Proposed Waikato District Plan - Waikato District Council

Proposed 

Waikato District Plan 

Variation 1: 

Tamahere Country Living Zone 

Notified on 13 August 2005 

Submissions closed 12 September 2005 

Waikato District Council 

15 Galileo Street 

Private Bag 544 

NGARUAWAHIA 

Telephone: 07 824 8633 

Facsimile: 07 824 8091

TABLE OF CONTENTS 

1.0 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................................................1 

2.0 THE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT ACT 1991 ......................................................................................................................2 

3.0 BACKGROUND ..........................................................................................................................................................................3 

4.0 TRAFFIC AND ROAD NETWORK MANAGEMENT ..........................................................................................................5 

5.0 STORMWATER NETWORK................................................................................................................................................ 12 

6.0 WALKWAYS ............................................................................................................................................................................ 17 

7.0 FUNDING AND LEVIES .......................................................................................................................................................... 18 

8.0 CONSULTATION .................................................................................................................................................................... 19 

9.0 CONCLUSION ......................................................................................................................................................................... 20 

APPENDIX 1 

APPENDIX 2 

APPENDIX 3 

APPENDIX 4 

APPENDIX 5 

APPENDIX 6 

APPENDIX 7 

Schedule of Amendments to District Plan – Tamahere Country Living Zone 

Concept Plan Roading - (1) Country Living Zone (2) Tamahere Enlargement 

Typical Road Cross Sections 

Example of Newell Road Closure 

Concept Plan Drainage 

Concept Plan Walkways 

Financial Contribution Worksheets

VARIATION 1 TO 

PROPOSED WAIKATO DISTRICT PLAN 

TAMAHERE COUNTRY LIVING ZONE 

1.0 Introduction 

1.1.1 This Variation to the Proposed Waikato District Plan applies to land at Tamahere which is 

zoned as Country Living Zone and is located within the Waikato District on the eastern 

boundary of Hamilton City. The TCLZ is bounded by the Waikato River, Airport Road, 

Tauwhare Road, and several unnamed tributaries of the Waikato River, Matangi Road, an 

existing Rural Residential zone and Hamilton City. 

1.1.2 Over the past 60 years or so, the land at Tamahere has been converted from typical Waikato 

farms to smaller intensive horticulture and lifestyle uses. By 1970, much of it had been 

subdivided into 4-hectare blocks, although farming continued on the remaining larger blocks 

and on the small blocks which had been kept in one ownership. Farming has gradually 

reduced, a trend that accelerated after 2000, when the district plan was changed to allow the 4 

hectare blocks to be further subdivided into 5000 square metre sections. Tamahere is now at a 

transition point, where the Council and the community recognise that Tamahere is no longer 

essentially rural in character, but now primarily a large lot residential area focussed on Hamilton 

City. This variation is intended to facilitate and manage the transition to low density residential 

use. 

1.1.3 The TCLZ is currently zoned in the Waikato District Plan as a mixture of Rural Residential, 

Tamahere Policy Area and Rural land. The Proposed Waikato District Plan, which was notified 

for public submission in September 2004 has zoned all of this area as Country Living Zone, with 

the Tamahere Policy Area overlying part of it. 

1.1.4 The TCLZ comprises a large number of small to medium sized blocks of largely flat land, 

bisected by gullies leading to the Waikato River. State Highway 1 runs through the middle of 

the area while State Highway 21 forms part of the southeast boundary. The small village of 

Tamahere lies on the eastern boundary consisting of the Tamahere Model Country School, 

several commercial businesses, a community hall and playcentre. Council also has plans in 

place to expand the reserve area around the Tamahere Village to create more land for recreation 

activities. 

1.1.5 The majority of the developable land is currently zoned as Tamahere Policy Area and the 

District Plan includes some indicative road corridors to allow for Country Living growth 

patterns and which straddle the property boundary in each case. However these corridors 

required neighbouring property owners to cooperate in the development of their land. A 

combination of different development timeframes and an unwillingness to work together has 

meant that this voluntary approach has been ineffective. The result of this is that substantial 

areas of the Tamahere Policy Area are uneconomic to develop due to a lack of available access 

corridors. 

1.1.6 In addition the Newell Road area has a history of stormwater problems which could be 

exacerbated by the development potential available under the Tamahere Policy Area rules. The 

guiding rule on density of development is a minimum lot size of 5,000 m². Council wishes to 

protect the existing gully systems from this increased stormwater runoff, while also 

implementing stronger controls to ensure that developments manage stormwater on site as 

much as possible. The ecological values of the gullies also need to be protected from the 

adverse effects of development. 

1.1.7 Waikato District Council therefore sees a need to take a more proactive role in setting aside and 

developing road access corridors and implementing stormwater controls. The most appropriate 

mechanism to achieve this is through the preparation of a Structure Plan, which is a “framework 

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for development”. The structure plan will be implemented through a notified variation to the 

proposed Waikato District Plan, which will set out the recommended changes to the plan. The 

recommended changes are contained in Appendix 1 to this document. 

1.1.8 The Structure Plan and Variation sets out a series of road corridors to facilitate efficient 

transport links both within the TCLZ and to and from the surrounding District roads and State 

Highways. The Variation also recommends the protection of existing and proposed 

walkway/cycleway links along with the protection of stormwater infrastructure. Rules are 

recommended to ensure that stormwater is managed on site as much as possible and a set of 

development levies have been prepared to ensure that the additional infrastructure costs 

associated with developing land in the TCLZ are borne by those that benefit from them and not 

the general ratepayer. 

2.0 The Resource Management Act 1991 

2.1 This Variation has been prepared to aid Waikato District Council in achieving the purpose of 

the Resource Management Act 1991 (“the Act”). 

2.2 Part II, Section 5(1) of the Act states the Acts’ purpose, which is: 

“To promote the sustainable management of natural and physical resources.” 

In the Act, sustainable management means: 

“Managing the use, development, and protection of natural and physical resources 

in a way, or at a rate, which enables people and communities to provide for their 

social, economic and cultural well being and for their health and safety while; 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

sustaining the potential of natural and physical resources (excluding 

minerals) to meet the reasonably foreseeable needs of future generations; 

and 

safeguarding the life-supporting capacity of air, water, soil, and 

ecosystems; and 

avoiding, remedying or mitigating any adverse effects of activities on the 

environment.” 

2.3 Clause 16A of the First Schedule of the Act sets out the manner in which variations to a district 

plan must be initiated. Clause 16A states the following: 

“Variation of proposed policy statement or plan – (1) A local authority may initiate 

variations (being alterations other than those under clause 16) to a proposed policy 

statement or plan, or to a change, at any time before the approval of the policy statement or 

plan. (2) The provisions of this Schedule, with all necessary modifications, shall apply to 

every variation as if it were a change.” 

The preparation of this proposed variation has been conducted in accordance with Clause 16A 

of the First Schedule process. The Tamahere Variation is an appropriate mechanism to promote 

a change to the Proposed Waikato District Plan for which submissions have closed. Further 

submissions were called for on 6 July 2005. Hearings on submissions and further submissions 

to the Proposed Waikato District Plan are expected to occur in late 2005. 

2.4 Section 74(1) of the Act requires that a territorial authority shall change its district plan in 

accordance with its functions under section 31, the provisions of Part II, its duty under section 

32, and any regulations. This proposed variation has been prepared in accordance with the 

relevant statutory provisions of the Act. 

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3.0 Background 

3.1 Physical 

3.1.1 The TCLZ comprises approximately 1130 hectares of land adjacent to the eastern boundary of 

Hamilton City. The Waikato River, State Highway 21, Tauwhare Road, Matangi Road and a 

series of unnamed tributaries of the Waikato River forms the boundaries of the zone. The 

topography of the zone is predominantly flat river terraces, bisected by a number of incised 

gully systems, draining the area towards the Waikato River, which forms the western 

boundary. Soils in the flat areas comprise alluvial deposits of Hinuera Formation in a ridge and 

swale system. Generally the lower areas are poorly drained while the ridges are better drained 

sandy soils. The low hills in the area comprise poorly draining clayey Hamilton ash soils. The 

incised gullies are generally formed through the Hinuera Formation and are easily eroded. 

3.1.2 Vegetation within the zone is predominantly pastoral with some exotic plantings around 

houses and through the gully systems. The Proposed Waikato District Plan identifies the 

Waikato River as an outstanding natural feature with a 50-metre strip on the true right bank 

noted as Landscape Policy Area on the Proposed Planning Maps. Gully vegetation is also 

recognised in District Plan policy. 

3.2 Landuse 

3.2.1 Historically the landuse in the zone has been a mixture of small farm blocks interspersed with 

rural residential or “lifestyle” properties typically ranging in size from 0.5 to 4 hectares. 

Although farming activities remain, the trend has been for these to be replaced by large lot 

residential uses. Small areas in the vicinity of Riverglade Drive, Woodcock Road and 

Rosebanks Drive have been zoned for Rural Residential purposes for over 25 years and are 

now substantially developed for this purpose. 

