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Is planning the cause of red tape for land development?

By Anna Bensemann, Senior Planner, Baseline Group | Feb 19, 2025

Anyone who has considered subdividing or developing a site in a New Zealand town or city will likely have encountered frustration and delays with Council and the process in general. Often, these frustrations are directed at planning provisions under the Resource Management Act (RMA) or how they are enacted or interpreted by Local in the form of District Plans. Government reviews and reforms have consistently blamed planning (rules and regulations) for red tape hindering development and growth.

While planning is an easy scape goat, this is a narrow perspective on issues which reach far beyond planning regulations. In the “removal of red tape” crusade, little attention has been given to council processes beyond the issuing of resource consents.

For instance, little has been expressed about building consent processes which is governed by the Building Code which applies across New Zealand. Yet, due to interpretation, different councils can have different requirements for buildings and structures. For developers working across multiple districts, this can lead to variances in information requirements and add both cost and delay. There is little certainty or confidence for developers when this occurs.

Additionally, Councils’ engineering standards relating to roading, rights of way formations and connection to council infrastructure appear to be a largely unregulated aspect of development. While reliance on industry standards is widely, and appropriately, adopted, it seems every council can make amendments or variations which apply only in their district. For example, developers must provide as-built plans of infrastructure locations, but even minor details—such as placing a pipe diameter label incorrectly—can lead to council rejection, causing delays and additional costs.

Even time taken to negotiate development contributions can cause delays and frustrations. Where councils seek to impose additional contributions beyond the standard due to the fine print in their policies, developers often have to enter into a confrontational negotiation. In some cases, these additional costs can amount to hundreds of thousands of dollars, making the difference between a feasible project and an unviable one.

The planning system is not fully absolved of adding red tape to projects, there have been many instances where seemingly unnecessary information requests or zoning limitations, hamper development opportunities or add costs. However, it is not solely to blame either. Where a project is subject to a number of these small delays or additional costs, it can amount to an overall significant delay across the life of the project. Perhaps it is better to look to how we can reduce the red tape across the board of council permissions and processes, and ensure different regulations and requirements work seamlessly together in an integrated manner, rather than to pick at one aspect of the system.

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