Town planning fees could take hike

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 6, Issue 264, 22 November 1988, Page 1

Town planning fees could take hike

Town planning applications in the Waimarino District will soon cost a minimum of $600 if a recommendation from the finance and administration committee is accepted by full council.

Until now the council has only been allowed to claim $200 plus GST from applicants but an amendment to the Town and Country Planning Regulations 1978 makes provision for a maximum of $1000 plus GST to be claimed. The district manager submitted a report on application costs for the council to the last finance and administration committee. The estimates gave a varied price structure, taking into account the difference in expense incurred depending on the number of applications heard at any one time. Administration costs of an application were estimated at $214. Councillors' fees would amount to $440 per sitting and the town planner's costs would \ range from $450 for one application to $750 for three. He suggested two options to the committee: to levy the full $1000 for applications and refund any money left

over after the hearing, or, to take a portion of the $1000 and where necessary send an account for any difference prior to the hearing. Councillor Griffiths said he believed town planning hearings were beneficial to the council. "They create new ideas, create growth in the area and indicate the needs for scheme changes and I feel some costs of the hearings should be borne by ratepayers," said Cr Griffiths. He said there were a lot of hearings that were very simple and straight-forward that had to be put to a hearing because of the District Scheme. "The ones where you need to charge are the large ones such as (a recent application to build a motel)," said Cr Griffiths. He added that the council would need to look at cost recovery from hearings with multiple objections and from frivolous applications.

District Scheme District Manager John Murrihy said there were two points

worth considering. He said when council sets up its district scheme care should be taken to

see people have the opportunity to have a say, and that council Turn page 2

Planning fees could take hike

From page 1 make the scheme much more flexible so there wouldn't be the small applications before council. He said there was provision in his proposal to charge more than $600 if there was to be much more involved in the hearing of an application (up to a maximum of $1000 plus GST). "I believe there should be a standard fee of no more than $400," said Cr Griffiths. He said he saw the need for a cost recovery system rather than a user-pays system.

Cr Gould said it was time the council did what it could do to alleviate the high rates in the district, but that she saw Cr Griffiths point. She asked Mr Murrihy if a $400 minimum with a scale of fees from that figure was workable. Slow growth Said Cr Griffiths: "You've got to be careful you don't stop any growth in your area because there are limitations in your district scheme," . He said the Waimarino District Scheme was out of date and that there was bound to be applica-

tions in aspects were it didn't fit. "You are going to stop applications which must affect the growth of the area," he said. Mr Murrihy said the proposal was not a full user pays system. Cr Griffiths said the range of applications the council received was enormous. "Some of these applications we're putting through in about two minutes, and you're going to charge $600," he said. "You go through the hearings we've done in the past few months and tell me which ones deserve to be charged $600," he later asked. Cr Frew asked if the system could see a hearing carrying on for, say, a number of hours with the amount of time spent debating adding to the cost of the application. Mr Murrihy said a charge would be estimated prior to the meeting taking into account the town planner's time and travelling. Mayor Workman said the problem of the large price increase was because the previous $200 limit had been in force for such a long

time. He said if the price had been able to move over the years it would probably match the $600. Mr Murrihy replied to a question about relativity with other councils by saying the Waimarino had the added costs of travel for the town planner. In his report on the application fee he estimated the cost for the town planner's part of the hearing would be

$450 for one application, which would include travelling (three hours), one half hour at the hearing, and the planner's report. Councillor Gould said she felt it was such an important issue it should be decided by full council. The final decision on the setting of planning application fees is due to take place at this Wednesday's full council meeting.