The Christchurch Central Recovery Plan (the Recovery Plan) recognises that the existing Living Zones in the Central City result in an unnecessarily complex planning environment.

To help facilitate the recovery and regeneration of the central city, CERA has developed a draft residential chapter for the Recovery Plan called A Liveable City. This chapter presents a vision and objectives for central city living, along with a revised planning framework for central city Living Zones and several proposed initiatives to stimulate the development of housing and communities.

Areas for Development

The chapter provides for three areas for residential developments in the central city;

  • Traditional central city living;
  • Mixed use opportunity; and
  • New East Frame neighbourhood of 1,500 to 2,000 people.

Development Standards and amendments to the District Plan

The residential chapter of the Recovery Plan will require significant amendments to District Plan.

The key amendment is the introduction of a new Central City Living Zone and consequential amendments to existing provisions including the removal of Living 4A, B and C Zones as they relate to the Central City.

New Central City Living Zone

The primary objective of the new Central City Living Zone is to balance:

  • The need for flexibility in the way that a range of housing types can be designed and built in the inner city; with
  • The need to ensure the outcome (specifically the amenity) of such developments is sufficiently certain for current residents and to ensure that potential residents feel confident about moving into the area.

The Central City Living Zone ensures that certain 'bottom lines' (development standards) for new developments are met. The development standards fall into two packages:

  1. Measures to provide amenity for owners and occupiers of the dwelling such as:
    • Minimum unit sizes
    • Location and size of outdoor living space
    • Additional acoustic insulation in some locations
  2. Measures to manage the interface with neighbours and the public realm such as:
    • Maximum height restrictions
    • Setbacks and recession planes
    • Fences and landscaping

Proposed development that complies with the prescribed development standards will be permitted activities and as such will not require resource consent.

Benefits and costs of minimum standards

The Recovery Plan considers the benefits to central city development as including:

  • Allowing residential developments to progress more quickly, potentially increasing the availability of residential properties in the central city, as well as reducing overall costs for developers.
  • Providing certainty for investors, developers, designers and home owners with a clear assurance of minimum standards of amenity, but without constraining flexibility to provide housing that varies in design, pricing and quality above this minimum standard.

Rebate

As part of the initiatives to stimulate the development of housing, the chapter also provides for a Christchurch City Council funded rebate for residential development:

  • If developments are adding at least one more residential unit to what previously existed on the site and meet good design requirements, they may be eligible for a full rebate of the residential component.
  • The fund is capped at $10 million.

Public comment

There is an opportunity for the public to provide comments on the draft amendments. The deadline for public comment is 13 August 2014.

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