Nelson City Council is seeking community feedback on its proposed changes to fees for resource consents, building consents, and dog registration. The changes will increase cost recovery and apportion actual costs on users rather than on the ratepayer.

Clare Barton, Group Manager Environmental Management, says that the proposed fees will take into account recent increases in costs that have so far been absorbed by Council.

The proposed changes bring fees into alignment with Councils of similar size, including neighbouring Councils.

The proposed changes to resource consent fees include an increase in the hourly charge-out rate from $150 to $160 per hour and increases in the initial fixed charges for resource consent applications such as:

• Subdivision 1-3 lots from $1300 to $1500
• Subdivision 4 or more lots from $2000 to $2500
• Deemed permitted activities from $300 to $480 (no additional charges or refunds apply)
• Change of consent conditions from $500 to $1500
• All activities other than listed elsewhere from $1300 to $1500

Council’s building unit charge-out rate is proposed to increase from $135 to $160 per hour.

Other increases include:

• Changing the charge-out fee for Project Information Memorandums from $150 to $160 per hour.
• Including a computer system fee per consent ranging from $75 – $250 based on the estimated value of the works
• For projects over $20,000, increasing the quality assurance levy for from $1 to $2.50 per $1,000 estimated value, and increasing the insurance levy from $0.75 per to $1.50 per $1,000 estimated value.

The proposed dog registration fees would enable 90% of the dog control costs to be met without needing to be topped up by rates. Council policy requires dog control fees to cover 90-100% of dog control activity. Under the current fee regime, cost recovery is sitting at 79%. These fee proposals were not included in the recent dog bylaw consultation as they represent an operational change, rather than policy.

The proposed fees are shown in the table below. There are two scenarios, depending on whether Council retains the Good Dog Owner (GDO) scheme. The GDO currently gives a discount to approved owners, and Council is due to decide whether to remove that scheme and spread the financial saving across all dog owners. The final option chosen will depend on the outcome of the Dog Control Policy and Bylaw review, which is currently in progress.

For more information, to view a statement of proposal or to have your say, please visit

nelson.govt.nz/fees-and-charges

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