Plan Change 29 was publicly notified on 11 August 2023 and closed for submissions at 4:00pm Tuesday 31 October, we received 882 submissions, 75 further submissions, and 4 further submissions on the two late submissions.
The hearing occurred between Monday, 26 August and Tuesday, 17 September in the Council Chamber, you can find the recordings, officer reports, additional technical information and read about the Panel members in the Plan Change 29 Hearing Portal.
Council staff have prepared a Right of Reply in response to the information supplied at the Hearing for the Hearing Panel to consider.
The Hearing Panel has released its reports and decisions on submissions to Plan Change 29 (PC29), which include recommended amendments to the proposed provisions.
The Panel has accepted some aspects of PC29 while rejecting others, resulting in changes across multiple chapters of the Nelson Resource Management Plan (NRMP). The Nelson City Council will consider these recommendations and decide how to proceed at its meeting on 5 June 2025. Read the six hearing panel reports that summarise the recommendations, outline decisions on submissions, and present the revised provisions.
The agenda for the Council meeting is available on the Nelson City Council website at www.nelson.govt.nz/meetings, and the meeting will be livestreamed on the Council’s YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/NelsonCouncil for anyone wishing to watch the discussion and decision-making process.
What is proposed Plan Change 29?
Council is changing parts of the Nelson Resource Management Plan (NRMP) to introduce more flexibility around housing policies and rules. The changes are being made in response to population growth and demand for housing in the region, and to fulfil Council’s obligations under central government’s National Policy Statement for Urban Development (NPS-UD) 2020.
Under this national direction, Council must ensure Nelson grows into a well-functioning environment that can provide for sufficient housing capacity to meet growth pressures.
Proposed Plan Change 29 also assists in implementing the intensification scenario identified in the 2022 Nelson Tasman Future Development Strategy (FDS) and the Te Ara ō Whakatū - City Centre Spatial Plan.
Plan Change 29 is the biggest plan change that we have ever done as a Council. It will result in some changes to policies and rules throughout the Nelson urban area. This means that property owners in all residential, commercial and industrial zones may be affected by one or more of the proposed changes.
Plan Change 29 is not a full plan review, rather it is being progressed as an interim response while the Draft Whakamahere Whakatū Nelson Plan (Nelson Plan) is on hold, in recognition that housing supply and affordability is a critical issue within Nelson.
About the Plan Change
The main objective of the Plan Change is to amend the Nelson Resource Management Plan (NRMP) to implement the NPS-UD by supporting housing delivery and the provision of well-functioning urban environments within Nelson while ensuring that natural hazard risks are appropriately managed and historic heritage is protected.
The scope of the Plan Change includes:
- Enabling the intensification of development on land currently zoned for residential and commercial uses (Residential Zone, Inner City Zone, and Suburban Commercial Zone), that is not within areas potentially affected by significant natural hazards. Residential intensification will be enabled primarily through the introduction of three new residential zone areas: General Residential zone, Medium Density Residential zone and High Density Residential zone which enable density at varying levels depending on the area.
- Changes to rules that focus on achieving a well-functioning urban environment (as defined in Policy 1 of the NPS-UD), within the General Residential Zone, Medium Density Residential zone, and High Density Residential zone areas;
- Managing development in urban areas potentially susceptible to natural hazards (river and coastal flood, fault, liquefaction, and slope instability), within the Residential, Inner City, Suburban Commercial, and Industrial Zones (including in areas that will retain their current NRMP zoning);
- Amendments to heritage buildings and other structures located within the Plan Change area including a new heritage precinct in Richmond Avenue;
- Provide for tangata whenua to develop papakāinga housing; and
- Alignment with the national planning standards and Medium Density Residential Standards where practicable.
If you require further information, please refer to the FAQs and supporting documents.
Plan Change 29 can be viewed on ePlan, an interactive, electronic version of the Nelson Resource Management Plans (Regional Policy Statement, Air Quality Plan and the Resource Management Plan). For optimal loading speeds, it's recommended to use either Edge or Firefox as your browser of choice.
All submissions (including your name and contact details) will be provided to Council workers for administration and analysing feedback, and to those who are involved in decision making on the consultation.
All submissions, including submitter names (unless you request otherwise) but not contact details, will be publicly available online. The body of your submission and any attachments will not be checked for personal information and it should be assumed that anything included in these will be made public.
Note, Council is subject to the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 and a request for official information may cover your submission, including your address and other contact details.