3.2.2 In 2000 Council prepared and notified Plan Change 19 or the “Tamahere Policy Area” in two 

separate areas centred on Newell Road and Woodcock/Windmill Roads. The purpose of the 

Tamahere Policy Area was to provide for rural residential landuse while establishing and 

protecting roading corridors to allow future urban development to occur. The majority of Plan 

Change 19 was effectively made operative in late 2001. After the resolution of appeals, Plan 

Change 19 became fully operative in April 2005. 

3.2.3 The Tamahere Country Living Zone as included in the Proposed Waikato District Plan 

effectively takes the existing Rural Residential zone and the existing Tamahere Policy Area and 

combines them into one zone with a similar set of provisions. The objective of this is to 

recognise and manage the transition from farming use to large lot residential use (5,000 m²). 

The Tamahere Variation recommends that the remnant provisions of the Tamahere Policy Area 

are amended in line with the predominant use of the area for large lot residential activities. 

3.2 Cultural 

3.3.1 Historically, members of Ngati Wairere, Ngati Haua, Ngati Te Oro and Ngati Koroki inhabited 

the area now known as the Tamahere Country Living Zone. The close proximity of the area to 

the Waikato River and its tributaries would have provided easy access for food gathering from 

the river. A number of cultural sites are recorded on the relevant Planning Maps including an 

urupa near the intersection of State Highway 1 and Tauwhare Road and a number of other 

smaller sites. Other items unrecorded on the District Planning maps but recorded on files held 

by the Department of Conservation may be located within the zone. A Cultural Evaluation of 

the Tamahere Structure Plan has been prepared by Nga Mana Toopu O Kirikiriroa and is 

available from the Council. 

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3.3 Transport 

3.3.1 The zone contains two separate State Highways, being State Highway 1 and State Highway 21. 

State Highway 1 enters the zone at the Tamahere interchange and travels northwest to enter 

the Hamilton City Council boundary at the Newell Road intersection. The Tamahere 

interchange constructed in 1999 links State Highway 21 with State Highway 1 and Tauwhare 

Road. State Highway 1 is also proposed to link to the proposed Hamilton bypass which leaves 

the existing State Highway corridor just north of Cherry Lane and follows a northward route 

towards Horotiu. 

3.3.2 State Highway 21 links State Highway 1 with State Highway 3 west of the Hamilton 

International Airport and forms the southeastern boundary of the zone. State Highway 21 

(formerly Airport Road) was elevated to State Highway status following the designation of the 

Hamilton Airport as an International airport. 

3.3.3 The highest traffic count internal transport link on the south side of State Highway 1 is Newell 

Road. Currently Newell Road serves as an ad hoc arterial route for motorists travelling to and 

from the Hamilton International Airport to Hamilton and from Pencarrow Road and points 

south. Existing landuse and subdivision has also resulted in a large number of existing titles 

with access to Newell Road. 

3.3.4 The key transport links on the north side of State Highway 1 are Tauwhare/Woodcock and 

Windmill Roads, Rosebanks Drive and Matangi Road. The majority of the land served by 

these roads is already fully developed; however, some remaining potential exists between 

Woodcock Road and Tauwhare Road. Several walkway routes provide links between some of 

the gully systems and the road network; however, these are yet to be developed for public use. 

3.3.5 The Hamilton International Airport, while not located within the zone, does influence landuse 

within it through its Airport Noise Outer Control Boundary (ANOCB). This is a corridor 

traversing north/south across the zone within which sensitive landuses such as houses and 

schools are required to adopt extra noise insulation. Subdivision within the ANOCB also must 

adopt slightly lower densities than for properties outside it. 

3.4 Infrastructure and Services 

3.4.1 The current level of infrastructure and services within the Tamahere Structure Plan area reflects 

the history of the area as a mix of rural, lifestyle and small block farming activities. All roads in 

the Structure Plan area are sealed with roadside drainage consisting of swales and, in places, 

deeper drains. Increased levels of subdivision and residential activity have seen substantial 

increases in traffic volumes on key arterial roads such as Newell Road and Woodcock Road. 

Newell Road in particular is showing signs of strain due to the volume of traffic it now carries. 

Several of the intersections are now below standard in terms of safety and recommended 

improvements are discussed later in this report. 

3.4.2 The area is supplied with a trickle feed water supply by arrangement with Hamilton City 

Council (Southern Districts Rural). There is no reticulated sewage or stormwater disposal 

within the Structure Plan area. Currently sewage disposal is via on-site systems such as septic 

tanks or their more comprehensive equivalent for businesses or activities such as the 

Tamahere Eventide Home. Stormwater is generally directed to the nearest gully, soakhole or 

roadside drain depending on the location of the site. Power and telephone services are readily 

available throughout the Structure Plan area. 

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3.5 Predicted Growth 

3.5.1 The location, topography and existing and proposed zoning of the Tamahere Structure Plan 

area results in a recipe for substantial population growth. The Tamahere Structure Plan area is 

one of the closest, semi rural areas to Hamilton City and with a population of 120,000. This 

location combined with the increasing popularity of “country lifestyle” living has seen 

substantial growth in the number of subdivisions, with resultant houses and families, moving 

into the area over the past 10 years. 

3.5.2 The “Woodcock cell” being all that land north and east of the State Highway 1 corridor, has 

been largely developed due to the existing areas of rural residential land in the vicinity of 

Cherry Lane, Bollard Road, Rosebanks Drive, Poplar Lane and Dalbeth Place. Little additional 

development is expected in these areas. The remaining areas within the Woodcock cell, being 

Windmill Road and that land between Woodcock Road and Tauwhare Road, has been rezoned 

under Plan Change 19 – Tamahere Policy Area and any remaining growth will occur in these 

parts of the cell. Approximately 244 additional lots are expected to be developed in the 

Woodcock cell under the proposed Country Living zone rules. 

3.5.3 The “Tamahere cell,” being all that land south and west of State Highway 1, has had limited 

development over the past 10 years with only one small cell of rural residential land on 

Riverglade Drive. The remainder of the cell has been zoned as Tamahere Policy Area within the 

last few years and substantial growth is expected with the potential for approximately 403 

additional lots under the proposed Country Living Zone rules. 

3.5.4 A small core of existing businesses are located around the Tamahere village area including a 

coolstore operation, a florist and tourism venture, a large transport firm and the current focus 

of the village being the Tamahere Model Country School. These have been noted as the 

“Tamahere Commercial Area” on the Proposed District Planning Maps. Land constraints do 

pose challenges should any of the existing businesses wish to expand. Reverse sensitivity 

from the surrounding Country Living zone residents also puts some constraints on business 

growth. The presence of the businesses is however recognised in the proposed Country 

Living Zone rules, which require a setback of 100 metres for any building from a site located in 

the Tamahere Commercial Area. 

3.5.5 The Proposed Plan does not confer Business zoning on this land. It is identified solely for the 

purpose of establishing buffers to protect the businesses from encroachment by incompatible 

landuses. The community has previously rejected suggestions of a Business zone in this area. 

4.0 Traffic and Road Network Management 

4.1 Current Flows 

4.1.1 The current road infrastructure that impacts on the Tamahere Country Living Cell includes two 

State Highways, a large grade separated interchange and three local collector roads. The roads 

are: 

• State Highway 1 

• State Highway 21 (Airport Road) 

• Newell Road, which links SH 1 to SH 21 through the Tamahere cell 

• Tauwhare Road (from Matangi) 

• Woodcock Road (to the Woodcock Cell) 

4.1.2 The existing traffic flows (2003) at Tamahere show that the daily volume of 21,700 vehicles per 

day (vpd) on SH 1 is currently four times that on SH21 (5070 vpd). It also illustrates that a large 

portion of the traffic flow on Newell Road at the SH1 end (Riverlea) is present at the SH21 end 

(Airport), or vice-versa, and thus since the existing development is low density, must be 

through traffic. This is consistent with a common misconception amongst Hamilton locals that 

Newell Road provides a shorter route to the Airport than SH 1 and the Tamahere interchange. 

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It is also argued that Newell Road is a more pleasant drive with regards to scenery and less 

traffic than SH 1. 

4.1.3 However, the limited available traffic records suggest that the traffic flows on Newell Road 

have actually been in decline since 1999. At the peak, traffic flows were recorded near 3000 

vehicles per day at the Riverlea end of Newell Road. It is likely that much of the reduction in 

traffic can be attributed to the safety improvement works carried out at the Newell Road / SH 1 

intersection together with the imposition of an 80 km/hr speed limit in recent years. 

4.1.4 In contrast, traffic on SH 1 adjacent to Tamahere has increased consistently for the past 4 

years (2000-2003) at the rate of 2.5% per year. In the same period SH 21 flows have increased 

by 9.3% per year. 

4.2 Future Flows 

4.2.1 Given the type of development expected and the close proximity to Hamilton City, the traffic 

generation rate will be on a similar scale to urban developments, i.e. 8-10 vehicle movements 

per day. While it is expected that movements to and from the city will increase following 

development, it is also reasonable to suggest that the provision of a Park and Ride facility plus 

buses servicing the local school will influence driving behaviour so that the trip rate will be 

similar to an urban area. 

