Porirua City Council has approved the Proposed District Plan for Porirua, which will play an influential role in how the city develops in coming years.

The Proposed Porirua District Plan (PDP) will replace Council’s existing district plan, which became operative in 1999.

At the full Council meeting on 30 November, Porirua Mayor Anita Baker acknowledged the significance of this decision.

"It’s taken all the time I’ve sat at this table and longer to develop this plan. This is one of the most important decisions we’ve made as a Council."

The District Plan acts as a rulebook for development. The new plan aims to enable growth and future resilience for the city, while protecting the cultural, environmental, and historic values important to Porirua.

It also assists Council to achieve its functions under the Resource Management Act - to promote the sustainable management of natural and physical resources.

"This decision marks a new phase for Porirua City on how we balance working with and improving our environment for the benefit of Te Awarua-o-Porirua Harbour, alongside enabling development that offers a greater range of housing types and numbers," says Mayor Baker.

The PDP was initially notified in August 2020. Following direction from Central Government to enable more medium- and high-density housing in metro council district plans, Variation 1 to the PDP was notified in August 2022.

Council has included this directive in its plan, while considering the health and wellbeing of Porirua’s residents by providing some protection from shading from tall buildings for the most affected areas. It has also introduced urban design guides for new housing and commercial developments.

Council partnered with Ngāti Toa Rangatira in developing the new PDP. Some of the chapters were written by the iwi and they reviewed the entire plan before it was notified to the public.

More than 480 submissions were received on the PDP and Variation 1. There were eight hearings held between September 2021 and March 2023.

At the meeting, Council approved decisions on the PDP made by an Independent Hearings Panel. The panel was made up of a barrister, landscape architect, Ngāti Toa representative and planners.

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