Gore District Plan changes proposed

Ensuring the preservation of the streetscape in Gore's central business district and making it easier to subdivide land in urban and rural areas are among proposed changes to the Gore District Council's district plan.

Gore district consultant planner Keith Hovell said 14 plan changes have been adopted by the Council and would be notified for public submission by mid-July.

A number of changes were of a minor nature and there to clarify uncertainty in some of the plan provisions, he said.

Key points
Among some of the more significant changes were

  • extending the heritage building list and introducing a townscape precinct for Gore's commercial area
  • introducing a minimum area for subdivision in rural and urban areas
  • specifying a maximum height for structures and buildings in industrial areas
  • reducing the allowable height for buildings in residential areas
  • introducing controls on earthworks throughout the district

Mr Hovell said the townscape precinct came out of the Council’s streetscape strategy.

“During consultation on the strategy, it became obvious there was a public desire to maintain the Main Street’s character,” he said.

Subdivision sizes
The subdivision rule changes make it easier to approve applications which meet rules relating to size. The minimum areas are 4ha for rural and 400sqm for urban, with the exception of two residential blocks near Gore’s green belt. These blocks, which are bounded by Crombie and Devon streets, and Preston and Traford streets, will have an allowable section size of 300sqm.

Mr Hovell said the 300sqm minimum was in response to what has been happening in this area for the past 10 years, with the large sections being subdivided for residential development.

The controls on earthworks have come about as the result of problems with the timing and scale of works that have occurred in urban and rural areas. It was also aimed at protecting water quality in the Knapdale groundwater zone, which feeds the bores the Council draws water from for the town supply.

Consultation planned
Mr Hovell said there will be meetings with various interest groups, such as farmers, architects and builders, as well as any other groups on request, to ensure people have a clear understanding of the intent and implications of the plan changes.

All of the changes will be open to public submission. However, those relating to the Knapdale groundwater zone and heritage buildings will take effect from the date of notification because there was the potential for property owners to pre-empt the changes, Mr Hovell said.

The Council’s hearing panel to consider any submissions will be made up of the four councillors certified as hearing commissioners. They are Cr Cliff Bolger, who will chair the panel, Cr Bret Highsted, Cr Nicky Davis and Cr Marty Redhead.

NB: Public notification has been delayed until the end of July-early August.