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77J: Requirements in relation to evaluation report
or “The law says you need to explain why you're changing the rules for building houses in your area”

You could also call this:

“A simpler way for cities to keep special rules in some areas when making housing easier to build”

When you’re thinking about existing qualifying matters, you can use a different process instead of the one described in section 77J. Here’s what you need to do:

You need to show on a map where the existing qualifying matter applies. Then, you need to say what the different density standards are for those areas. In a report, you need to explain why you think the existing qualifying matters apply to those areas. You also need to describe how much development would be stopped by the qualifying matter compared to what would have been allowed by the MDRS and policy 3. Finally, you need to tell everyone about the existing qualifying matters in the IPI.

It’s important to know that when you include existing qualifying matters in the IPI, they don’t start working right away when you tell people about the IPI. However, they keep working as part of the plan that’s already in use.

An existing qualifying matter is something mentioned in section 77I(a) to (i) that’s already working in the district plan when you tell people about the IPI.

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Next up: 77L: Further requirement about application of section 77I(j)

or “Extra rules for deciding if special reasons can stop more houses being built in an area”

Part 5 Standards, policy statements, and plans
Local authority policy statements and plans: Intensification requirements in residential zones

77KAlternative process for existing qualifying matters

  1. A specified territorial authority may, when considering existing qualifying matters, instead of undertaking the evaluation process described in section 77J, do all the following things:

  2. identify by location (for example, by mapping) where an existing qualifying matter applies:
    1. specify the alternative density standards proposed for those areas identified under paragraph (a):
      1. identify in the report prepared under section 32 why the territorial authority considers that 1 or more existing qualifying matters apply to those areas identified under paragraph (a):
        1. describe in general terms for a typical site in those areas identified under paragraph (a) the level of development that would be prevented by accommodating the qualifying matter, in comparison with the level of development that would have been permitted by the MDRS and policy 3:
          1. notify the existing qualifying matters in the IPI.
            1. To avoid doubt, existing qualifying matters included in the IPI—

            2. do not have immediate legal effect on notification of the IPI; but
              1. continue to have effect as part of the operative plan.
                1. In this section, an existing qualifying matter is a qualifying matter referred to in section 77I(a) to (i) that is operative in the relevant district plan when the IPI is notified.

                Notes
                • Section 77K: inserted, on , by section 9 of the Resource Management (Enabling Housing Supply and Other Matters) Amendment Act 2021 (2021 No 59).