4.2.2 Future traffic has been calculated for the total developed Tamahere and Woodcock cells, using 

a rate of 8 trips per dwelling. Increases in traffic flow will predominantly come from Tamahere 

cell since it is the least developed of the two cells. There is potential for Tamahere cell to 

contain approximately 600 lots, generating 4800 trips per day. 

4.2.3 The Woodcock cell is already significantly developed with 360 lots, although there is potential 

for approximately 244 additional lots, adding a further 1,960 vpd to the road network. 

4.2.4 Tamahere Country School advises that the school roll is predicted to reach 700-750 students 

within the next 5 years, resulting from the new zoning scheme, which begins in 2005. The 

school zone includes Tamahere and Woodcock cells, plus Tamahere South cell. Accordingly, 

based on an average of two school children per family, the potential number of daily trips 

generated by the school is 760-810 trips (including staff). Other traffic generators in the area 

include a small number of commercial businesses established near the school. Some additional 

tourist traffic is also expected due to the presence of tourist attractions such as Gails of 

Tamahere. 

4.2.5 The implications of the above flows have been assessed, along with potentially higher flows. 

The outcomes do not affect the conclusions in the balance of the report. 

Future State Highway Flows 

4.2.6 There is an increasing volume of traffic moving through the TCLZ to and from the Hamilton 

International Airport which currently uses State Highway 21 and State Highway 1. This 

volume of traffic is expected to increase further as the Airport’s commercial development 

progresses over the next few years. In addition the Mystery Creek Fieldays centre is 

increasingly being used for large-scale events such as the National Fieldays and large 

concerts. This places short term but intense pressure on the State Highway network. 

4.2.7 Two significant State Highway scenarios exist at the time when the developments are likely to 

be completed in the Country Living Zone. The first scenario is SH 1 pre-Hamilton Bypass and 

Southern Links, and the second scenario is SH1 post-Hamilton Bypass and Southern Links 

construction. Southern Links is a Transit New Zealand/Hamilton City Council promoted study, 

the main focus of which is to establish a future arterial network within the south of the city and 

within the southern areas of the city. Preliminary investigations have been completed and 

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these investigations recommend further in-depth investigations to establish the preferred 

corridor. The outcomes of this study have not yet been made public. 

4.2.8 These two scenarios have been assessed in the Hamilton Strategic Traffic Model maintained 

by Gabites Porter Consultants, where the following was found: 

• Flows on SH 1 at Newell Road prior to the construction of the Hamilton Bypass 

(approximately 2021) and Southern Links (currently planned for year 2046) will peak in 

the order of 31,000 vehicles per day. 

• Flows on SH 1 at Newell Road after the construction of the Hamilton Bypass and 

Southern Links will be approximately 18,000 vpd – i.e. 4000 vpd lower than current 

flows. This is due to the Hamilton Southern Links road network drawing 

approximately 15,000 vpd off SH 1 south of the Tamahere interchange, and the Bypass 

drawing off 12,500 vpd. 

• SH 21 remains as a low volume link between SH 3 and SH 1 even after the Hamilton 

Bypass is constructed, with a volume in the order of 5000 vpd in the Tamahere 

vicinity. This static volume is likely due to alternative western bypass routes that link 

to SH3, which are currently programmed for construction before the Hamilton Bypass. 

• At the SH 3 end of SH 21, traffic flows of approximately 8000vpd are predominantly 

airport bound. 

4.2.9 State Highway issues and options are discussed in Section 4.7. 

4.3 Internal Circulation Issues 

4.3.1 The internal circulation issues are predominantly restricted to the Tamahere cell since the 

Woodcock cell road network is almost already complete. 

4.3.2 The method of managing traffic circulation around the Tamahere cell to best create a Country 

Living environment involves the following initiatives. The aim is to achieve the following 

philosophy with respect to traffic management: 

Philosophy 

To create a Country Living environment that includes narrow carriageways, country style drainage 

systems, large trees, slow vehicle speeds, low vehicle flows and a meandering standard of road 

alignment to discourage through traffic movements. 

Newell Road Severance 

4.3.3 Severance of Newell Road to restrict through traffic movements is proposed in the vicinity of 

the Powell and Beaven blocks of land. The existing Newell Road/State Highway 1 intersection 

has limited capacity and from a safety perspective is not the most desirable layout. 

Improvements to the layout would be difficult. Consequently a fundamental part of the 

Structure Plan is to utilise the existing intersection within its capabilities by managing the flows 

that are presented to it. It is proposed to sever Newell Road, thus eliminating the through 

traffic component and replace this through traffic, with internally generated traffic up to the 

capacity of the intersection. A route through Tamahere CLZ will still be possible for residents 

using other roads in the proposed network but these will be indirect, with a slow meandering 

alignment. The statutory road stopping procedure will be initiated to implement this. 

4.3.4 The layout of the existing Newell Road/State Highway 21 intersection is such that land owners 

in the southeastern corner of the Tamahere cell are reluctant to use this route, and prefer to use 

Newell Road / State Highway 1. The Structure Plan envisages the State Highway 21/Newell 

Road intersection being upgraded, which will reduce the demands on State Highway 1/Newell 

Road intersection. 

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4.3.5 Severance of Newell Road will result in its intersections with SH 1 and SH 21 accommodating 

only ‘catchment areas’ of traffic within the Tamahere cell. The daily traffic volumes at each 

intersection when the zones are fully developed will be roughly equivalent, approximately 2000- 

2300vpd, to the current traffic volumes on Newell Road. A path for non-vehicle transport 

modes such as walking, cycling and horse riding will be provided through the Newell Road 

closure. The closure of Newell Road is illustrated on the Newell Road Closure plan 134100/107 

attached as Appendix 4. 

Structured Road Network 

4.3.6 Use of a hierarchy of road types in the network will influence traffic circulation. Collector roads 

will have 7 metre wide carriageways, while local and access roads will be 6 metres wide. Newell 

Road is to remain the central collector arterial, although a reduction of the speed limit to 60 

km/hr is recommended. 

4.3.7 The road network is arranged to reflect country corridors including relatively tight bends and 

fragmented connections on minor links where through traffic movements are undesirable. Such 

measures will limit vehicle speeds and influence non-essential traffic to use primary collector 

routes. Shared use walking and cycling paths will be provided along desired routes such as 

walkways to gullies, the community centre and schooling area. 

Country Living Zone Access 

4.3.8 The TCLZ road network is structured deliberately to encourage access from either SH1/Newell 

Road or SH21/Newell Road intersections. This initiative directs future traffic volumes away 

from the school and community centre, thereby protecting the safety of other users in that 

area. 

4.3.9 Currently access to the central Tamahere village is gained off the Tamahere interchange 

onramp. This access will still be accessible to the majority of properties in Tamahere via a 

network of lower hierarchy road links and so in the short term will serve to relieve pressure on 

the SH 1/Newell Rd intersection in the years prior to Hamilton Bypass construction. 

4.3.10 In the long term, closure of the access should be explored when the Hamilton Bypass is 

constructed and the number of vehicles driving children to school reaches a level that 

demands more sustainable safety measures. 

4.3.11 Each initiative is illustrated on the road structure Drawing 134100/101 attached as Appendix 2. 

Future Traffic Flows Accessing Tamahere Cell 

4.3.12 The future traffic flows at the junctions to the Country Living Zones are influenced by the 

inner circulation issues, such as the road network and catchment area, the location of the 

community centre and school, and the proximity and density of surrounding dwellings. 

Tamahere Model Country School is currently a key traffic generator and this can be expected 

to continue with a roll that is expected to double in the next 5 years. At present 16% of 

dwellings in the Woodcock cell and Tamahere South cell contribute to the school roll, and only 

4% contribute from Tamahere. 

4.3.13 In calculating the schools’ future traffic volumes an assumption that has been made that 20% 

or 120 dwellings from each of the developed cells will contribute to the school roll. This 

assumption is based on the total number of future dwellings in the Tamahere and Woodcock 

cells being 600 each. With approximately 2 school children per dwelling, the school roll of 720 

students is calculated. Each developed cell of 120 dwellings will generate 240 daily school 

trips. In the worst case scenario these trips would all be made by private car. 

4.3.14 Currently two buses operate delivering children to the Tamahere School and discussions with 

the principal of the Tamahere School confirmed that they want to encourage the increased use 

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of buses by pupils. Tamahere cell school trips will be internal but Woodcock and Tamahere 

South trips are external to the school and will generate up to 480 daily vehicle trips into 

Tamahere assuming no bus transport is provided for school children. It is however anticipated 

that the proposed Park and Ride facility will reduce the level of two way private car commuter 

trips. 

4.3.15 With closure of the Tamahere interchange access recommended in the long-term, the traffic 

flows assigned to the interchange access will shift to the SH 21/Newell Road intersection. The 

addition of 1030 vehicles per day to this junction will not cause a significant adverse affect on 

the operational characteristics provided that a right-turn bay is included on SH 21. 

