Updated 14 December 2018
The purpose of the Rural Zone is to provide for the continued productive use of rural land resource and provide for the widest range of primary production activities to be undertaken of all the Rural Zones. The open, vegetated landscape of this Zone with its very low density of development contributes greatly as a backdrop to the City’s intensive urban and suburban areas and to Tauranga Harbour.
Multiple-owned Maori land makes up a large proportion of the City’s Rural and Future Urban zoned land. While this land is used for primary production, there is also a growing need and demand for housing on the land that recognises the difficulties of such provision due to the constraints posed by the multiple owner tenure system. Provision for papakainga development in the Rural and Future Urban Zones seeks to meet this need by balancing demand with primary production and the maintenance of the rural character. The papakainga provisions are closely linked to the functioning of the Te Ture Whenua Maori Land Act 1993 (Te Ture Whenua Act) and for this reason the land available for papakainga development will be limited to that defined as Maori Land under the Te Ture Whenua Act. This is to ensure that papakainga development occurs in accordance with the aims of the RMA and the Te Ture Whenua Act, and is genuinely provided for Maori to meet their housing needs and cultural aspirations.
Within the Matapihi Rural Area the community’s preference is to provide for papakainga on three scheduled sites, rather than a general provision, in keeping with their desire to retain the rural character of the peninsula.
Defintions in this section
activity/activities
the city
multiple-owned maori land
papakainga
primary production
rma
rural character
rural zones