Everything else
Combined Letter Sent I saw this yesterday come across Twitter: https://twitter.com/HarveySpectre_/status/522945585679056896 I thought to myself what is this all about and so I opened the link which lead to … Continue reading Local Boards Fire Shot Over Mayor’s Bow
From Auckland Council
Cultural impact assessments: balance needed
“Protecting Auckland’s cultural heritage is a key part of Auckland Council’s job but so is making sure consent applicants don’t find themselves tied up in unnecessary red tape,“says Roger Blakeley, Auckland Council’s Chief Planning Officer.
“There is always a balance to be struck.”
Dr Blakeley was responding to public debate about the proposed Auckland Unitary Plan provisions concerning mana whenua including a public meeting tomorrow organised by the group Democracy Action.
He says the rules in the proposed Unitary Plan regarding sites of significance or value to mana whenua were brought in following feedback the council had received on the draft plan asking for more protection for cultural sites and places.
The Unitary Plan hearings process is now underway and the Independent Hearings Panel will review the rules as people have their say.
The Proposed Auckland Unitary Plan (PAUP) provides greater emphasis on the consideration of Mana Whenua values, establishing a framework for Auckland Council and Mana Whenua to work together.
It contains a range of provisions relating to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, intended to meet the council’s broad obligations under the Resource Management Act.
“In the meantime, we need to keep focusing on a balanced, workable approach. The ‘Cultural Impact Assessment’ that critics have been complaining about isn’t new – it’s been around for years.”
It is currently required in a very small number of cases where a property is near a site that is of value or significance to mana whenua and involves changes that could potentially impact those sites. This can include, for example, former burial sites or pa sites.
In the last six months, Auckland Council has processed over 6000 resource consents and less than 200 of them (3%) triggered a possible assessment. There have been 50 site visits and 12 cultural impact assessments formally requested in that time.
“As a council we’ve worked closely with iwi to find ways to minimise the impact on landowners and have introduced a facilitation service to simplify the process.
“This involves the council contacting iwi on behalf of the applicant, and the iwi will say whether an assessment is needed. Most people are taking advantage of the facilitation service.
“There is a misconception that these assessments involve some kind of veto from iwi. They don’t. They are about iwi providing expert advice. The council takes that expertise into account, but it is the council that makes the decision.
“While we continue working towards the right balance, it’s good to remember just how important protecting our Māori heritage is to Aucklanders – including recent arrivals who really embrace this aspect of their new home. It is our point of difference in the world. Like other global cities, we want to retain our heritage, as an important part of our culture and identity.”
—-Ends—-
Quoting again: In the last six months, Auckland Council has processed over 6000 resource consents and less than 200 of them (3%) triggered a possible assessment. There have been 50 site visits and 12 cultural impact assessments formally requested in that time.
From the Minister for the Environment – Dr Nick Smith
The Resource Management Act needs to explicitly recognise the importance of New Zealanders’ access to more affordable housing if the downward trend in home ownership over the past 20 years is to be reversed, Building and Housing, and Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith said today at the Property Council New Zealand’s Residential Development Summit in Auckland.
“The Resource Management Act must safeguard our natural environment but it is also a crucial piece of planning legislation. It forms the basis for the decisions that determine what we can do on our land. So it’s important we have a system that balances environmental protection with the wider needs of New Zealanders. We need a system which ensures that important environmental standards are maintained, but that which also enables growth and development – including a strong housing supply,” Dr Smith says.
“It is the price of land and sections that has gone up so rapidly in unaffordable housing markets like Auckland, and it is the Resource Management Act and how it is implemented that is largely responsible for this cost escalation. The new law allowing Special Housing Areas is a short-term fix but we must address the fundamental problem with the Resource Management Act if we are serious about long-term housing affordability.
“The vast bulk of consent processes under the Resource Management Act are about urban development, yet they barely rate a mention in the purposes and principles of the Act. This is why the Government is determined to make changes. We need to get everybody working in the resource management area from a policy, planning and consent perspective to understand how their decisions impact on young Kiwi families who aspire to own their own home.
“I welcome the challenge working as Building and Housing, and Environment Minister. No one Minister has previously been responsible for the full regulatory framework affecting housing, from subdivisions, building consenting to occupational regulation. This presents the opportunity to streamline how we develop new housing so as to increase housing supply and affordability.”
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It will be interesting to see what comes about when the draft reforms list is finally released – most likely by Christmas if the Government is going full speed on this.
Still I wonder if we would have been better served if we had a Planning Minister: Queensland Gets It Right, Auckland Continues to Dither and Get it Wrong
Also the old issue of property rights is bound to crop as well: Property Rights and the Unitary Plan
So lets see what the reforms do truly give us….
For your reading Source: Auckland Council Tomorrow I give my presentation in the Public Input section of the Auckland Development Committee tomorrow at Town Hall. You can see the agenda … Continue reading Presentation for October Auckland Development Committee Up
I have seen this from Local Board Chair Peter Haynes in regards to a motion Councillor Cathy Casey put forward at the Unitary Plan Committee today:
I have noted from a couple of Procedural Minutes from the Independent Hearing Panel for the Unitary Plan as well as the Committee Agenda (see: website down so will get the link when it is back up) that the Council nor the Hearings Panel are particular interested in making resources available to submitting groups so that they can front the Hearings Panel better equipped. Furthermore the Minister for the Environment has refused access to those resources as well.
