Tag: Auckland

Have You Submitted on your Local Board’s Plan Yet?

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August 6 is when submission close

 

From Auckland Council

Still time to help shape your Local Board Plan

 

Aucklanders are reminded that they have until 5pm on Wednesday 6 August to make a submission on their draft Local Board Plan. 

Each board, from Great Barrier, to Franklin in the south and Rodney in the north, has produced a draft Local Board Plan which provides a framework that will guide its decision-making, actions and priorities over the next three years.

Common themes from the draft plans include:

  • protecting, enhancing and restoring the natural environment, with a particular emphasis on improving waterways and harbours
  • a well-connected transport system offering real choice, plus the development of cycleways and walkways for recreation and to get around
  • providing community facilities and  parks, open spaces and sports facilities to encourage active and healthy lifestyles and places for play and relaxation
  • fostering strong local economies which offer a range of local employment opportunities.

 

Board members were out and about in their communities in February and March talking about the ideas that helped shape the draft plans and during July have been seeking formal submissions at consultation meetings around the region.

Aucklanders can still make a submission on their draft Local Board Plan either by filling out the freepost form that was sent with a summary document to every household during July or by going online at shapeauckland.co.nz.

People can read the draft plan in full at the shapeauckland website or by going to selected libraries and Auckland Council service centres.

Once the submission period ends on 6 August, hearings to consider all feedback will be held between August and September, with the Local Board Plans due to be adopted in October.

For more information or additional submission forms, people should call 09 301 0101.

Public feedback will help each board decide what its priorities are. These will then be considered through the process now underway for the next draft Long-term Plan (LTP) for 2015-2025.

 

About local boards

Local boards have a significant and wide-ranging role that spans most local government services and activities. Local boards make decisions on local matters, provide local leadership and support strong local communities. Local boards provide important local input into region-wide strategies and plans including those of the council-controlled organisations (CCOs). Details of each local board can be found at the ‘About Council’ page at aucklandcouncil.govt.nz.

Each local boards’ budget for each year is subject to agreement with the governing body as part of the discussion on the annual local board agreement.

Local boards are responsible for:

  • making decisions about non-regulatory local matters, including negotiating the standards of services delivered locally
  • identifying and communicating the views of local people on regional strategies, policies, plans and bylaws to the governing body
  • developing local board plans every three years and negotiating local board agreements with the governing body
  • providing local leadership and developing relationships with the governing body, the community, community organisations and special interest groups in the local area
  • providing input to CCO plans and initiatives
  • identifying and developing bylaws for the local board area and proposing them to the governing body
  • monitoring and reporting on the implementation of local board agreements
  • any additional responsibilities delegated by the governing body, such as decisions within regional bylaws.

 

—ends—-

 

At the moment I am finishing up both the Papakura Local Board, and the Otara-Papatoetoe Local Board draft plan submissions. After that it will be onto the Otara-Papatoetoe Local Board Area Plan

 

Auckland Council Correcting a Resolutions Error

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Whoops – bit too quick off the mark there

 

From Auckland Council

Auckland Council correcting minor issue on rates resolution – no change to rates bills

 

 

Auckland Council is correcting a minor technical issue in the setting of this year’s rates.

 

At the 26 June Governing Body meeting, the Council voted to set its rates immediately prior to adopting the Annual Plan, rather than immediately after as required by the Local Government (Rating) Act 2002.

 

To remove any potential ambiguity created by this issue, Auckland Council’s Governing Body will be asked to repeat its 2014-15 rates resolutions as part of its ordinary meeting on 14 August.

 

The resolution will not change rates as set on 26 June, and there will be no change to what appears on people’s rates bills.

 

A Council spokesperson said:

 

“Unfortunately the ordering of the agenda was not strictly in line with what is required by the Act. This resolution will remove any potential ambiguity this may have created. It will have no impact on the rates that were set by Council.”

 

Auckland Council will publish a notice in the New Zealand Herald tomorrow, pursuant to section 119 of the Local Government (Rating) Act 2002.

—ends—

 

First Unitary Plan Pre-Hearing to get Under-Way

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Ironically on Further Submissions

 

Okay this one is more for your Unitary Plan wonks (like me) but it pays to keep an eye on Unitary Plan Hearing Panel proceedings to gauge the debate and reactions on the Proposed Unitary Plan.

Last night I saw from the Unitary Plan Page (the one the Hearings Panel runs) a Procedural Minute from the Chair – Judge Kirkpatrick in regards to the Further Submission process recently completed.

Before I embed the material just a note on the Hearings Panel and relevant information:

 

From the Unitary Plan Independent Panel Procedures Page:

Some of the important things to note about the hearing process are listed here.

  • You will only be contacted about pre-hearing meetings and hearing sessions if you have said on your submission that you wish to be heard, or if you have contacted the panel office to let us know that you wish to be heard.
  • If you are a submitter but do not wish to be heard, your submission will still be considered by the Panel when making their recommendations on the Plan.
  • Hearing sessions and pre-hearing meetings are open to the public and the media as observers. Only submitters or their representative and their witnesses are allowed to speak.
  • Expert conferences and mediations are not open to the public. This is because discussions at those meetings should encourage an open exchange of views and may need to be on a “without prejudice” basis. Panel decisions do not get made at these meetings.
  • The Panel will expect all submitters who wish to be heard, or their representative and any witnesses they call, to attend in person. In some circumstances the Panel may agree to other arrangements, but that will need to be arranged in advance of a hearing session.
  • Because of the large number of submissions and the limited time available, submitters will be given a fixed amount of time at the hearing to make their main points. There will generally not be time to read in full your submission or evidence to the Panel.
  • If you are required by the Panel to attend any pre-hearing meeting it is important that you do attend. If you do not have a reasonable excuse for not attending, the Panel may exclude you from the rest of the hearing process.
  • The Panel’s hearing rooms at 205 Queen Street have limited capacity. Pre-hearing meetings and hearing sessions that have a large number of submitters and a high level of expected public interest may be held in other locations. Please check this website for details.
  • If the number of people at the hearing exceeds the maximum allowed for building safety, priority will be given to the people who need to be there for that part of the hearing to proceed.
  • All records of hearing and pre-hearing processes will be available on the IHP website, unless there is good reason for withholding any particular information under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987.
  • All publicly available documents for the hearing sessions will be placed on this website. Parties involved in a hearing session will be sent a link to the website so they can go direct to the documents relating to their hearing session. Other arrangements will be made if you cannot access the website.
  • The hearings will not be transcribed. The hearings will be recorded digitally and a copy of the audio record can be provided on request.

Source: http://www.aupihp.govt.nz/procedures/

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Meaning anything I post in regards to the pre hearings or hearings is public information unless stated otherwise.

 

The “Procedural Minute” that was recently issued in regards to Further Submissions (that recently closed)

 

The Letter of the upcoming Pre Hearing Conference

 

From what I can gather the Memorandum of Counsel is on the Further Submission process, the complexity of the Unitary Plan, and Auckland Council’s large submission to the Unitary Plan. The applicants have asked the Hearings Panel in this case for an IT expert and independent planning consultant to assist people through both the Unitary Plan and the Unitary Plan website. While the pre hearing is to go ahead it seems the Panel will decline this request by the applicants (hmm I could have done that for them having waded through all 7,000 pages of that cumbersome document a few too many times).

However, it is to note that we could see the Hearings grind down if pre hearings and hearings get stuck on the complexity of the Unitary Plan let alone anything else including rezoning at site specific level.

 

As for my submission I had five oppose it and one in support. Going to be fun times ahead