Planning and Resource Consents

You will need a resource consent if your proposal is not in accordance with the District Plan. Some examples are:

• Building in close proximity to property boundaries
• Subdividing your property
• Building on a coastal property
• Relocating a building
• Establishing a business in a residential zone.

If your activity is listed as a Prohibited Activity, then it cannot be undertaken on that property under any circumstances.

If resource consent is required for your project, you cannot start any building work until it has been granted.

There are a few ways to find out if your specific activity requires a resource consent:

• View the District Plan
• Contact our Planning team by emailing or calling us on (06) 278 0555 or tollfree on 0800 111 323

Building Consents are required under the Building Act 2004 and deal with matters such as the structural integrity of the building, provision of services within the building (eg plumbing) and making sure the building is fit for purpose.

Resource consents are wider than just buildings – they relate to the type of activity, whether it is appropriate within that locality and how it affects the environment – including neighbours and the wider community.

Obtaining a Building Consent does not mean that you do not require a resource consent – Council Planners check Building Consent Applications to see if planning requirements are met and you will be notified if further information or a consent is required.

If you require a resource consent, you cannot start work on your project - even if you have a Building Consent.

The Council administers two types of planning consent:

• Land use consents
• Subdivision consents

Examples of land use consents include:

• Where a building doesn’t meet the bulk and location requirements for the zone (eg, setbacks to boundaries or height of buildings);
• To undertake a residential activity in a Commercial (Large Format and Trade) zone.
• Building on a coastal property (within the Coastal Protection Area)

All subdivision of land requires consent.

To apply for a resource consent you need the following:

• An application form – you can download one above. This needs to include:
  • A full and clear description of the proposed activity and the location in which it would be undertaken
  • An assessment of the relevant rules and whether they are met or not
  • An assessment of the effects of the activity
• Plans that show what is proposed:
  • Subdivision: a scheme plan that shows the dimensions and size of the proposed allotments, required setbacks and shape factors
  • Land Use: a site development plan that shows where buildings etc would be located, dimensions and setbacks from boundaries; and elevations – including heights, setbacks to boundaries and recession plane
• A current Title for the property

The level of detail needed depends on how complex the proposed development is and how many of the rules and standards it would not comply with. In some instances, the business you are working with on your project may be able to help you with your application – or for more complicated applications you may need to employ a planning consultant to prepare the application for you.

Once it has received your application, the Council will check that it is complete – if not, it may return the application to you. If the application is accepted, the Council may ask for further information to help it better understand what is proposed or to meet the requirements of the Resource Management Act 1991.

In some cases, you may be required to get written approval from your neighbours.

Once the Council has all the information it needs, it can complete processing your application and you will be notified of the decision.

There are four ways in which consents are considered:

• Controlled Activity: must be granted but can be subject to conditions that must be met.
• Restricted Discretionary Activity: may be granted or refused. In making this decision, the Council may only consider certain matters (listed in the District Plan) and any conditions may only applied in respect of those matters.
• Discretionary Activity: may be granted or refused. In making this decision, the Council can consider any matter it considers relevant and can apply any conditions relevant to the activity.
• Non-complying Activity: Is an activity that isn’t anticipated to be appropriate but may be acceptable in particular circumstances. The Council may grant or refuse the consent but the threshold for granting the consent is higher.

The Council uses the District Plan and other relevant documents to guide its assessment of your application and decide whether it should be granted or declined.

The time it takes to process an application depends on whether:

• the application contains all the information needed
• written approvals are provided (if required)
• other parties (such as Land Information NZ) need to provide input
• the application needs to be notified to the public or to parties you have not been able to obtain written approval from
• the application needs to go to a Hearing

In general, the following timeframes apply:

• Deemed Permitted Boundary Activity = 10 Days
• Non-notified resource consent = 20 working days
• Notified resource consents = 100-130 working days

You should note that:

• working days are weekdays, not including public holidays
• time taken to respond to requests for further information or obtain written approvals or where further reports are commissioned are not included in the above timeframes.
• These timeframes can be extended where there are special circumstances.

The Council has a duty to avoid unreasonable delays and will endeavour to process the applications as quickly as possible.

The Council covers the cost of its time in processing a resource consent. Fees and charges can be found here.

What is written approval?

Some activities are considered to have an effect on neighbouring or nearby properties (eg. building closer to a boundary or to a height than permitted). In such cases, the Council will identify the affected property(s) and the owners and occupiers of those properties are considered “affected parties”. There may be organisations (such as Iwi or the Department of Conservation) who are also considered “affected parties”.