4.4 Proposed Road Network - Tamahere 

4.4.1 The road structure plan for the Tamahere Country Living Zone is illustrated on Appendix 2. 

The various links in the road network are colour coded to indicate the road hierarchy and 

whether the responsibility for development is with Waikato District Council or the Developer. 

Generally roads that provide access to multiple properties, or operate as a strategic collector 

link will be the responsibility of Council to develop. Property accesses and minor street links 

are the responsibility of the Developer. 

4.4.2 The situation may however arise that a number of property owners in one area wish to develop 

but the remainder do not, effectively preventing development of road access. In this situation, 

Council will need to act as road developer, purchasing the necessary road corridor (as set out 

in the Structure Plan), constructing the road and getting the costs of that road back from all 

landowners who front the new road. The Council would manage this type of arrangement on a 

case by case basis. 

4.4.3 The key design features that address the issues presented in Section 4.0 that support the 

Country Living environment are illustrated on the drawing; namely the Newell Road severance, 

the varying road hierarchy, tight bends and fragmented connections. Another key road 

network constraint is the desire to have the lowest possible volume of through traffic going 

past the school and community facilities area at Tamahere. Access separation distances in the 

road network in most cases conform to Waikato District Council’s 200m standard. 

Road Hierarchy – Typical Cross Section Design 

4.4.4 The road hierarchy comprises of Collector, Local and Access roads in the network. Typical 

cross section designs for each road type in the Tamahere CLZ are shown in Drawing 

134100/110 (see Appendix 3). The pavement designs are based on typical alluvial sand 

subgrade found in Tamahere and actual designs will have to be based on actual site 

investigations. The carriageway design features country characteristics such as narrow lanes, 

swale drainage systems, large trees lining the road, and ‘shared use’ walking and cycling 

paths. The seal widths are deliberately narrow and the opportunity for vehicles to move off the 

seal surface will be available using the grass shoulders developed over a granular sand base. 

Other Key Design Aspects 

4.4.5 The closure at the mid-point of Newell Road is the key driver of the Structure Plan road 

network strategy. Newell Road will continue to function as a key collector road, although no 

through movements will be possible for vehicles at the closure. Connectivity is provided to all 

properties from any location in the TCLZ but only through a series of Local roads. The 

severance of Newell Road is proposed as shown in Appendix 2, at the curve adjacent to the 

Powell properties. This location splits the north and south traffic generation evenly to the two 

Newell Road / State Highway accesses. A proposed closure design is shown on Drawing 

134100/107 (see Appendix 4). 

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Walking and Cycling 

4.5 The Structure Plan makes provision for shared use walking and cycling paths. This is mainly 

on Local and Collector roads where a 2 metre shared use path will be constructed to 

complement the country lane environment. Walking tracks are also proposed near streams and 

in gullies for recreational use. The Walking and Cycling facilities proposed are covered in more 

detail later in this report. 

4.6 Proposed Road Network - Woodcock 

4.6.1 The road structure plan for the Woodcock Cell is illustrated in Appendix 2. The Woodcock cell 

road network features the same road hierarchy and cycle/walkway treatment as proposed in 

Tamahere. However, Woodcock Cell is already significantly developed in terms of key 

collector roads and therefore the plan primarily illustrates the numerous access extensions 

remaining for completion of the development process. There are however, two significant 

features Council needs to address in terms of traffic management: 

Woodcock Road 

4.6.2 With the majority of the 245 new lots in the Woodcock cell accessing onto Woodcock Road, 

the Structure Plan highlights improvements needed at the Woodcock Road / Tauwhare Road 

intersection. Site inspections reveal that the current intersection suffers sightline problems to 

the west due to the location of a vertical curve. The skew of the intersection also allows left 

turn vehicles to turn from Tauwhare Road at speed into Woodcock Road, while the lack of a 

right turn bay and centre island compounds the safety problems for turning vehicles from the 

east. Remedial works are recommended to address the sightline and geometry issues at the 

present intersection. 

Annebrook Road 

4.6.3 The second collector road feature in the Woodcock zone concerns Annebrook Road. 

Annebrook Road currently joins onto SH 1 through a newly painted Seagull priority ‘T’ 

intersection at a location where 22,000 vpd travel to and from Hamilton. A right turn in or out 

of Annebrook Road is currently substandard, especially in peak periods. Safety will decrease 

as traffic volumes increase on SH 1, eventually to 30,000 vpd by 2020 before the Hamilton 

Bypass is constructed. 

4.6.4 Clearly the existing Annebrook Road intersection is not sustainable in its present form until 

2021 when the Bypass is constructed. Therefore the Structure Plan promotes a strategic link 

from Annebrook Road to Matangi Road. Traffic would then make use of Matangi Road and 

SH26 to gain access to Hamilton. This strategic link allows Annebrook Road to eventually be 

closed off to SH 1. Maintaining left turn movements while providing a link to Matangi Road 

could encourage rat running from SH 26 to SH 1, so is not recommended. 

4.6.5 Land will need to be acquired for the strategic link to Matangi Road. The proposed Annebrook 

Road to Matangi Road link is recommended for designation to protect this future link. 

4.7 State Highway Network Issues and Options 

4.7.1 The Tamahere and Woodcock cells will continue to require access to the surrounding State 

Highway road network for the foreseeable future. Other than minor widening improvements, 

the status quo is proposed in the short term concerning use of the accesses from SH 1 and SH 

21, as these are sufficient to accommodate the added development traffic. However, 

consideration has been given to the issues and potential impacts arising from the long-term 

highway developments, namely the Hamilton Bypass, future SH 21 traffic demand, and the 

Hamilton Southern Links proposals. 

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4.7.2 Each scheme forms part of the ‘big picture’ strategy for future traffic management to the south 

of Hamilton City, and each has the potential to impact on the Tamahere and Woodcock cells. 

At this time only “what if” scenarios can be tested due to the lack of detail known about either 

scheme. 

Hamilton Bypass (Waikato Expressway) 

4.7.3 The Hamilton Bypass scheme is the most advanced of the three schemes, with designation of 

the eastern route around Hamilton in place, as shown in Appendix 2. The current scheme for 

the Waikato Expressway interchange is also illustrated on the drawing. 

4.7.4 Since designation has taken place the key issues now concerning the Bypass relate to the 

timing of construction and the possibility of a future connection to the interchange from 

Tamahere CLZ. Construction is currently expected in 2021, at which point the SH 1 flows will 

be in excess of 30,000 vpd. With 2000 vpd accessing Newell Road at the northern end the SH 1 

/ Newell Road intersection will be functioning near capacity in the peak hour. Accordingly, it is 

necessary to maintain the current access at the Tamahere interchange and the State Highway 

21 / Newell Road as alternate routes to the TCLZ until the Hamilton Bypass is constructed. 

Hamilton Southern Links 

4.7.5 The Southern Links Arterial project has been promoted for some time as a bypass for Cobham 

Drive in the south, to the centre of Hamilton. Current schematic proposals indicate the 

preferred southern arterial alignment from SH 1 to the Peacocks Rd area of Hamilton to run near 

or through the southwest corner of the Tamahere CLZ. However, research to date has not 

advanced past the preliminary investigation stage and therefore no decisions have been made 

to confirm the alignment. Furthermore, no details are known about the type, form or location of 

a possible intersection or interchange with SH21, although it is highly likely there will be one. 

State Highway 21 

4.7.6 In time it is also possible that SH 21 could become a strategic link between SH 3 and the future 

Hamilton Bypass. A key function of State Highway 21 is to link the Hamilton International 

Airport to the State Highway network. Airport traffic is increasing and commercial 

development of the Airport perimeter together with better utilisation of the Mystery Creek 

Fieldays site may result in increased base traffic and short term high demand in the area of 

interest. The timing of the Southern Links and the Hamilton Bypass projects will greatly 

influence the quantum of that effect. 

4.7.7 Transit New Zealand has yet to commission a study to examine the Southern Links and State 

Highway 21 planning issues and therefore no other details are yet known. 

Implications of Southern Links and SH1 Studies 

4.7.8 The 2046 model with complete strategic network as currently planned revealed that the 

Southern Links would draw approximately 15,000 vpd off SH 1 south of the Tamahere 

interchange, and the Hamilton Bypass will draw approximately 12,500 vpd, leaving 18,000 vpd 

on Cobham Drive. 

4.7.9 Modelling has also been done of the effect of deleting the Southern Links corridor from SH 1 to 

SH 21. The model revealed that traffic would not travel via the Tamahere interchange and SH21 

to the remaining Southern Links arterials. The model found this journey route to be 

significantly more costly (time consuming and difficult) to road users than the option with the 

southern corridor, and predicts that traffic would instead remain on SH 1 and increase 

congestion on Cobham Drive. The traffic flows for the Southern Links arterials would be 

severely reduced to the point that it would not be economical to construct the roads. 

