Going for Housing Growth: Providing for urban development in the new resource management system
Minimum floor area and balcony requirements
Current status and case for change
Cabinet has agreed that the approach to effects management in the new system will be narrowed compared to the status quo and be based on the economic concept of externalities. This means effects (relating to land use) borne solely by the party undertaking the activity would not be controlled. An externality is a cost or benefit resulting from one party’s activities that falls on an uninvolved third party.
Many district plans currently have rules such as balcony and minimum floor areas requirements. While such requirements can have benefits for users, these features can be provided by developers based on demand from prospective residents without being subject to regulatory requirements. Where district plans impose requirements such as these over and above what is demanded by residents, they can raise the cost of housing and in some cases make development infeasible. We consider that these sorts of requirements are unlikely to fit into the new system as they are not managing what would typically be regarded as an externality.
Summary of proposal
The definition of ‘effects’ that can be considered in the new system and the development of standardised zones provide opportunities to set the matters that can or cannot be considered in consenting. We propose that standardised zones do not include standards or matters of discretion for minimum floor areas or balconies. We propose that the NPS-UD requirement for councils to not set minimum car park requirements is also carried over into the standardised zones.
Beyond this, we plan to consider which other requirements have a disproportionate impact on development feasibility, particularly those that would not be considered an externality, to inform the development of standardised zones. For example, rules that require minimum bicycle parking (or set detailed design requirements for them) has been raised as is a matter that might fall into this category.