Further delay in new West Coast ‘one plan’
By Brendon McMahon
, Local democracy reporter
The submission period for the Te Tai o Poutini Plan (TTPP) has been extended by a further fortnight after another glitch in sending letters to landowners.
TTPP chairman Rex Williams said a delay in sending out the correct legal advice to affected landowners meant the submissions period would be extended again.
Some landowners were wrongly informed from July that their land contained sites and areas of significance to Māori, when the proposed plan was publicly notified.
Submissions were originally until the end of September.
The TTPP committee subsequently agreed to extend submissions until October 28 after the issue of the incorrect letter first arose.
Williams said a further two weeks for submissions, until November 11, recognised a further delay in the "follow-up correspondence" to landowners.
The TTPP had also received feedback from the public at last weekend's AgFest highlighting the need for more time.
"Extending the submission period by an extra fortnight gives additional time for our communities, businesses and other stakeholders to get involved and provide their feedback.
"This is a plan for West Coasters and it just makes sense to do this," Williams said.
The extra time would be formally ratified once the new TTPP Committee was appointed in the next few weeks.
Williams said a delay in new letters of advice being sent out had emerged.
This was due to resourcing, and the complex task of ensuring multiple immediate legal effect categories were accounted for.
"There were seven different letters, and some properties had more than one letter associated with them.
"It's not as though the regional council has excess staff. It was a matter of dealing with a few hundred letters, each of which had to be checked carefully. It just took a bit longer than we thought."
Wrong legal notification letters from the TTPP to some landowners, from late July, were originally traced to "a software glitch" in the mapping system used by the West Coast Regional Council for the TTPP, Williams said.
This in turn generated incorrect legal notification letters to some landowners.
West Coast Regional Council chief executive Heather Mabin said the latest glitch had been "logistical".
It was no reflection on Ngāi Tahu, which had helped the TTPP ensure everything was correct before new letters were sent out, Mabin said.
Meanwhile, Williams encouraged West Coasters to get in touch about the proposed plan and how to make a submission.
"It's not always easy understanding how the proposed plan may affect you. We are here to answer your questions.
"We need your feedback to make the TTPP be able to work for you."
The proposed plan can be viewed at www.ttpp.nz...
Poll: Should we be giving the green light to new mining projects? 💰🌲
The Environmental Protection Authority announced this week that a proposed mine in Central Otago (near Cromwell) is about to enter its fast-track assessment process. A final decision could come within six months, and if it’s approved, construction might start as early as mid-2026.
We want to know: Should mining projects like this move ahead?
Keen to dig deeper? Mike White has the scoop.
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53.2% Yes
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46.8% No
A riddle to start the festive season 🌲🎁🌟
I'm a fruit. If you take away my first letter, I'm a crime. If you take away my first two letters, I'm an animal. If you take away my first and last letter, I'm a form of music. What am I?
Do you think you know the answer? Simply 'Like' this post if you know the answer and the big reveal will be posted in the comments at 2pm on the day!
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Head here and hover on the Following button on the top right of the page (and it will show Unfollow) and then click it. If it is giving you the option to Follow, then you've successfully unfollowed the Riddles page.
‘Tis the season to not get scammed ...
As Christmas gift shopping moves increasingly online, scammers are ramping up their activity across the country.
Dunedin’s Investigation Support Unit is seeing more and more people fall victim to scams and other fraudulent activity, particularly on Facebook Marketplace.
There are a few ways to avoid the scams and keep yourself safe doing online trades this holiday season, says Southern District Service Delivery Manager Senior Sergeant Dalton.
🔒 “A good first step when looking to purchase something on Marketplace is to check when the seller’s Facebook profile was created. If it’s very recent, there is a higher risk that they have just created this account for a one-off fake item.”
🔒 Another important step is to make sure the seller’s profile name and bank account name match up. “We’re seeing a lot of scammers claiming their bank account name is different because it belongs to their partner or family member - that’s a huge red flag."
🔒 “When you’re selling, never trust a screenshot anyone sends you showing that payment has been made. Check your own bank account to make sure a payment has gone through."
🔒 “Quite frankly, it’s best for all parties to agree to pay, or be paid, for items in cash and in-person. Ideally in a public place with CCTV coverage."
🔒 "If you’re buying a car, check Carjam.co.nz to see if it’s stolen or if there’s money owed on it.”
A reminder: Suspicious activity can be reported on 105
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