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4.7.10 In all, the strategic planning exercise revealed that it is necessary to have the southern corridor 

from SH1 to SH 21 in the Southern Links scheme. It was found that an alignment of the 

corridor would best extend from the planned Pickering Road interchange on SH 1 since this 

achieves the required separation from the Tamahere interchange. It is then possible that the 

corridor can follow parts of the old SH 1 alignment and cross the river at Narrows Landing, 

avoiding any impact on the Tamahere CLZ. An interchange could be formed with SH 21 

making use of the Narrows ridge topography. 

4.7.11 The strategic planning exercise also revealed that SH 21 will not become a high volume 

strategic link between SH 3 and the Hamilton Bypass as long as the western bypass routes 

around Hamilton are formed. With future traffic flows similar to current flows the continued 

use of an upgraded or replaced Narrows Bridge could be accommodated with highway 

alignment and approach improvement works. The impact on the Tamahere CLZ would be 

minimal. The existing bridge will need to both widened and the vertical geometry of same 

improved for it to be incorporated into any upgrade of State Highway 21. Whether or not this 

is technically and economically achievable is yet to be determined. However a new bridge on 

the same alignment or adjacent to it would achieve the same objectives. 

4.8 Road Network Recommendations 

4.8.1 The following points summarise the key road network recommendations for Tamahere: 

a) Implement Newell Road severance. 

b) Widen and construct the right turn bay at the SH 21 / Newell Road intersection 

c) Carry out Woodcock Road / Tauwhare Road intersection improvements and sight 

distance works. 

d) Designate the future link between Matangi Road and Annebrook Road. 

e) Close Tamahere access from Tamahere Interchange when Hamilton Bypass is built, 

and traffic conditions are appropriate. 

f) Designate the Collector roads marked A and B on the Roading Structure Plan Drawing 

134100/101. (see Appendix 2). These two roads are vital internal circulation links for 

the Tamahere CLZ. 

4.8.2 The amendments to the Proposed Waikato District Plan to implement these road network 

recommendations along with the requirements of the Tamahere Structure Plan are contained in 

Appendix 1 to this report. 

5.0 Stormwater Network 

Stormwater Philosophy 

Stormwater from impermeable surfaces is to be dealt with as close to the source as practicable 

through detention and soakage. Sufficient drainage paths are to be provided to prevent flooding of 

sections and roads, and road runoff is to be treated via infiltration or detention. There will be no 

general urban type stormwater reticulation system built in the foreseeable future. 

5.1 Site Description 

5.1 The receiving environment is typically flat with occasional low hills and incised gullies. The 

soils in flat areas are alluvial deposits with variable drainage, and the low hills consist of very 

poorly draining clayey soils. The incised gullies typically cut through relatively weak deposits 

that are easily erodable, and have boggy bases. 

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5.2 Stormwater Control 

5.2.1 Stormwater control is of significant concern in this area with gully systems vulnerable to 

erosion and contamination. Of wider concern is the increase in peak flows on downstream 

areas. Options to protect against erosion such as riprap or piping of gully systems, would 

have a significant effect on the environment, and are not desirable outcomes for now or the 

future. As only a minor increase in flows could significantly increase erosion in small gully 

systems, this report has the desired outcome of no increase in peak flows from this area. 

Measures to achieve this include a requirement that all possible increased stormwater peak 

flows be dealt with on site, with consideration also given to adopting an impermeable area limit. 

On-Site Measures 

5.2.2 Stormwater source control is to occur through the use of water tanks for roof stormwater, 

infiltration and detention for other impermeable surfaces, and swale drains, soakholes and 

retention ponds for roading stormwater. Stormwater solutions such as kerb and channel, 

piping, and discharge into the existing drainage system will be allowed in areas with poor soil 

drainage only, but detention systems must be used, resulting in no increase of peak flows into 

gullies. Measures to achieve the reduced runoff are likely to include larger lot sizes than are 

currently typical. 

5.2.3 The Auckland Regional Council TP-124 “low impact design manual” (2000) suggests requiring 

that runoff limits from a set event be stored and released over a 24 hour period. For this area a 

suitable event is considered to be the 5-year return period storm. Possible on-site measures to 

control stormwater quantity and quality are discussed in the New Zealand Water Environment 

Research Foundation (NZWERF) guidelines “On-Site Stormwater Management Guideline” 

(2004), listed below. 

• Filters 

• Infiltration trenches 

• Rain gardens 

• Stormwater planters 

• Rain tanks 

• Swale/filter strips 

• Wetland/ponds 

• Roof gardens 

• Roof gutters 

• Permeable pavements 

5.2.4 Methods of stormwater control that are particularly suited to this environment include 

infiltration options in areas of well drained soils, detention options such as rain tanks, swale 

drains, wetlands and ponds, and impermeable surface reduction measures such as permeable 

pavements and roof gardens. Where detention measures are implemented they should be 

constructed so that low-level stream flows are protected during dry periods. For example, 

ponds should have outlets set at a low level. 

5.2.5 In determining peak flow rate it is proposed that acceptable parameters be provided which 

reflect the conditions likely to be found in poorly drained areas. Developers can either use 

these figures or provide justification for the use of different figures, such as permeability test 

results. This method will facilitate the more efficient processing of consent applications. 

5.2.6 Stormwater disposal areas are to be kept separate from effluent disposal fields, and located so 

water inputs from both systems have no adverse impact on the functioning of the other. Site 

limitation information such as effluent or stormwater field sizes and setbacks, and impermeable 

area limits must be provided to future purchasers. 

Impermeable Surface Limit 

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5.2.7 The minimum lot size is currently 5,000 m 2 as stated in rule 27.62 of the Proposed District Plan. 

Including a maximum impermeable surface limit of 700 m 2 in this rule is recommended as a way 

of controlling stormwater runoff. If this limit is to be exceeded then a resource consent must be 

applied for. Such a limit is likely to require measures such as permeable driveways and grass 

roofs to be implemented to ensure that this total is not exceeded. 

5.2.8 A percentage site coverage rule is not recommended, as benefits that could be gained by larger 

sections would then be lost. It is likely that the impermeable surface of the lots will increase 

over time, particularly as owners change. Also, the large lot size will encourage the 

construction of impermeable surfaces such as tennis courts, which can significantly increase 

the percentage of impermeable surface. While no rule has been proposed to deal with this 

matter, it is anticipated that the low proposed limit will help mitigate this effect. Roads and 

right of ways in the TCLZ should also be constructed to minimum widths to reduce 

impermeable areas. 

Landscaping 

5.2.9 Significant changes to stormwater flows can occur if the ground shape is altered by 

earthworks. This includes the filling in of depressions, reducing stormwater storage capacity, 

and raising sites, resulting in the shedding of stormwater onto adjacent sites. Control of this 

work is sufficiently covered by existing rules 27.24, 27.25 and 27.26 and Appendix B6.2 in the 

Proposed District Plan. Planting to prevent gully erosion will be required for new subdivisions. 

Fire Fighting 

5.2.10 Static water supplies are required to provide sufficient on-site water for fire fighting purposes. 

Stormwater Contamination 

5.2.11 Possible stormwater contaminants in this area include bacteria from effluent disposal fields, 

hydrocarbons and heavy metals, and chlorinated pool water. Contamination of stormwater 

with effluent is controlled through Regional Council requirements. Control of road 

contamination is expected to occur through the proposed roading stormwater design of swale 

drains to encourage infiltration, ponding to allow contaminates to drop out of suspension, and 

exposure to sunlight and microbes to help break down liquid contaminants. 

5.2.12 All swimming and spa pool water is to be dealt with on site via ground infiltration, and not 

emptied into the drainage system, in particular avoiding small gullies where the impact on their 

ecology could be significant. The Waikato Regional Plan administered by Environment 

Waikato adequately deals with the issue of discharges from swimming and spa pools and an 

additional rule in the Proposed Waikato District Plan is therefore not required. 

Runoff from roads 

5.2.13 The existing roading network typically utilises swale drains on one side of the road to control 

stormwater runoff. Some roads have no drainage system, and newer roads typically have a 

more comprehensive system with large drains on both sides of the road. The existing network 

needs improvement as periods of heavy rainfall can cause flooding. It is recommended that all 

new roads be constructed with, and existing roads be retrofitted with swale drains with 

sufficient capacity to detain all water from the adjacent catchment for a 5-year average return 

interval (ARI) event. In areas of poorly drained soils this may require the road reserve width to 

be increased. 

5.2.14 A example design is shown in Appendix 3 and contains low slopes (7:1 or less) with straight 

sides to facilitate maintenance. The drains have been over designed so they also act as 

retention systems encouraging disposal to ground. Overflow paths for events larger than this 

must also be provided. This design will encourage disposal to ground and provide treatment 

of contaminants. 

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5.2.15 Where swale drains are constructed in poorly drained soils stormwater is to either be directed 

to areas of well drained soils, infiltration ponds, or soakholes. Soakholes are only to be utilised 

where underlying soils are well drained. Where high maintenance of soakholes is anticipated 

catchpits are recommended. 

5.2.16 Road swale design must take into account overland flow paths towards the road. In places the 

final design may necessitate a road reserve greater than 20m. 

