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More electronic billboards could pop up around Christchurch and people will just have to put up with them, as city councillors are powerless to stop them without intervention from central Government.
Heathcote Ward councillor Nathaniel Herz Jardine said the issue was “a great example of why we need more devolution of power, more local decision-making, and more citizen involvement in how our city looks and feels”.
A new billboard at the intersection of Colombo, Strickland and Somerfield Sts, which has been the subject of protests, has attracted more complaints from his constituents than any other issue, he said.
As well as concerns about visual pollution, the billboard has been criticised as a potential distraction at the busy and confusing intersection.
The cause of a crash at the intersection on September 5, in which a ute crashed into Formaggio’s restaurant, is still being investigated.
Herz Jardine said he would like to see electronic billboards banned outright, or at least public notification through the resource consent process.
Other city councillors said the issue was not a priority for their constituents, while some said a ban, as suggested by Herz Jardine, would go too far.
Said Burwood Ward councillor Kelly Barber: “I think banning them would be draconian and I think the process we currently have has the right level of checks and balances.”
Harewood Ward councillor Aaron Keown said he did not support a blanket ban proposal, as it would risk making the city look like a “backwater” without them. He also said billboards were a good way of promoting events.
“Yes, there are some inappropriate sites, but on the whole I don’t see them as a big issue, and in some areas they create a vibrancy with the extra light and movement, creating added safety in some of the darker corners of the city,” he said.
Fendalton Ward councillor David Cartwright similarly said “for many of the users of the billboards, it provides a vital messaging service to the public, including charitable events, community messaging along with commercial adverts”.
Riccarton Ward councillor Tyla Harrison-Hunt agreed with Herz Jardine that electronic billboards should require notification.
“It’s crazy to me that they can just push on through,” Harrison-Hunt said.
But Herz Jardine said “it will likely be impossible to restrict future electronic billboards in similar locations” as the Government pushes its new Planning Bill through Parliament.
“Decisions like that will be made even further away than they are now, in Wellington, and we will just have to stick it,” he said.
A spokesperson for Minister of RMA Reform Chris Bishop said it was wrong to suggest decisions about billboards will be made in Wellington without any ability for the city council to respond.
“Under the new planning system, councils will continue to be able to manage effects beyond the boundary of a site, including traffic safety, lighting and glare – consistent with the national policy direction and standards.
“Local authorities will also have scope to develop their own plan provisions in certain circumstances,” Bishop’s spokesperson said.
Bishop’s office also rejected Herz Jardine’s suggestion the minister would not allow the city council to change billboard rules in its District Plan.
Electronic billboards are a permitted activity in commercial and industrial zones, meaning notification is not required for resource consents. This was set out in the Christchurch District Plan in 2017, which the city council can change.
However, the Government has put in place a “plan stop”, meaning local councils around the country cannot amend district plans without an exemption from Bishop.
Said Herz Jardine: “It is vanishingly unlikely they would approve such a change. Why? Because the new Planning Bill will likely make it even harder to restrict billboards.”
Bishop’s spokesperson, however, said the plan stop was “intended to prevent councils spending time and money progressing plan changes that may soon be overtaken by the new planning system.
“There are automatic exemptions for certain types of plan changes, and councils can also apply to the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform for an exemption where appropriate.
“It is also premature to speculate about whether the minister would approve an exemption for a particular proposal when no specific application has been made.”
But Herz Jardine said Bishop had made it clear throughout the reform process that he wanted to remove roadblocks to development.
He went further, saying the Government’s reforms allowed property owners to do “whatever you want, wherever you want, as long as you’ve got the money to pay for it”.
Bishop’s office denied this, saying the Planning Bill “specifically recognises that land use should not unreasonably affect others, including through incompatible land uses.
“Managing impacts on neighbours and communities remains an important part of the planning system.”
APPROVED BILLBOARDS
Eight new electronic billboards in zones where consent is required have been approved this yea