neighbours. If you've got a family recipe for courgettes, we'd love to see it and maybe publish it in our magazine. Send your recipe to mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz, and if we use it in the mag, you will receive a free copy of our January 2025 issue.

Image
1 day ago

Poll: Do you think NZ should ban social media for youth?

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

The Australian Prime Minister has expressed plans to ban social media use for children.

This would make it illegal for under 16-year-olds to have accounts on platforms including TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and X.
Social media platforms would be tasked with ensuring children have no access (under-age children and their parents wouldn’t be penalised for breaching the age limit)
.
Do you think NZ should follow suit? Vote in our poll and share your thoughts below.

Image
Do you think NZ should ban social media for youth?
  • 84.6% Yes
    84.6% Complete
  • 13.9% No
    13.9% Complete
  • 1.5% Other - I'll share below
    1.5% Complete
736 votes
10 hours ago

Got a Minute? Prove You’re the Smartest Neighbour!

Riddler from The Neighbourly Riddler

What is it that when given one, you’ll have either two or none?

Do you think you know the answer to our daily riddle? Don't spoil it for your neighbours! Simply 'Like' this post and we'll post the answer in the comments below at 2pm.

Want to stop seeing riddles in your newsfeed?
Head here and hover on the Following button on the top right of the page (and it will show Unfollow) and then click it. If it is giving you the option to Follow, then you've successfully unfollowed the Riddles page.

Image