Areas Prone to Surface Flooding 

5.2.17 Given the typically flat nature of the Tamahere area, it is expected that significant rainfall 

events will cause water to pond in low-lying areas. This is considered acceptable given the 

rural living concept of this area. All areas described as very poorly drained to imperfectly 

drained in Appendix 5 should expect regular surface flooding in places, excluding those areas 

located adjacent to gully systems. There are three main locations of poorly drained land 

comprising the Airport Road end of Newell Road, Newell Road from Birchwood Lane to Hart 

Road, and in the vicinity of Annebrook Road and Poplar Lane. As these areas have an 

established network of drains and gullies running through them, it is not anticipated that 

significant lengths of new drains will be required. 

5.2.18 The implications for development are that the preferred methods of controlling roading 

stormwater in this area via swale drains and soakholes may not be possible. Further limitations 

on impermeable areas or lot size may also be required for developments in these areas. 

Alternative road design in these areas should still use swale drains where possible, as opposed 

to kerb and channel. As swale drains may not provide sufficient infiltration in poorly drained 

areas, retention ponds should be installed as required to ensure that peak flows are not 

significantly increased in the gully systems. While it is anticipated that all runoff from building 

roofs will be directed to water tanks or ground, other impermeable surfaces in these areas will 

also require infiltration or detention systems. 

5.2.19 Flooding in areas with poorly drained soils and flat grades will occur naturally, without any 

development. With development such flooding is only likely to exacerbate. It is therefore 

recommended that development in these areas be located on the highest areas possible on the 

site. Where no such high points occur on a property then buildings should be raised up above 

the surrounding ground by a suitable height. Rule 27.55 in the Proposed District Plan already 

provides for this. 

High Winter Groundwater Levels 

5.2.20 Areas where high winter groundwater levels are likely to impact on development are those 

areas with very poor to imperfectly drained soils located away from gully systems as shown on 

the plan in Appendix 5. Due to soil variation this map should not be taken to be 

comprehensive, particularly as this drainage map is only of the surface soils, and poorly 

drained soils may exist below these, impacting on total drainage by creating perched 

watertables. Development will be impacted as there will be reduced capacity for stormwater 

infiltration leading to an increased likelihood of flooding, and there will be reduced capacity for 

effluent soakage fields. It is noted that such effects may also occur in spring and autumn. 

5.2.21 Sewage has been identified to be a significant issue for this area. The current minimum lot size 

is 5,000 m 2 of which Environment Waikato requires 2,500 m 2 to be provided for effluent fields. 

An increase in the number of effluent fields could exacerbate high groundwater problems in 

areas of poorly drained soils, reducing both possible effluent and stormwater infiltration, and 

possibly leading to increased flooding with increased risk of stormwater contamination. Sites 

located in poorly drained areas should have to undertake an analysis of the effect that their 

effluent disposal field will have on high ground water levels, ensuring that the field will not 

increase the flooding risk. 

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Drains and Gullies 

5.2.22 Existing drains identified during this study are shown on Drawing 134100/103 in Appendix 5. 

Drainage paths will integrate with road alignments, walkways/ cycleways, gully reserves and 

other public reserves. Drainage data has been collected from drainage board drawings, site 

investigation, and various resource consent files. It will not be comprehensive, as there are 

likely to be drains on private property that have not yet been recorded. The proposed drainage 

network is also shown on this drawing, providing increased coverage of areas that have been 

identified to have drainage issues. Drains have been classified as main drains, road swale 

drains, minor drains on private property, and overland flow paths. 

5.2.23 A large increase in the number of drains in this area would increase the peak flow into gullies 

and the Waikato River as the stormwater travel time was reduced. As such an increase is 

undesirable, the recommended increase in drains has been limited as much as possible. Drains 

to be constructed now and protected by easement are identified on Drawing 134100/103 as 

main drains. Easements should include the drain and extend 7 m back from the edge of the 

drain on at least one side with access to be maintained over this area. To ensure that drain 

access is protected it is recommended that a rule be included in the district plan similar to rule 

4.2.18.1 in the proposed Waikato Regional Plan. 

Staging of Drain Construction 

5.2.24 Retrofitting of swale drains to existing roads has been allowed for over the next five years for 

costing purposes. Construction of swale drains adjacent to new roads will either be included 

in the community roading cost where the road is constructed by Council, or at the developer’s 

expense where constructed by the developer. Drain construction will occur as required. 

Where a subdivision requires the construction of a new drain, drain outlet works are also to be 

undertaken. For the purpose of this report it has been assumed that the area will be fully 

developed within the next 15 years. 

Gullies 

5.2.25 There has been increasing awareness in recent years of the role that gullies can play in 

improving and maintaining the natural and physical environment, particularly in areas like 

Tamahere that are being converted to primarily residential land use. 

In particular, gullies can play important roles in: 

· filtering and detaining stormwater 

· preserving biodiversity 

· promoting ecosystem functioning through ecological corridors 

· passive recreation areas for residents 

· amenity values by providing green open space and landscape interest. 

5.2.26 The Council has recognised the value of gullies in its general strategies for conservation, 

walkways, and esplanade reserves. Plan Change 19 (2000) mapped some gullies in the vicinity 

of Newell Road, Tamahere, and restricted building in those gullies. Plan Change 19 did not 

control development in the other (unmapped) gullies at Tamahere, nor vegetation clearance. 

The Proposed Waikato District Plan controls some indigenous vegetation clearance. 

5.2.27 Gully systems are shown in Appendix 5. Watercourses status with Environment Waikato are 

listed below: 

• Waikato River - contact recreation water class, 

• Mangaonua Stream- contact recreation and surface water class, 

• Mangaone Stream – Waikato surface water class, 

• Mangaharakeke Stream - Waikato surface water class, 

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• Putaorangikoko Stream – no status, 

• Mangaone tributary south - Waikato surface water class over a short length only, 

• Mangaomapu Stream – no status. 

5.2.28 Average flows in the gully systems have been measured for the Mangaouna and Mangaone 

Streams at 1.78 m 3 /s and 0.54 m 3 /s respectively. This data has been taken from the Waikato 

Valley Authority Technical Publication No. 30 (1985). Such relatively low flows are vulnerable 

to contamination. 

5.2.29 Protection of natural gullies from the effects of stormwater can be achieved by controlling 

runoff peak flows as discussed in the sections above, with the rules already recommended in 

this report ensuring gully preservation. If subdivision applications are granted that result in an 

increase in peak runoff flows, with the impermeable surface limit being met, then gully 

protection works will be required. Such works may also be required with time as control and 

monitoring of the impermeable surface limit will be difficult. 

5.2.30 Gully protection is most important at drain and pipe outlets, and riprap protection should be 

provided at all such points. Gully vegetation must be protected to aid in the stability of gully 

sides regardless of an increase in peak flows. Where gullies are eroding measures are to be 

taken to reduce erosion. 

5.2.31 Gully areas should be put into Council ownership where possible to ensure their protection. 

Currently, developments are occurring up to the gully edge, with some houses also being 

constructed on the gully edge. Stability analyses for these dwellings have been based on the 

existing hydrological regime. This may alter with future urbanisation, resulting in increased 

stream entrenchment and gully side erosion. To minimise the effects of this it is recommended 

that all gully land of significance, and the adjacent land, as shown Appendix 5, be vested in the 

Council where the opportunity presents itself. The systems included are the Waikato River, 

Mangaonua Stream, Mangaone Stream, and Mangaharakeke Stream. 

5.2.32 Increase in perched watertable pressures on the edge of gullies can result in increased erosion 

of gully sides where permeable layers are exposed. Therefore, systems that dispose water to 

ground need to be set back from gully edges to minimise this effect. 

5.2.33 Private gully revegetation is to be promoted where possible using resources such as Hamilton 

City Council’s “Gully Restoration Guide”. 

6.0 Walkways 

6.1 Walkway and cycleway routes are to provide both practical links along and between roads and 

to destination points, and scenic routes to areas of interest or recreation, with gully experiences 

incorporated where possible. The existing and proposed walkway routes through the 

Tamahere Country Living Zone are shown on the Concept Plan Walkways 134100/02 in 

Appendix 6. 

6.2 The walkway and cycleway routes will be developed so as to be generally consistent with the 

Waikato District Council walkway strategy approved by Council in December 2004. 

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7.0 Funding and Levies 

Philosophy: 

Funding should be sourced from the community who benefits from the project. A key principle in 

imposing levies that has been set down by the Environment Court is that there should be a 

relationship between the activity that is the subject of the levy and the purpose for which the funds are 

to be used. This relationship has been called a “rational nexus”, which means there has to be a 

reasonable connection between the need for a facility and the development being charged a fee. 

7.1 Council’s Long Term Council Community Plan 2004 – 2014 contains the Council’s Revenue and 

Financing Policy, which sets out the manner in which the Council will operate under the Local 

Government Act 2002. The Long Term Council Community Plan states that Council will use a 

mix of revenue sources to fund capital expenditure, including rates, reserves, loans, subsidies 

and financial contributions. Different mixes of revenue sources are stated for different 

activities. 

