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MINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE
SPECIALIST HEARINGS SUBCOMMITTEE
HELD ON TUESDAY, 4 AUGUST 2009 AT 9:30 AM
IN THE COMMITTEE ROOM, LEVEL 15
CIVIC ADMINISTRATION BUILDING
1 GREYS AVENUE, AUCKLAND

PRESENT: Mr L Simmons Chairperson
  Mr C Stewart  

  1. Top APPOINTMENT OF CHAIRPERSON

    That Les Simmons be appointed as chairperson for this meeting of the Specialist Hearings Subcommittee.

    CARRIED

  2. Top APOLOGIES

    That the apology of Greg Hill for non-attendance be accepted.

    CARRIED

  3. Top CONFIRMATION OF MINUTES

    That the minutes of the Specialist Hearings Subcommittee meeting held on Tuesday, 7 July 2009, be confirmed as a true and correct record.

    CARRIED

  4. Top EXTRAORDINARY BUSINESS

    There was no extraordinary business.

  5. Top PUBLIC FORUM

    There was no public forum.

  6. Top HEARING OF OBJECTION TO NOTICE TO INSTALL A PUBLIC STORMWATER DRAIN AT 65 PENROSE ROAD, MT WELLINGTON

    The objector, Mr Taia, together with his daughter and son-in-law, raised concerns regarding possible damage to the property at 65 Penrose Road due to the works proposed and possible impact on any future development of the property.

    1. That, pursuant to section 48.2(a)(i) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987, the public be excluded from the deliberations of the Specialist Hearings Subcommittee following the hearing of evidence in this matter, for the reason that a right of appeal lies in the District Court against the final decision of the subcommittee.

    CARRIED

    1. That, after hearing the concerns raised by the objector, his daughter and son-in-law regarding the disruption to existing garden and lawn areas, potential flooding from the proposed manhole at the front of the affected property and the future development potential of the property, the Specialist Hearings Subcommittee determines that the works to construct a new public stormwater line through 65 Penrose Road connecting to an existing public line within the Penrose Road Reserve to service 52 Portman Road, Mt Wellington may proceed for the reason that this is the most practical solution to provide enhanced public stormwater infrastructure and, in particular, appropriate stormwater drainage to 52 Portman Road, Mt Wellington.
    2. That the public stormwater line shall run approximately parallel and close to the boundary between 63 and 65 Penrose Road, Mt Wellington, shall be installed using trenchless techniques from 52 Portman Road to a new manhole approximately 9 metres from the road boundary and inside 65 Penrose Road, and shall consist of open trenching for a 9 metre section from the aforementioned manhole to the existing public line within the Penrose Road Reserve due to the shallow depth [less than 1 metre] and the need to clear a public sewer line.
    3. Any adverse effects on the property at 65 Penrose Road will be either temporary in nature, no more than minor in terms of physical impact and capable of being reinstated once the works have been completed.
    4. That any disturbance to the grounds, fencing or other directly-affected features of the subject property shall be reinstated at the cost of the Council.
    5. That the Specialist Hearings Sub-committee notes that a right of appeal to the District Court, within fourteen days of the date of the sub-committee's determination, is available to the objector.

  7. Top HEARING OF OBJECTION TO NOTICE TO INSTALL A PUBLIC WASTEWATER DRAIN AT 31 THIRD AVENUE, KINGSLAND

    Francine and Chairmaine Waldron sought an adjournment of the hearing until the subcommittee's September meeting for the reasons set out in their tabled submission.

    [ATTACHMENT 7A]

    The objectors advised that there were errors in the officer's report and that they had been given insufficient time to respond to new information contained in the report.

    The hearing of the item was adjourned to allow the objectors and Council and Metrowater officers to discuss all the issues. Following this adjournment the Waldrons confirmed that they would be ready to come back to the subcommittee on 1 September 2009. It was agreed that, in the meantime, the Waldrons would be provided with the additional information requested by them. The additional information is intended to be provided no later than Friday, 7 August 2009.  Mr McQuillan is to provide the additional information and is to confirm to Democracy Services (Denise McKenzie) when the information was forwarded to the Waldrons. The Waldrons are to confirm receipt of the additional information also to Denise McKenzie.  It was also agreed that any additional reports to be placed before the subcommittee when it meets on 1 September 2009, will be circulated to the Waldrons at least 5 working days before 1 September, being no later than Monday 24 August 2009.

    If an agreement is reached on this matter and the hearing set down for 1 September is not required, Denise McKenzie shall be advised in writing.

    That, after hearing the concerns raised by Francine and Chairmaine Waldron, and confirmation from all the parties that open dialogue will continue, the hearing of an objection to a notice to install a public wastewater drain at 31 Third Avenue, Kingsland, be deferred until an extraordinary meeting of the Specialist Hearings Subcommittee to be held on Tuesday, 1 September 2009 at 9.30 am in the Civic 15 meeting room, 1 Greys Avenue, at which time a decision on the matter will be made.

    CARRIED

  8. Top SECTION 357 COSTS OBJECTION - 92 WAIATARUA ROAD, REMUERA

    Trent Carrie, representing Park Lane Developments, spoke about the lengthy delays experienced with the consent process, resulting in the developer now being unable to pay any fees imposed. He argued that some of the fees could have been avoided if the adjacent site had not been required as Esplanade Reserve pursuant to the grant of a previous consent (Council reference R/SUB/2007/3243).

