The mammoth process to determine rules concerning Dunedin development continues today, and Dunedin City Council staff are recommending a cautious approach in rural residential areas.
Council planner Michael Bathgate has recommended a small increase in the number of rural areas where low-density residential development is permitted.
All of them are in areas where development is already present.
Submitters will have their say on the proposals during a period of up to six days of hearings, starting today and finishing next week.
Mr Bathgate outlined concerns about extending the number of rural areas where residential development was allowed.
These included. -
•Taking land out of productive use, by inflating rural land values to the detriment of more productive rural activities.
•Non-rural use of rural land which could lead to reverse sensitivity effects, could reduce rural residential character and increase demands for provision of infrastructure.
Under the proposed 2GP, the area to be classified as rural residential 1 zone is increased by 12%, partly as a result of the addition of areas at Waikouaiti, Upper Junction and McMeakin Rd, Abbotsford.
The proposed 2GP also includes the addition of a new rural residential 2 zone, which allows for less intensive development, where subdivision would be a non-complying activity.
Areas proposed as rural residential 2 are in locations where some sites were already developed, thus limiting the impact of further development.
The proposed zone covers about 1313ha and incorporates 182 developed and 93 vacant sites over 1ha.
Mr Bathgate outlined a number of proposed criteria for extending rural residential areas.
He said, based on present demand and population estimates, there should be enough supply to meet demand for the life of the plan.
Rural residential zones had the capacity for an additional 580 dwellings on vacant sites, or a theoretical capacity of 779 dwellings, when the potential for infill on developed sites was added to the capacity on vacant sites.