It definitely seems so after my previous Unitary Plan Hearings Already Into Trouble? first pointed it out.
Customer Service Non Existent Yet again Auckland Transport’s customer service goes wanting – or rather missing. I have picked up reports of the Rail Ticket Machines all failing thus … Continue reading More Auckland Transport Fail
Just more than a vote every three years Participating in your democratic institution beyond casting a tick or two on a piece of paper every three years (if … Continue reading Participating in Our Democracy
From Voxy
Auckland’s newest road is expected to take thousands of trucks a day off Panmure roads when it opens to traffic in early November.
Auckland Transport will open the 1.5km Te Horeta Rd in Panmure to traffic on Sunday 2 November. The road goes through a 220m tunnel, has new cycle lanes and a shared cycle and foot path alongside, which will all open at the same time.
A community event will be held on Saturday 1 November so people in the area can walk or cycle through the tunnel, along the road and on the shared path.
Completing the new road is the final major milestone for the $180m first stage of the Auckland Manukau Eastern Transport Initiative (AMETI). It also included building the new Panmure Station, three new bridges and new cycling and walking links.
AMETI is a group of projects aimed at giving people in the south-eastern suburbs improved transport choices and better connections to the rest of Auckland. See an aerial video and photos of the new road, station and other upgrades here: at.govt.nz/projects-roadworks/ameti/.
Auckland Transport Chairman, Dr Lester Levy says completing the first stage of AMETI will be an important milestone for transport improvements in the area.
“People in the area are beginning to realise the benefits of the longer term programme of improvements for the south east. It is also one of the first major transport infrastructure projects to be completed by Auckland Transport since the new Auckland Council was established.”
AMETI Programme Director, Peter King says the new road is expected to carry 20,000 vehicles a day, including 2400 trucks.
“Te Horeta Road will link Morrin Rd to Mt Wellington Highway to cut peak journey times between Mt Wellington and Glen Innes.The direct link will bypass the Panmure roundabout and Ellerslie-Panmure Highway, easing congestion on this route.
…..
Full details, article and source: http://www.voxy.co.nz/national/walk-or-cycle-aucklands-new-road-and-tunnel-panmure/5/204559
Now to get Part Two under-way. The Busway from Panmure Station to Pakuranga Town Centre. Parts Three and beyond would be extending that bus way to Botany and Manukau City Centre forming the South Eastern Bus-way. In due time it can be converted to rail to form the Botany Line (The Botany Line Sky Train)
I will be presenting as well The Auckland Development Committee agenda for this month is up and on first looks it is not as “controversial” as last months. On … Continue reading Auckland Development Committee – October Agenda
Credit is due where credit is due as I always say. NZTA’s Auckland Division is pretty good with the Tweets on happenings around the State Highway Network, major incidents on our arterial roads, events, and from time to time even public transport even though NZTA’s main jurisdiction is the State Highways with Auckland Transport supposedly meant to be picking up the rest.
Well Auckland Transport seems to be absolutely tone-deaf to happenings around its own network including the trains while NZTA seem to be slowly filling the gap as resource and skill allows.
This morning something went wrong on the Western Line (update: Breakdown) causing delays, cancellations, and over crowded trains having to skip stations in their trip to Newmarket and Britomart thus leaving passengers behind. Now if that was not causing enough angry Tweets from commuters then this next bit would.
Reports came in pretty fast that due to an over crowded train on the Western Line, a poor passenger had collapsed and required medical treatment at Baldwin Avenue Station. Of course this is going to cause further delays but having a passenger collapse due to over crowding trains is not on by any stretch.
Now when you have disruptions on a public transport network you expect Tweets, Facebook Messages, and even phone texts to go out just like Civil Defence did in the blackouts earlier this week. This way people are alerted and can make decisions rather than standing at a station wondering when their next train would come. Social media these days allows rapid and near instant communication to the world of such situations. Of course Auckland Transport could have diverted Southern Line trains to go do some shuttling between New Lynn and Newmarket to assist and rail buses (or just alerting people to go use the bus with AT-HOP universal across the system) being dispatched would have further assisted the Western Line.
But what did we get? Until about two paragraphs ago in writing this post we got absolutely nothing from Auckland Transport across the media spectrum AT ALL. Result? The Baldwin Avenue incident which is very easily avoided.
So while this incident occurs the Auckland Transport CEO gets a pay rise, and the head of Comm’s as well as the Chief Operation Officer twiddle their thumbs.
Bit unacceptable while Auckland Transport has failed to deliver most of its targets?
Call me a bit of an old fashion person but I thought when a leader failed to deliver their targets set out it was instant dismissal. How times have changed.
And as I finish this up I just saw this:
Horse long bolted
Talking Southern Auckland 