Dogs, people cause problems on land

Press, 9 July 1983, Page 9

Dogs, people cause problems on land

Members of the public and marauding dogs caused severe problems for the owners of a 23ha block of rural land at Hoon Hay, a Planning Tribunal was told yesterday. Four of the owners (Mr G. H. Gould) want to be able to live on their land so they can oversee these problems, and have appealed to the Planning Tribunal against the Paparua County Council’s decision not to rezone the land rural-residential. The Christchurch Drainage Board (Mr N. Taylor), the Paparua County Council (Mr J. R. Milligan) and 39 residents (Ms J. Rotherham) lodged objections to the application on the ground that it would increase existing drainage problems. The Canterbury United Council (Mr J. N. Manson) also objected on the ground that the application was contrary to the Regional Scheme.

A registered valuer and property consultant, Mr B. A. Halliburton, told the tribunal that a paradox existed. Although the land, bounded by Sparks and Hendersons roads, had the potential for high agricul-

tural production, its proximity to residential areas hindered this potential being reached.

People entered the property during the day and at night sometimes damaging the improvements on it, and often picking or breaking crops. Dogs had easy access to the land and were often marauding.

Mr Halliburton said close supervision of the land was of “paramount importance.” The land in question was within the Heathcote River catchment and close to areas that were covered with flood-water during bad storms.

The design and planning engineer for the Christchurch Drainage Board, Mr P. J. Adams, said he was concerned that any development on the land would increase the stormwater run-off and add to the flooding problem.

However, he said that a system of retention ponds proposed by the applicants could be accepted by the board if it was proved technically feasible in a range of conditions.

The Paparua County Council’s main reason for

refusing to rezone the land was the drainage problem, according to the county planner, Mr K. G. Lawn. He accepted that the proximity to residential areas did cause problems for the applicants but said that the land acted as a buffer zone for other rural areas.

If the drainage problem could be solved the balance could be tipped in the applicants’ favour, he said. A planner for the Canterbury United Council, Miss R. Biss, agreed that the proximity to residential areas caused difficulties, but said there were many examples of horticulture and agriculture adjacent to residential zones.

The Paparua County Council already had 481 lots in the green belt with houses on them and in reply to a question from Mr Gould, she accepted that custodial oversight was desirable but hoped this could take the form of farmhouses.

The hearing will continue on Monday afternoon. The members of the tribunal are Judge Treadwell, and Messrs H. L. Riley, H. M. Dodd, and J. J. McKenzie.