The applicant for resource consent can either:

• Try to obtain written approval from the affected parties; or
• Ask the council to notify the affected parties and give them the opportunity to have their say on the application.
  In order to ask for written approval, an applicant (or their agent) should provide you with
• A written approval form; this needs to include:
  • A full and clear description of the proposed activity
  • The rules that aren’t being met
  • An assessment of the effects of the activity
• Plans:
  • Subdivision: a scheme plan that shows the dimensions and size of the proposed allotments
  • Land Use: a site development plan that shows where buildings etc would be located, dimensions and setbacks from boundaries; and elevations – including heights, setbacks to boundaries and recession planes.

You can ask for more information about the activity to help you understand what is proposed and what the effects would be on you and your property.

Do I have to provide written approval?

No – whether you provide written approval or not is up to you.

If you are happy with what is proposed, you can complete the written approval form and sign the scheme plan or site development plans. If you provide written approval, the Council cannot consider any effects of the activity on your property in deciding whether to grant the consent or not.

If you choose not to provide written approval you do not need to explain why.

If I don’t provide written approval does that mean they can’t undertake the activity?

Not necessarily. If an applicant is unable to obtain written approval from any of the affected parties, they can still lodge the application with the Council and ask them to notify the affected parties.

The Council writes to those affected parties to tell them the application has been received and give them the opportunity to submit on the application is they so choose – to tell the Council about any concerns with the proposed activity that they may have. There are forms that set out what is required in a submission.

You do not have to submit on an application, but if you do not do so then the Council cannot take any effects of the activity on your property into account.

If you submit, the Council has to consider any matters you raise to the extent that they raise relevant matters under the District Plan.

You have the opportunity to state whether you want to be heard – that is, have your submission considered by the Council’s Environment and Hearings Committee and be able to talk to them about your concerns.

The Council will consider any matters raised in submissions and make a decision as to whether the consent should be granted or declined. If you have made a submission to a consent application you have the right (as does the applicant) to appeal the decision to the Environment Court.

Subdivision enables you to divide your property – creating new allotments which can be sold/developed separately, - or adjust the boundaries of your property. Any lease of land that lasts for more than 35 years is considered a subdivision.

All subdivision of land requires consent from Council.

The subdivision process involves 3 stages:

• Obtaining resource consent from Council
• Providing a survey plan and meeting any conditions of consent
• Depositing the survey with Land Information New Zealand and obtaining Title

The first stage is essentially an ‘approval in principle’. The second stage involves providing the necessary survey information to identify the boundaries of the allotments and to demonstrate the required conditions have been met – this is generally undertaken by a surveyor. The third stage involves review of the documentation and registration of any instruments against the title (such as easements etc) – this is generally undertaken by a lawyer.

Applying for a resource consent:

First, determine what zone (Residential, Rural, Township, Commercial, Industrial, Rural Industrial) the property is located in and if there are any Notations (eg. Coastal Protection Area, Flood Hazard Area etc) affecting it (see District Plan).

Once you know what zone and notations apply, consult the subdivision chapter to determine what rules apply, and how your application would be considered (see ‘When is a resource consent required?’ above).

The requirements for subdivision generally relate to:

• Minimum lot size
• Number of allotments
• Minimum dimensions (shape factor)
• Provision of services (water, sewage, stormwater, utilities)
• Provision of vehicle access (refer to Parking and Transportation)

In addition, you may be required to provide:

• Esplanade reserves or strips (along waterbodies or the coast)
• Financial contributions (a payment on the new allotments for recreation and civic purposes)

If you are thinking of subdividing your property, its generally a good idea to talk to a surveyor about costs and timeframes.

The rules that apply to buildings vary depending on what zone you are located in, and any notations that apply.

The rules generally relate to the following:

• Setbacks to boundaries
• Setbacks from other activities (such as dairy sheds) or areas (such as waterbodies)
• Maximum Height
• Maximum height in relation to the boundary (recession plane)
• Total area of the property covered (residential) or total area of the building (commercial)

These requirements vary depending on the zone that the property is located in, and whether any Notations apply.

The District Plan controls the relocation of second-hand buildings (including shipping containers where they are converted for habitable purposes) within a property or onto a new property.

The relocation of buildings within the District is permitted provided certain standards are met. You can find those standards under section 18.2.1 of the District Plan here. These standards relate to ensuring that the building is brought up to standard once it is relocated onto a property. If you cannot meet those standards, you will require resource consent.

A Performance Bond is required to bring the relocated second-hand building up to standard. A Condition Report is used to identify any remedial work and inform the cost of the bond. If you are applying for a Building Consent to relocate a building, a Licenced Building Practitioner can complete the report which is then added to your building consent application. This bond is refunded once the remedial works are complete.

In addition, you will need to comply with the bulk and location requirements for your zone and for any notations that apply to your property.

Condition Report for Relocated Building

There are general rules that apply to signs – which can be found here – and specific rules that apply depending on what zone you are in.

The rules relate to ensuring that your sign is appropriate to the area in which it is located, and does not cause problems for pedestrians or traffic.