    1. That, pursuant to section 48.2(a)(i) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987, the public be excluded from the deliberations of the Specialist Hearings Subcommittee following the hearing of evidence in this matter, for the reason that a right of appeal lies in the Environment Court against the final decision of the subcommittee.

    CARRIED

    1. That, pursuant to section 357B(a) of the Resource Management Act 1991 and having taken into account the relevant matters at section 36(3) and (4) of the Resource Management Act 1991, the objection by Alan Woodford on behalf of Park Lane Developments to the invoice issued in respect of a non-notified resource consent application (Council reference R/LUC/2008/5497) to construct a new dwelling on an unstable site in the Coastal Management Area that infringed height in relation to boundary and required removal of trees on adjacent sites, at 92 Waiatarua Road, Remuera, be upheld in part.  
    2. That the reasons for upholding this objection in part are as follows:
      1. The charges invoiced by Council are only to cover costs incurred through the processing of the applicant's proposal.
      2. The costs incurred are a result of charges generated to explain the consent processes, to facilitate, on the applicant's behalf, the provision by affected persons of written approvals and to assess the application. All work undertaken is for the sole benefit of the applicant as a private individual and not the wider community.
      3. Charges relate to the true and actual times required to case manage and report on the application and, as such, are considered to be fair and reasonable.
      4. The subcommittee, however has accepted the advice of Mr Andrews, the Council's Appeals Manager, that additional costs had been incurred in relation to the case management of this application, particularly in relation to assisting the applicant in dealings with Arts, Community Recreation Services. While these actions were undertaken in order to assist the applicant and were undertaken with the best of intentions, these are matters that are the responsibility of the applicant and not the responsibility of any person processing a resource consent on behalf of the Council as the regulatory authority.  The costs of undertaking these matters were beyond the control of the applicant and although well intentioned and undertaken for the sole benefit of the applicant the subcommittee has determined that in this particular instance a fee reduction of $1500.00 (including GST) is appropriate. [The current outstanding invoice for $8100.90 will therefore be reduced by $1500.00 and an amended invoice for $6600.90 shall be issued.]
      5. In relation to the possible grounds for a reduction in costs put forward by Mr Carrie at the hearing, the length of time taken to process the application has been determined to be reasonable in the circumstances, particularly given the nature of the application and the changes to the proposal that occurred. In addition the holding costs incurred by the applicant during the processing of the application are not matters that are relevant in determining whether the charges are fair and reasonable in resource management terms.
    3. That the Specialist Hearings Subcommittee notes that a right of appeal to the Environment Court, within fifteen working days of the receipt of the subcommittee's decision, is available to the objector.

    CARRIED

  9. Top SECTION 357B COSTS OBJECTION - PRIVATE PLAN CHANGE AT 5 CARLTON GORE ROAD, GRAFTON

    That the objection to costs related to the private plan change at 5 Carlton Gore Road, Grafton, be deferred, at the request of the applicant's representative, to the meeting of the Specialist Hearings Subcommittee scheduled for 8 September 2009.

    CARRIED

  10. Top SECTION 357 OBJECTION AGAINST FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION - 143 HECTOR SANDERSON ROAD, GREAT BARRIER ISLAND

    Caleb Sutton, HGI Planner, advised that he had received confirmation from Rogan Hampson that any reduction in the financial contributions levied on the property at 143 Hector Sanderson Road, Great Barrier Island, would be well received by his client.

    1. That, pursuant to sections 37 and 357C(1) of the Resource Management Act 1991, the late objection by Mr Ben William Robert Sanderson, having been received outside the fifteen working day limitation under section 357C(1) of the Resource Management Act, be accepted for the following reasons:
      1. That no party will be prejudiced by the acceptance of the late objection.
      2. The application was originally applied for as a section 127 application and was already before the council.
    2. That, pursuant to section 357D of the Resource Management Act 1991, the objection by Mr Ben William Robert Sanderson to condition 3 of a subdivision consent (SUB20050286701) requiring payment of a financial contribution imposed in respect of a property at 143 Hector Sanderson Road, Great Barrier Island be upheld in part, and the condition amended to require a lesser financial contribution of $5,200 (inclusive of GST) based on 2% of the value of the lot created.
    3. That the reasons for upholding the objection in part are as follows:
      1. There will be no significant additional costs caused by the subdivision given the open rural nature of the site and the limited provision of services;
      2. While it is considered that the only likely additional demand for Council services will be for reserve land, only a small contribution is warranted as there are already significant reserves in the vicinity.  Accordingly, it is considered that a reduction in the financial contribution, as set out in B above, represents a fair and reasonable measurement of the direct cost that can be expected as a result of subdivision;
      3. Notwithstanding this, it has been indentified that there are a number of works within Great Barrier Island that could benefit in part from the requirement of the financial contribution.  An example of this is additional reserve connections that would, in a small way, be assisted by the collection of funds. As such, it is considered that the identification of specific works within the surrounding area represents a transparent approach and effective means of administering financial contributions. It is considered that the requirement of this financial contribution will ensure that the local environment will benefit as a result.
    4. That the Specialist Hearings Subcommittee notes that a right of appeal to the Environment Court, within fifteen working days of the receipt of the subcommittee's decision, is available to the objector.

    CARRIED

    There being no further business, the chairperson declared the meeting closed at 12.26 pm.