7.2 The recommended infrastructure work for the Tamahere Country Living Zone (TCLZ) involves 

the construction of strategic road links, stormwater infrastructure and walkways. The works 

include infrastructure with a largely public benefit (where the beneficiaries of the work are the 

community or the ratepayers at large) and infrastructure with a largely private benefit where 

there is an identified group or individual that primarily receives the benefit. In reality most 

infrastructure works involve a combination of public and private benefit. 

7.3 The type of funding mechanism recommended for use in the TCLZ is dependent on whether 

the capital work has a predominantly public or private benefit. The types of capital works 

referred to in this Structure Plan and the recommending funding mechanism is outlined below in 

Table 2. 

Table 1 – Recommended Funding Sources 

INFRASTRUCTURE 

Roading – Strategic Links 

Roading – Local roads serving a few 

properties 

Stormwater – retrofitting existing 

roads with swales, constructing new 

Council drains 

Stormwater – on-site drains 

Walkways – retrofitting walkways 

onto existing roads 

Walkways – purchasing key links and 

constructing walkway (surfaces plus 

structures) 

FUNDING SOURCE 

Rates and Tamahere Structure Plan financial contribution 

Individual developer expense (if landowners are unable to reach 

agreement the Council may become the road developer and 

charge the full costs back to the landowners). 


Individual developer expense 



7.4 The primary involvement of Council in the development process is to ensure that the effects of 

the use of land and natural and physical resources are appropriately managed. This is 

achieved through the controls embedded in the District Plan through objectives, policies, rules 

and other methods. Council is therefore not directly in the business of developing commercial 

or industrial, housing or tourism ventures but instead is able to provide for development to 

occur by ensuring that appropriate infrastructure is in place to manage the effects. 

7.5 Development which results in additional dwellings, buildings and activity, in turn impacts on 

Council’s services infrastructure. This impact must be recognised and mitigated. Those 

causing the effect should meet the costs associated with upgrading infrastructure where that 

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upgrading occurs due to development growth. Where costs can be identified as a result of 

development impact, they should be quantified. Such costs should then be internalised by 

those who generated them. The internalisation of costs is a key philosophy in the Resource 

Management Act and underlies the basis for effects based planning. 

7.6 Council has determined the effects of development growth on its service infrastructure. These 

effects have been quantified and used to calculate financial contributions for specific services 

in the Waikato District. In this case, specific infrastructure costs for the Tamahere Country 

Living Zone have been calculated and a series of financial contributions are included in 

Appendix 1 which will be levied on land developers at the time of subdivision consent. The 

calculations used to arrive at the financial contributions are included in Appendix 7. 

7.7 The levies have been calculated on the basis that the majority of the costs of the development 

within the Tamahere Structure Plan area are for the benefit of those who develop the land and 

ultimately those who purchase sections and build homes on that land. Three infrastructural 

items have a percentage of community benefit attached to their construction being: 

(i) 

(ii) 

(iii) 

all walkways within the Structure Plan area; 

50% of the cost of the priority Indicative Roads (Birchwood Lane to Devine Road link, 

Devine Road link to the Roaches Nursery Road and the future Annebrook Road to 

Matangi Road link); and 

100% of the cost of retro fitting of the roadside drains. 

The percentage of these items tagged as community benefit will be funded from Council rates. 

8.0 Consultation 

Key Stakeholders 

8.1 Consultation has been undertaken with key stakeholders, landowners, local consultants and 

Iwi in relation to this Structure Plan and variation. Copies of the draft Variation were sent to 

Hamilton City Council, Waipa District Council, Hamilton International Airport, Transit New 

Zealand and Environment Waikato in late March 2005 requesting comments. 

8.2 A response was received from Environment Waikato on 12 April stating that the principles of 

the draft Variation appeared to meet the general concerns normally held by the Regional 

Council over developments of this nature. Environment Waikato requested that the stormwater 

philosophy statement and recommended rule changes be carried over into the final document 

for public notification. A separate response was received from the Transportation section at 

Environment Waikato with concerns centred around impacts on the State Highway network 

and increased traffic on the local road network. A telephone discussion with the transport 

planner on 9 June confirmed a general level of comfort with the proposal from a strategic 

transport perspective. 

8.3 Transit New Zealand provided an initial letter of support in principle on 24 May and took the 

proposal to the Transit New Zealand Board in early July where the Hamilton Regional Office 

recommendation to continue consultation was endorsed. Technical issues will continue to be 

worked through with Transit New Zealand as the process continues. No response has been 

received from Hamilton City Council, Waipa District Council or the Hamilton International 

Airport as at the time of writing. 

Iwi 

8.4 The tangata whenua for the area of the Waikato District encompassing the Tamahere Country 

Living Zone is Nga Mana Toopu O Kirikiriroa (NAMTOK). An agreement was reached with 

NAMTOK that they would provide a cultural evaluation of the Tamahere Country Living Zone 

and provide a series of recommendations to Council arising from that report. 

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8.5 The report provides a general history of the area including a brief history of the pre-European 

settlement patterns and the Waikato Tainui Hapu that has associations with the Tamahere area. 

A discussion of the ancestors of Ngati Koroki, Ngati Wairere and Ngati Haua is set out along 

with specific sites within the Tamahere Country Living Zone known to have significance to iwi. 

The report then discusses the recommended measures to ensure that the long Maori history of 

the Tamahere area is not destroyed in the development processes. Recommendations include 

the adoption of earthworks protocols, management of stormwater runoff and suggestions for 

the naming of new roads. 

Landowners and general public 

8.6 As part of the landowner consultation, a public open day was held at Gails of Tamahere on 29 

May 2005. A series of displays was put up around the walls of the venue for people to view 

with staff and consultants on hand to answer questions. A summary power point presentation 

was delivered twice in the afternoon and evening followed by a questions and answer session. 

The overall attendance was high with approximately 180 people signing in as being present at 

the Open Day. Feedback on the key principles of the Tamahere Structure Plan was 

overwhelmingly positive. Discussion points centred on the location of walkways and the 

amount of any specific development levy that Council may impose on developers. Copies of 

the Draft Tamahere Variation were available for attendees to take away. 

8.7 A feedback form was distributed to all attendees at the Public Open Day encouraging any 

comments to be submitted in writing. A total of 52 written responses were received with 

comments on many aspects of the draft Tamahere Variation. These responses have been 

reviewed and amendments made to the recommendations where appropriate. 

9.0 Conclusion 

9.1 The Tamahere Variation and Structure Plan is designed to facilitate a Country Living 

environment. It achieves this through an integrated road network to facilitate safe and efficient 

transport links, a stormwater management network to manage and reduce peak flows, protect 

fragile gully systems and encourage stormwater to be dealt with on site as much as possible. 

9.2 A walkway network is proposed that will provide both off and on road links throughout the 

Country Living Zone. These will comprise both recreational and alternative transport links 

within the cells. In addition a set of financial contributions are recommended to ensure that the 

costs associated with implementing the Structure Plan infrastructure are borne by those who 

benefit most from the development. In some cases this will be the wider community, however 

in most cases it will be the developer who benefits most. 

9.3 The Draft Tamahere Variation has been prepared to implement the Tamahere Structure Plan into 

the Proposed Waikato District Plan. This will develop any additional objectives, policies 

methods (including rules) required to enable the Structure Plan to take effect and for Council to 

be able to place weight upon it when making decisions. Council will initiate the statutory 

processes required to undertake any necessary designations for road or road stopping 

procedures, separately from this Variation process. Any person will be able to make a 

submission on these processes as a separate action to this Variation. 

Variation 1 


Page 20

Road Network – Regulatory Methods 

SCHEDULE OF AMENDMENTS TO 

PROPOSED WAIKATO DISTRICT PLAN 

1. Amend the Proposed District Plan by adding new text immediately after the existing text in rule 8.9.1 

Regulatory Methods on page 51 as follows: 

…provided the link between the two locations is achieved. Where the Council considers that it is 

in the public interest to purchase and form an indicative road as shown on a structure plan then 

Council may choose to do so. 

Financial Contributions 

2. Amend the Proposed District Plan by adding a new rule 16.11A immediately after rule 16.11 on page 

106 as follows: 

16.11A Financial Contributions in Tamahere Country Living Zone 

16.11A.1 Contribution - Stormwater 

For any subdivision of land within the Tamahere Country Living Zone, which results in additional 

allotments, other than a utility allotment or access allotment, a Stormwater Upgrading Fee shall be 

paid. The value of the Stormwater Upgrading Fee (as at 6 August 2005) and adjusted annually by the 

Transfund Price Adjustment Formula) in the Tamahere Country Living Zone shall be $18.00 

including GST per additional allotment. 

16.11A.2 Contribution - Roading 

For any subdivision of land within the Tamahere Country Living Zone, which results in additional 

allotments, other than a utility allotment or access allotment, a Roading Upgrading Fee shall be 

paid. The value of the Roading Upgrading Fee (as at 6 August 2005 and adjusted annually by the 

Transfund Price Adjustment Formula) in the Tamahere Country Living Zone shall be $19,391.00 

including GST per additional allotment. 

