A majority of Palmerston North City councillors are not convinced there is no public health risk involved in allowing a petrol station to set up next to a daycare centre.
Their concerns were piqued after council staff approved a new NPD self-service petrol station to be built next to Busy Bees Early Learning Centre on Church St.
The council on Wednesday asked staff to review the city’s District Plan to see whether there were any gaps in it that could allow developments that were a risk to public health.
He acknowledged staff had correctly followed the rules, but was concerned those rules might need to be reviewed.
The assessment would include but not be limited to considering a safe separation distance between petrol stations and childcare, school, health and residential land use.
Barrett said there was credible evidence there could be harm to children who spent a substantial amount of time in close proximity to a petrol station.
Arnott said what had happened was not good enough and showed the planning system was broken.
He called it “alarming”.
“The community expects better, and so should we.”
Other councillors agreed there should at least be an assessment of the plan.
But there was uncertainty about what the council could do if the information came back showing there was a problem to be fixed.
City planning manager Jono Ferguson-Pye said the council largely relied on central government rules and policies for managing hazardous substances.
It was possible to impose more stringent requirements, but that would require a change to the District Plan.
At the moment there is a Government-imposed “plan stop” that prevents councils from initiating plan changes unless they gain an exemption.
Barrett agreed that a plan change might not be the solution if a problem that needed to be managed was identified.
He said there was potential to influence future planning rules through submissions on the Government’s planning reforms.
Councillor Rachel Bowen said Palmerston North could not be the only community facing the challenges posed by increasingly dense urban development, and there was potential for a national response.
Councillor Vaughan Dennison was the only voice against the plan assessment.
He pointed to the example of the multi-unit housing development on Pioneer Highway, which was built next to a service station.
He was concerned that more much-needed housing might not be built if there were stricter rules about the required distance between petrol stations and homes.
Extracted in full from: https://www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/360913167/petrol-station-location-sparks-planning-rules-review
