Rotoruas consent issuing amongst NZs best

Rotorua District Council chief executive Peter Guerin writes in today’s Rotorua Daily Post ‘Council Talk’ column.

Rotorua District Council’s record of processing consent applications is now amongst that of the very best performing councils in the country. And that’s not just my view; it’s official.

This is particularly good news for businesses investing in new developments or upgrading existing commercial operations. It signals the council’s strong commitment to supporting our customers, especially our business clients, and it’s a result of effective management and strong leadership within our professional teams.

Last year, Minister for the Environment Nick Smith, publicly acknowledged our Planning Services team for their very high performance levels in processing 95% of consent applications within government timeframes, while a number of other councils were criticised for poor performance. The minister named RDC as one of the best performing councils in the country for these activities, and since then we've taken our results to an even higher level.

Figures for the just ended 2010/11 year show all environmental consent applications received by RDC were given the green light and almost all were granted within statutory timeframes. Ninety nine percent of our 267 land use consent applications were issued within the statutory 20 day processing requirement, along with 97 per cent of the 70 subdivision applications received.

Meanwhile the performance of our Building Services department is also up amongst the best in the country. In the 2010/11 year our Building team handled 2115 separate building consents - up 37% on the previous year and covering projects worth more than $112 million in total. Ninety nine per cent of those applications were processed within the statutory timeframe and our team hit the magic 100% mark for issuing building consent amendments. Not a bad result in anyone’s books.

Of note also is that our Building Services department has recently undergone a very rigorous audit to assess whether they meet the government’s strict new regulations for accredited Building Consent Authorities (BCAs). The good news is that we came through with flying colours, and with independent confirmation that the council is performing its building control functions to ‘best practice’ and in a technically competent manner.

Both our high flying Planning and Building departments are now part of a new operational grouping within Rotorua District Council - the Economic & Regulatory Services Group. This revamped cluster of departments reinforces the council’s commitment to supporting economic growth and, wherever possible, smoothing the way for investment and development to take place in our district. Departments within this group report to Economic & Regulatory Services group manager Mark Rawson, who rejoined the council a few months back, bringing with him a valuable private sector perspective.

Rotorua District Council’s important regulatory functions are complemented by a growing range of initiatives and incentives which we’ve developed for stimulating economic growth in our district. As a council we’re determined that Rotorua will be well positioned and equipped to take advantage of economic opportunities as the national economy starts its inevitable revival.


Peter Guerin
Chief Executive
Rotorua District Council