PHOTO: ODT FILESOver the summer break, following the repeal of the previous government’s Natural and Built Environment Act and Spatial Planning Act, the government introduced replacement legislation intended to resolve long-standing issues with the Resource Management Act (RMA). Under the proposed framework, regional spatial plans would replace the current network of district and regional plans. These include sunlight access, outlook, neighbourhood character, open space, landscape values and visual quality. This creates a risk that local character and environmental context become secondary to development efficiency. Smaller centres, such as Arrowtown, rely on local planning provisions to maintain scale, heritage character and sense of place.

Source: Otago Daily Times February 05, 2026 04:04 UTC