Plan Change 29 (PC29) was publicly notified in August 2023 and received 882 submissions, along with 75 further submissions. A hearing was held from 26 August to 17 September 2024, during which the Hearing Panel reviewed evidence and submissions. Council staff provided a Right of Reply, and the Panel has since released its decisions, recommending amendments to several chapters of the Nelson Resource Management Plan. On 5 June 2025, Council accepted the Panel’s recommendations in full. You can find the hearing materials, reports, and decisions in the Plan Change 29 Hearing Portal, and watch the Council meeting on YouTube.

Environment Court Appeal

An appeal against the decision to decline the introduction of the Medium Density Residential Zone, General Residential Zone and the associated provisions has been lodged with the Environment Court. The Environment Court process is likely to involve mediation in the first instance and, if the issues cannot be resolved through mediation, a Court hearing is likely to be necessary. PC29 (or parts of it) cannot be made operative until all appeals relating to those parts are resolved.

Read the Appeal: Notice of Appeal by Megan Courtney Against Decisions - Plan Change 29

The period for submitters to join the appeal has now closed, and 13 parties have joined. Further updates will be provided as the Environment Court process progresses.