Zoning review process in place

Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee has announced the introduction of a review process for those insured residential property owners who wish to query their land zoning.

“Flat land property owners wishing to query their zoning have until June 30 to making an application for review to the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA),” Mr Brownlee said.

A similar review structure will be implemented for Port Hills residents following their zoning process, which is due for completion by the end of June.

Zoning of flat land in greater Christchurch began in June last year and was completed last month. Over that period 7253 properties were zoned red as unsuitable for residential occupation due to significant earthquake damage; while a further 180,000 properties were zoned green as suitable for residential occupation, some with conditions.

Some 550 people have contacted CERA over the past year to request a review of their zone status. The majority are in the green zone and wish to be zoned red, while 80 red zoned property owners are seeking re-designation to the green zone.

“To robustly assess the requests an advisory group has been established comprising three CERA officials with expertise in public policy, law and geotechnical engineering.
“In addition an independent member, Dr Keith Turner, has also been appointed,” Mr Brownlee said.

Dr Turner is presently chairman of NZX-listed Fisher & Paykel Appliances and is a distinguished fellow of the Institute of Professional Engineers New Zealand.

The advisory group’s role will be to assess if zoning changes are appropriate. They will consider a variety of scenarios, including if the original zoning is inconsistent with the Cabinet classifications or there are boundary anomalies.

The deadline for the advisory group to complete their review and report back to applicants is 30 July 2012.