Next stage in District Plan review confirmed for May

A summary of more than 560 submissions received during consultation held last year on the council’s Proposed Far North District Plan will be made public in May.

So far, the council’s District Plan team has drafted summaries covering 95 per cent of the submissions and the 6,066 individual points raised during the 12.5-week consultation period, which closed in October 2022.

After the summary document has been published, an invitation will be issued seeking further submissions from the public either in support of, or in opposition to, the summarised submission points.

The council will again make an independent planner available for those wishing to make a further submission, much like the ‘friend of the submitter’ service provided during the July 2022 submissions process. The planner will answer questions about the submission process and advise on how to make a further submission.

Once the submission process closes, council staff will prepare reports for the hearing panel ahead of hearings being held in the second half of 2023. The reports will assess each submission and recommend either support or opposition to the issues raised.

Hearings are an opportunity for anyone who has submitted on the plan to contribute further by speaking to their submission in front of the hearings panel. So far, 455 submitters have indicated that they wish to take up the option of attending hearings.

The hearings structure is yet to be confirmed but is likely to be divided into topics that follow the plan chapters. Each hearing will take a week or more to complete depending on the number of submitters. Once all submitters have been heard, the hearings panel will break to consider the evidence provided.