On Wednesday 15 July, the Unitary Plan Independent Hearings Panel released interim guidance which said it was not convinced that houses in character areas necessarily qualified for historic heritage status and protection.
The panel said the council’s proposed interim demolition control overlay put unnecessary pressure on landowners wanting to develop properties.
The Character Coalition’s Sally Hughes and head of the university School of Architecture and Planning, Elizabeth Aitken-Rose both spoke out against this decision on Radio New Zealand.
See here for Radio NZ news article
To listen to interviews on this subject with various parties, including the Property Council, the Character Coalition, and others,