3. Amend the Prohibited Activities rule 27.5 on page 276 by adding the new text in italics as follows: 

Building 

(d) Construction of a building valued at $15,000 or more on the route of an indicative road.” 

Subdivision 

(h) “within the Tamahere Country Living Zone, an allotment (excluding a utility allotment or an 

access allotment) that does not contain a building platform where a dwelling could be built as a 

permitted activity.”

4. Amend the Landuse – Effects rule 27.13.1(b) on page 279 by adding the new text in italics 

immediately after (b)(ii) as follows: 

“(iii) ensure that stormwater is not disposed of to ground within 25 metres from the edge of a gully 

indicated on the Planning Maps, and” 

5. Amend the Landuse – Effects rule 27.13.1 on page 279 by adding the new text in italics immediately 

after the existing as follows: 

“and 

(d) no sewage treatment field is located : 

(i) closer than 25 metres from the edge of a gully identified on the Planning Maps; and 

(ii) within a gully identified on the Planning Maps ”. 

6. Amend the Landuse Effects rule 27.14.1 (d) on page 279 by adding the new text in italics as follows: 

27.14.1 

Any activity is a permitted activity if: 

(d) construction of a road complies with the conditions in Appendix A (Traffic) and the conditions in 

Appendix B (Engineering Standards), and the requirements of any relevant Structure Plan. 

7. Add new Landuse – Building rule 27.40A.1 on page 288 as follows: 

27.40A 

Impervious surfaces 

27.40A.1 

Any activity is a permitted 

activity if: 

“(a) in the Tamahere 

Country Living Zone, 

impermeable surfaces 

(excluding swimming 

pools) do not exceed 

700m2 per allotment”. 

27.40A.2 

Any activity that does not 

comply with a condition for a 

permitted activity is a 

discretionary activity. 

8. Amend the Landuse – Building rule 27.44.1 on page 289 by adding the new text in italics as follows: 

“Construction or alteration of a dwelling is a permitted activity in the Tamahere Country Living Zone 

if stormwater from the dwelling and other impervious surfaces on the site can be adequately disposed 

of on-site”. 

9. Amend the Landuse – Building rule 27.48.1 on page 290 by adding the following new rule 27.48.1 (e) 

in italics as follows: 

27.48.1 

Construction or alteration of a building on an allotment 1050 m2 or more is a permitted activity if it 

is set back at least: 

(e) 100 m from a site in the Tamahere Commercial Area identified on the planning maps, and 

10. Amend the Landuse – Building rule 27.49.1 on page 291 by adding the following new rules 27.49.1 

(d) and (e) in italics as follows:

27.49.1 

Construction or alteration of a building on an allotment less than 1050 m 2 or more is a permitted 

activity if it is set back at least: 

(d) 100 m from a site in the Tamahere Commercial Area identified on the planning maps, and 

(e) 17.5 m from the centreline of an indicative road. 

11. Delete Rules 27.50, 27.50.1 and 27.50.2 Building Setbacks – Tamahere Policy Area on page 291 in 

their entirety. 

12. Amend the Proposed District Plan by adding a new rule immediately after Rule 27.55 on page 292 as 

follows: 

27.55A 

Buildings near a gully 

27.55A.1 

Construction or alteration of a 

building or building platform is 

a permitted activity on any site 

containing a gully identified on 

the Planning Maps if: 

(a) It is not located within the 

gully; and 

(b) Is set back at least 15 metres 

from the top contour of the 

gully. 

27.55A.2 



permitted activity is a 

discretionary activity. 

13. Amend the Subdivision rule 27.62.1(a) on page 295 by adding the new text in italics as follows: 

“(a) every allotment, other than a utility allotment or access allotment, has a net site area of at least 

5000m2, and 

(aa) every allotment, other than a utility allotment, has sufficient area to allow stormwater from a 

700m² impervious surface to be disposed of on-site, and to ensure that effluent disposal fields will not 

create adverse effects in areas of high ground water level, and ”. 

14. Amend the Subdivision rule 27.68.1 Control reserved over: on page 297 by adding the new text in 

italics after the existing as follows: 

• easements to facilitate development beyond the site 

• a complete site development plan showing the utilities required to service all the land being 

subdivided when it is developed to its full potential as a controlled activity, including 

adequate on site stormwater disposal. 

15. Amend the Proposed District Plan by adding new rule 21.70A immediately after existing Rule 21.70 

on page 298 by adding the following text in italics: 

21.70A 

Walkways 

21.70A.1 

Subdivision is a controlled activity if any 

walkway shown on the relevant structure 

plan: 

(a) Is at least 3 metres wide; and 

(b) Is generally in accordance with the 

walkway route shown on the relevant 

structure plan: and 

(c) Is shown on the plan of subdivision and 

vested in the Council. 

21.70A.2 

Any activity that does not comply with 

a condition for a controlled activity is 

a restricted discretionary activity. 

Discretion restricted to: 

• Alignment of walkway 

• Costs and benefits of acquiring the 

land 

• Matters that control is reserved 

over.

Gully Protection 

16. Amend the Proposed District Plan by adding a new rule immediately after Rule 27.72 on page 299 as 

follows: 

27.73 

Gully Protection and Planting 

Stormwater 

27.73.1 

Subdivision of land containing 

a gully identified on the 

Planning Maps is a controlled 

activity if: 

(a) the subdivision application 

includes a gully planting 

plan showing existing and 

proposed native plantings 

within the gully for Council 

approval, and 

(b) the subdivision application 

shows the identified gully 

areas on the site to be 

subdivided to be vested in 

Waikato District Council 

as reserve. 

Control reserved over: 

• Whether a gully to vest is 

accepted 

• Width of the gully reserve 

area 

• Access to the gully reserve 

area. 

• Works required prior to 

vesting any reserve in the 

Council. 

27.73.2 



controlled activity is a 

restricted discretionary activity. 

Discretion restricted to: 

• Matters that control is 

reserved over. 

• Costs and benefits of 

acquiring the land. 

• Potential for gully erosion 

without additional 

planting. 

• Amenity values. 

• Effects on ecological 

values. 

17. Amend Appendix B5.4(m) by adding new text in italics immediately after the existing as follows: 

“Within the Tamahere Country Living Zone any measures designed under this rule shall ensure that 

existing low flows in gully streams are preserved”. 

18. Amend Appendix B5.4 by adding new text in italics immediately after the existing as follows: 

“(o) 

(p) 

ensure that stormwater disposal areas are adequately separated from effluent disposal areas to 

safeguard the functioning of both systems. 

ensure that stormwater discharged to a gully is piped down the gully sides with appropriate 

erosion protection measures e.g. rip rap at the outlet on the gully floor.” 

19. Amend Appendix B5 by adding the following text in italics immediately after the existing Rule B5.6: 

“B5.7 

In the Tamahere Country Living Zone, all systems shall incorporate appropriate low impact 

design features as described in the New Zealand Water Environment Research Foundation 

(NZWERF) “On-Site Stormwater Management Guideline (2004)” as follows: 

• Filters 

• Infiltration Trenches

• Rain gardens 

• Stormwater Planters 

• Rain Tanks 

• Swale/filter strips 

• Wetlands/ponds 

• Roof gardens 

• Roof gutters 

• Permeable pavements." 

20. Amend Appendix B7 by adding the following text in italics immediately after the existing rule B7.10: 

“B7.11 Within the Tamahere Country Living Zone, all roads and vehicle accesses shall be 

constructed to no greater than the minimum widths specified in Appendix A Table 4, and shall have 

swale drains on either side of the carriageway capable of collecting all road runoff and overland flow 

towards the road or right of way from 5-year ARI event. Overland flow paths for events larger than 

this must be provided. In areas of poorly drained soils either the stormwater is to be directed to areas 

with higher infiltration, or infiltration systems are to be constructed”. 

Add note following Appendix A Table 4 Standards: “See also Appendix B, paragraph B7.” 

21. Amend the Proposed District Plan planning maps as follows: 

(i) Delete Tamahere Policy Area on Maps 20, 21, 22, 23 and 24 

(ii) Delete indicative roads shown in Tamahere Country Living Zone and substitute the 

indicative roads shown on Map sheet 134100/101 in Appendix 2. 

(iii) Add gully areas as shown on Map sheet 134100/103 in Appendix 5 

(iv) Add drains as shown on Map sheet 134100/103 in Appendix 5 

(v) Add walkways as shown on Map sheet 134100/102 in Appendix 6 

(vi) Amend zoning of land between Devine Road and State Highway 21 as shown on Map 

Sheet 134100/108 in Appendix 2 from Country Living Zone to Recreation Zone. 

(vii) Add the notation "park and ride facility" to land between Devine Rd and State Highway 

21 as shown on Map Sheet 134100/108 in Appendix 2

Proposed Waikato District Plan - Waikato District Council

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