Dwellings on Multiple Owned Maori Land

We are currently working on a Plan Change to make the rules in the District Plan to enable comprehensive Papakāinga developments within our District.

Western Bay of Plenty District Council will be seeking the community's views on proposed changes being prepared to the District Plan that will further enable papakāinga development in the district. The community consultation period will run from 17 October to 14 November 2024. Further information can be found on our consultation website Your Place during the consultation period.

Do I need a resource consent to put a house on multiple owned Maori land?

The Resource Management Act and the District Plan classify land use such as a new dwelling into six different categories. If an activity is a permitted activity a resource consent is not required. For all other activities, the rules and standards in the District Plan will determine the category of your application and how it will be assessed.

Permitted Activities

As a permitted activity, you can build one main dwelling. Each legal title is able to have one dwelling. This means you are not required to apply for a resource consent but are still required to apply for a building consent.

Controlled Activities

In addition to the main dwelling above you can build one minor dwelling (no more that 60m2 plus a garage of 18m2). In the Rural Zone this minor dwelling must be within 20m of the main dwelling and share the same vehicle access. Financial contributions are payable on the minor dwelling.

Council acknowledges that there is multiple ownership of Maori land in its District Plan. As a Controlled Activity you can build up to ten dwellings on multiple owned Maori land that is accessed off a sealed road maintained by Council. This is subject to there being an average of at least 2000m2 of net land area per dwelling. You are able to build up to a maximum of five dwellings on multiple owned Maori land which is accessed from an unsealed road. This is also subject to there being an average of at

least 2000m2 of net land area per dwelling.

For a Controlled Activity, you are required to apply for a resource consent and a building consent. You will also be required to pay financial contributions for each of the additional dwellings. See the Customer Service Planner for further details.

Restricted Discretionary Activity

As a Restricted Discretionary Activity you are able to apply to have 11 to 30 dwellings on multiple owned Maori land accessed from a sealed road maintained by Council subject to there being an average of at least 2000m2 of net land area per dwelling (including those provided as a Permitted Activity).

A Restricted Discretionary Activity means you will need consent but Council is restricted over the matters that it can look at when assessing an application. The matters over which Council will look at are covered in Rule 18.5.2 of the District Plan.

Discretionary Activity

As a Discretionary Activity you are able to apply to have up to 31 dwellings or more on multiple owned Maori land accessed from a sealed road maintained by Council subject to there again being an average of at least 2000m2 of net land area per dwelling (including those provided as a Permitted Activity).

A Discretionary Activity means you will need consent and Council is not restricted over the matters in which it can look at when assessing an application.

See the Te Keteparaha Mo Nga Papakainga - Maori Housing Toolkit for further information on how to carry out housing development on multiple owned Maori Land.

What about subdividing?

Hapu Partitioning

Council does not acknowledge a hapu partition as a subdivision and therefore a subdivision application is not required. A hapu partition does result in a separate Maori title but it is held with the members of the same tribe.

Council will acknowledge Hapu partitioning as being a right of occupation on that land and therefore evidence of a right to build. This right of occupation needs to be proven as part of the consent process either by way of Hapu partition, occupation orders (both issued by the Maori Land Court) or licence to occupy (given by the Trustees of the land to be built on).

Full Partition

To carry out a full partition you will need to contact the Maori Land Court. A full partition is a subdivision because of the issuing of a separate Maori freehold title to the land. This means you will need to apply for a subdivision consent with Council and comply with the relevant subdivision rules of the underlying zone.

What do I need to provide in a resource consent application?

A resource consent application consists generally of written information, plans and the payment of a processing fee.

Do I need to pay financial contributions?

If you receive resource consent approval you will be required to pay financial contributions per additional lot or additional dwelling. Financial contributions are a capital contribution to Council's assets to allow for the increase in use of existing assets i.e. Council roads, water supply and reserves.

Under the 2024/2025 Schedule of Financial Contributions Papakainga will receive a 100% deduction for additional dwellings for applications for a maximum of 10 dwellings. There will be a base charge of 1 HHE for the first dwelling on the site. If you have any queries related to financial contributions on multiple owned Māori land please email info@westernbay.govt.nz to refer to our Schedule of Financial Contributions.

Further Information

Please contact Council's Customer Service Planner if you would like further information by emailing info@westernbay.govt.nz. You can also view our Māori Housing Toolkit.

Please note: This information has been produced to assist you in understanding planning rules and procedures. It does not contain all District Plan or statutory requirements.