Porirua is growing and changing rapidly. We want to work with you through our District Plan review to help us shape and plan for this change.

The District Plan is the city-wide rule book that sets a blueprint for future development. It directs how we change, develop and use our environment, says Nic Etheridge, General Manager Policy, Planning & Regulatory Services.

“We’re updating our District Plan to enable economic growth, while ensuring we protect those things that make Porirua special so they can be enjoyed by future generations.”

The draft District Plan has no legal effect. It’s a chance for the community to give us their thoughts before the Proposed District Plan is formally notified in 2020 under the Resource Management Act (RMA).

“The draft District Plan incorporates community feedback from consultation processes in 2015, 2017 and 2018, as well as ongoing targeted consultation with key stakeholders. Now we want to check in with the community to make sure that we’ve hit the mark.”

Through the previous feedback we heard that the community wants to see a more compact urban form and greater range of housing choice. As one way of addressing this, the draft plan is proposing a medium density residential zone.

“The areas we are considering have been identified based on our recent growth strategy work and factors such as proximity to public transport and community facilities.

“This kind of development is already happening, so it’s important that we proactively manage it through design guides and development rules. We want to enable quality urban development that provides for the wellbeing of our current and future residents and that we, as a city, can be proud of.”

The Council is seeking approval from the Minister for the Environment to run a streamlined planning process for two major developments in the city – the eastern Porirua Development, and Plimmerton Farm. This is an alternative planning process under the RMA that allows us to respond quickly to Porirua’s housing needs while ensuring high quality outcomes. Although separate from the District Plan review, these plan changes will closely align with the draft District Plan.

Consultation on the draft District Plan will run for the month of September. Drop-in sessions will be held to give the community a chance to speak directly to our District Plan team. The dates and locations are on our website.

The draft plan is a digital ePlan meaning it can be viewed online, and there are lots of ways to give feedback.

To look at the draft District Plan and maps, give feedback, check the date of a drop-in session or for more information go to poriruacity.govt.nz/draft-district-plan

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