Tasman not following Nelson on intensified housing

The words “plan change” might be scary for some in the region.

Nelson’s council surprised many when it notified Plan Change 29 which, in its original iteration, could have seen six-storey buildings built without resource consent across swathes of the city.

Opposition to the plan was widespread and strong, with many concerned about the loss of daylight and the city’s character.

But Tasman District Council’s proposal – Plan Change 81 – isn’t seeking housing density of that magnitude and will allow ample opportunity for community feedback before its notified.

The plan would rezone areas of many Tasman settlements to ensure the district has the residential and business capacity for the next decade. Housing intensification specifically is slated to be largely focused on the State Highway 6 corridor, in Wakefield, Brightwater, and Richmond.

A new medium density residential zone would apply to large portions of all three towns, with parts of central Richmond also having a higher-density overlay. It’s hoped the zone would enable a greater variety of affordable houses, both in terms of style and size, rather than just more of the typical three- or four-bedroom detached homes.

Plan Change 81 also builds off more than a year of work on the Richmond on the Rise spatial plan, which has been described as the town’s equivalent of a neighbourhood plan.

Neighbourhood plans are one of the critical missing elements of Nelson’s plan change process, which would have allowed suburbs to work with the council to develop a vision for each specific area before the plan change but have instead been left until after due to time constraints.

“Instead of just launching into a plan change, it was, ‘let’s talk to the people of Richmond,’” says Jeremy Butler, the council’s team lead for urban and rural policy.
“We did a lot of work around that, and we got really, really strong support for it.”
Tasman’s current thinking is that the medium density zone would allow for three-storey buildings, with Richmond’s higher density zone potentially enabling an extra storey or two.

However, a lot of the details are still being developed and there’s still plenty of opportunity for residents to have their say.

Currently, the council is simply raising awareness amongst the community that the plan change is coming, but a draft is expected to be put out for public feedback in the first quarter of 2025.

“That’s extra time to make sure we get it right,” Jeremy says.

The feedback from that engagement period will then be used to alter Tasman’s draft plan before it’s publicly notified and goes through the formal consultation process and hearing – which is where Nelson began with its plan change.

“It’s being very carefully thought through to ensure that we get the best of the benefits and avoid the worst of the negative effects that can occur from intensification that’s badly done.”

Residents can visit shape.tasman.govt.nz/urban-growth-PC81 for more information, or to keep up to date on the process.