Plan Change 2: General Amendments

General Amendments overview

Plan Change 2: General Amendments was formally notified on 7 August 2024. The submission periods have now closed and a hearing is scheduled for Thursday 28 November 2024.  

The Hearing Report is available for viewing below:

Section 42A Hearing Report(PDF, 746KB)

Further details about the hearing are provided in the Hearings section.

Hearings

Some rules are treated as operative

Some rules proposed by Plan Change 2 did not receive a submission in opposition and are now "treated as operative" in accordance with the requirements of the Resource Management Act 1991. This means the old rule no longer applies, and the new rule now applies. 

Refer to the Summary of Decisions Requested to determine which rules did not receive submissions in opposition and must be "treated as operative".

Summary of Decisions Requested(PDF, 246KB)

Rule with immediate legal effect

Rule SUB-R2.1(a)(i) proposed as part of the plan change has immediate legal effect in accordance with the requirements of the Resource Management Act 1991.

This means both the Operative and Proposed versions of this rule must be considered when seeking a resource consent in relation to this rule.

What changes are being proposed?

You can see a summary of the proposed amendments for Plan Change 2 using the link below.

Summary of proposed changes to the District Plan - Plan Change 2: General Amendments(PDF, 174KB)

The proposed changes include:

  • amendments to specific rules to fix loopholes and / or unintended issues
  • amendments to specific definitions and insertion of new definitions required by the National Planning Standards
  • amendments to District Plan maps, including
  • removal of obsolete mapping layers
  • removing zone mapping from road parcels
  • updates to zoning of new Open Space and Recreation Zone land
  • correction of errors in the Open Space and Recreation Zone categories.

We have prepared a detailed analysis report for the proposed plan change, drafting of the proposed provisions, as well as other technical documents.  These documents can be found under the Notifications and submissions section.

Notifications and submissions

What is a District Plan?

The Whangārei District Plan sets out how land in the district can be used, developed, and subdivided. It includes objectives, policies, and methods to achieve the sustainable management of resources within the Whangārei District.

What does this mean for my property?

Any changes will not affect existing buildings or property unless you plan to make changes to them. 

The impact of the changes on your property depends on what development plans you have for your property. In some cases the proposed changes may relax current rules while in other cases may make them more restrictive.  

Some examples of this include changes to the rules for:

  • boundary adjustment subdivisions
  • subdivision of sites subject to covenants in the Large Lot Residential Zone
  • community signs
  • food and beverage activities in the Mixed Use Zone
  • artisan industrial activities
  • minor rezoning of some sites in the Open Space and Recreation Zones.

You can find out what rules currently apply to your property by searching our ePlan.

ePlan - our District Plan

Notifications and submissions

The documents in this section contain information on the plan change notification and submissions processes which have now been completed. 

Notification documents

Section 32 Report

This document is required by legislation to support a plan change. It explains the reasons for, and options considered in proposing this plan change.  

The appendices include a marked-up version of proposed changes to District Plan provisions, an amended version of District Plan maps and detailed topic analysis. 

Section 32 Report(PDF, 3MB)

Appendix 1:  Proposed Plan Change 2 Amendments to Whangārei District Plan Text(PDF, 14MB)

Appendix 2:  Proposed Plan Change 2 Amendments to Whangārei District Plan Maps(PDF, 36MB) (large file size)

Appendix 3:  Summary of Planning Standards Definitions Analysis(PDF, 152KB)  

Appendix 4:  Analysis of New Open Space and Recreation Zone Sites(PDF, 168KB)

Other notification documents

Full Public Notice(PDF, 131KB)

Committee Meeting Minutes(PDF, 107KB)

Material proposed to be Incorporated by Reference

Plan Change 2 proposes changes to the definition of Intensive Livestock Farming including incorporation of new material by reference in the definition of Intensive Livestock Farming. 

The Code of Welfare – Layer Hens referenced in this definition can be viewed below.

Code of Welfare - Layer Hens 2018(PDF, 442KB)

Original submissions

Original Submissions 001 - 010(PDF, 6MB)

Original Submissions 011 - 020(PDF, 2MB)

Original Submissions 021(PDF, 32MB) (large file)

Council officers have summarised the original submissions received on PC2 in the below document:

Summary of Decisions Requested(PDF, 246KB)

If making a further submission you must serve a copy of your further submission on the original submitter within five working days. For original submitters contact details, please refer to the below:

Original Submitters Mailing List(PDF, 100KB)

Other original submission documents

Full Public Notice(PDF, 144KB)

Further submissions

Further submissions received can be viewed in the below document. 

Further submissions X022 - X025(PDF, 2MB)

Hearings

Hearing was held at 9:00am on Thursday 28 November 2024 at Whangarei District Council, Te Iwitahi (civic centre), 9 Rust Avenue, Whangārei

The following documents contain information on the General Amendments Hearing.

Information from the Hearings Commissioner

These documents include important information about the hearing process, including time-frames to provide written statements / evidence for the hearing.

Direction 1 from Hearings Commissioner (8 October 2024)(PDF, 173KB)

Minute 1 from Hearings Commissioner (16 December 2024)(PDF, 187KB)

Council hearing documents

Hearing Agenda(PDF, 272KB)

Section 42A Hearing Report

This document is required by legislation to respond to the submissions received on Plan Change 2. The report includes recommendations to accept, accept in part, or reject the decisions requested in submissions.   

The appendix in the report contains the recommended amendments to the proposed Plan Change 2 provisions in response to submissions.

Section 42A Hearing Report(PDF, 746KB)

Memo to Hearing Commissioner - 16 December 2024 Update on Right of Reply Progress (Post-Hearing)(PDF, 126KB)

Right of reply

The Right of Reply document responds to matters raised in pre-hearing evidence and at the hearing. It includes the reporting planner's analysis and recommendations to the Commissioner on whether to accept or reject the changes sought by submitters.

Appendix 1 contains the recommended revised Plan Change 2 provisions, reflecting consideration of the hearing evidence.

Reporting officers' Right of Reply report(PDF, 357KB)