There are also bylaws relating to signs in public places;these can be found here

The rules that apply to papakāinga Development depend on the status of the land where the activity is taking place and which zone you are located in.

Please read the following Papakāinga Development Infosheet if you are thinking of undertaking papakāinga development on your land. If you require further advice, please contact our Planning team by emailing planning@stdc.govt.nz or calling us on (06) 278 0555 or tollfree on 0800 111 323.

*The government is considering changing the rules to tiny homes, but at this stage no legislative or regulatory changes have been made. Making it easier to build granny flats | Ministry for the Environment

Tiny homes are recognised in the District Plan as having the same meaning as a minor dwelling, which are smaller than a typical dwelling unit. Minor dwellings and dwelling units are defined as:

MINOR DWELLING UNIT: means a smaller DWELLING UNIT (up to 60m² in gross floor area), for use as a complete independent living facility and may share services, access and parking with the main DWELLING UNIT on the same SITE.

DWELLING UNIT: means one or more interconnected rooms in all or part of a BUILDING which is designed, arranged, used or intended to be occupied as a complete, independent living facility as a RESIDENTIAL ACTIVITY.

Whether you can erect or place a tiny home on your property without requiring a resource consent is dependent on its zone and whether the relevant requirements can be achieved.

Which zones permit tiny homes?

• Residential zone
• Rural zone
• Township zone
• Commercial zone (Hāwera Town Centre and Mixed Use)

What are the relevant requirements?

• Net site area
• Bulk and location requirements
• Private outdoor living area
• Subdivision
• Lighting
• Odour
• Access and Roading

What if my tiny home is relocatable?

If the tiny house/cabin has wheels, it can be considered both a vehicle and a dwelling. If it doesn’t move and people live in it for longer than six months, it is considered a dwelling.

Will my tiny home require a building consent?

Building consents are required if the tiny home is intended to be fixed to the ground, habitable and/or drainage systems are involved that require inspections.

What if I already have a dwelling on my property? Can I also have a tiny home on site?

Residential zone – A tiny home may be permitted if the net site is over 800 square metres in the Residential zone and 600 square metres in the Residential Intensification zone, and the bulk and location requirements are achieved.

Rural zone – A tiny home may be permitted if net site exceeds 20 hectares and the bulk and location requirements are achieved. The maximum number of dwellings can change depending on the size of your property - refer to rule 3.2.1 here: Section 3 Rural Zone Rules.pdf.

Township zone – A tiny home may be permitted if the net site area is 4000 square metres or greater, and the bulk and location requirements are achieved.

Commercial zone (mixed use) – A tiny home may be permitted if the dwelling has a private outdoor living area which is at least 10 square metres in area and capable of containing a circle 2.5m in diameter and is oriented to the east, west or north of the dwelling unit.

Unsure what zone your property is in? Zones can be found in the rural and urban maps section of the District Plan. These maps can be found here: District Plan - South Taranaki District Council

If you require further assistance, please contact the Planning Team via planning@stdc.govt.nz or call the duty planner on (06) 278 0555 or 0800 111 323 between 1-4pm on weekdays.

Is your activity a 'boundary activity'?

Once you have had plans drawn up of your proposal, you will need to work out which rules in the District Plan your proposal does not comply with. Common boundary rules include yard setbacks and recession planes. These rules are in place to ensure that activities don’t have a negative impact on the amenity of neighbouring properties.

Under the Resource Management Act 1991, an activity is a ‘boundary activity’ if all the following apply:

• resource consent would be required due to the infringement of one or more ‘boundary rules’ (see below for definition of boundary rules)
• it complies with all other district rules
• no ‘infringed boundary’ is a ‘public boundary’ (these terms are defined below).

A ‘boundary rule’ is a rule in a District Plan relating to the distance between a structure or building and a property boundary (or boundaries), or the dimensions of a structure or building in relation to its distance from a boundary.

Below are the current boundary setback requirements (excluding public boundaries) under the STDC District Plan:

Infringed boundary – An ‘infringed boundary’ is the common boundary between your property and your neighbour’s property where the non-compliance with the relevant ‘boundary rule’ occurs.

Public boundary – A public boundary is a site boundary shared with any road, river, lake, coast, esplanade strip, other reserve, or land owned by council or the Crown.

What's required for a deemed permitted boundary activity application?

• A description of the activity
• A plan (drawn to scale) of the site at which the activity is to occur, showing the height, shape and location on the site of your proposed activity and its distance from boundaries
• Full name and address of owners of the site
• Full name and address of each owner of an allotment with infringed boundaries
• Written approvals (including signed plans)
• A Record of Title

STDC forms to complete:

Deemed permitted boundary activity form

Written approval form

It is recommended that you discuss your proposal with STDC at an early stage, to clarify whether it is likely to meet the criteria to be a boundary activity, before lodging an application for a deemed permitted boundary activity.