16
TGH and Chedworth Properties
submitted a wide range of structural,
environmental, social and cultural
reports as part of the draft District
Plan process, and participated in three
public open days and a workshop in
May 2012. The PDP was notified in
December 2012, and submissions
called for bymid 2013.
We have also worked with the
Hamilton City Council to develop an
integrated catchment management
plan, that is required before any
development can take place. This is yet
to be finalised.
In late 2012, TGH and Chedworth
submitted a Private Plan Change to the
Council for our Ruakura development.
It was designed to lift prohibitions
on land inherited from theWaikato
District Council. Importantly, it would
also allow us to lodge resource consent
applications, most crucially for roading
and services, both necessary precursors
for the inland port and logistics zone to
proceed in a timely fashion. The New
Zealand Transport Agency, Waikato
Regional Council and theWaikato
District Council supported our
application.
1,000
ha
Over
of farmland
is managed
by TGH
The alternative would have been
to let the Ruakura development be
dealt with as part of the PDP, which
also removes the prohibition. TGH’s
concern however was that the PDP
would not of itself enable resource
consenting. The current District Plan
also took 13 years to finish. In the
worst case scenario, the new one might
not be fully operative until 2025.
While it might be more like five years
in practice, the Council wouldn’t be
able to guarantee that. In other words,
work on the site could be years away
under that scenario.
Of its own accord, TGH initiated
consultationwith the local community
and as a result made a number of
modifications to the private plan.
However, in April 2013, Hamilton City
Councillors, in a 7-5 split, decided not
to allow the plan change to proceed to
the next stage. That would have meant
notifying the plan change, calling for
public submissions, and having them
heard by independent commissioners.
Councillors decision to prevent the
plan frombeing notified ran counter
to the views of both Council officers
and independent legal and regulatory
advisors. TGH has therefore appealed
the decision to the Environment Court.
We note that the inland port and
logistics zone at Ruakura is included
in FutureProof, the region’s long-term
plan. It also features in assessments
by the Upper North Island Strategic
Alliance, a consortium of most upper
North Island territorial authorities
and several government agencies, as
well as in Ports of Auckland planning
documents.
Throughout the year we also worked
with the New Zealand Transport
our main
focus will be
on completing
the regulatory
processes for
Ruakura, and
identifying the
potential to grow
our investment
portfolio in new
areas.
Mike Pohio
Chief Executive
Agency as it worked its way through
options for Hamilton interchanges
with the newWaikato Expressway.
There have been several rounds of
consultation with a final proposed
solution to be revealed inMay 2013.
People
TGH continued to invest in its staff in
2013, with ongoing implementation
of the People Strategy 2025. The move
to new offices has resulted inmore
productivity, energy and collaboration
to the working environment,
promoting the one team, one location
strategy. Our focus is verymuch on
creating a motivating and positive
workplace, and supporting each
member of staff with a specifically
tailored individual development
programme.
Outlook
TGHwill continue to consolidate its
asset management processes in 2014,
in a market that may show some
marginal improvement albeit with a
number of attendant risks.
Over and above that our main focus
will be on completing the regulatory
processes for Ruakura, and identifying
the potential to grow our investment
portfolio in new areas.
I would like to finish by expressing
my gratitude to all members of the
TGH team and our many partners for
all their hard work again this year.
It is sincerely appreciated. It is also
heartening to know that so many
people see the advantages and value
that ongoing investment by iwi-
owned businesses bring to the whole
community.
