Lower Hutt Apartment Block - Update
If you were paying attention, you may have noticed that I posted about a new apartment tower in Lower Hutt a fortnight ago. Well, it seems that the council found a way out of the problem.
They didn't object to the towers height.
They didn't object to the tower residents being able to see into others backyards.
They didn't object to the loss of sunlight to nearby residents.
They turned down the tower because the proposal was one carpark less than required in the district plan. They also changed the 12 metre height limit restriction in the central business district to include the proposed site so it is pointless to try submitting a new plan.
Now, I do sympathise with the council - they were caught completely unaware by this proposal and had to change the district plan once they'd found a way out.
But if the RMA was scrapped in favour of a more common-law based process - where anyone who can prove they (or their property) will be adversely affected by a proposed development can object to the development until they are satisfied, or a court rules on a fair process to resolve the issues - then the issue would have been not the councilis problem to navigate such a tricky path.
They didn't object to the towers height.
They didn't object to the tower residents being able to see into others backyards.
They didn't object to the loss of sunlight to nearby residents.
They turned down the tower because the proposal was one carpark less than required in the district plan. They also changed the 12 metre height limit restriction in the central business district to include the proposed site so it is pointless to try submitting a new plan.
Now, I do sympathise with the council - they were caught completely unaware by this proposal and had to change the district plan once they'd found a way out.
But if the RMA was scrapped in favour of a more common-law based process - where anyone who can prove they (or their property) will be adversely affected by a proposed development can object to the development until they are satisfied, or a court rules on a fair process to resolve the issues - then the issue would have been not the councilis problem to navigate such a tricky path.
posted by Michael at
1:30 PM
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