Otaki TodayThe developers of Moy Estate have confirmed that they have lodged an application for judicial review of a council decision that affected access to the estate.
The application by Wakefield Group Holdings was lodged with the High Court on December 12.
It relates to a close 6-5 decision by Kāpiti councillors on November 28 to not change the status of a parcel of land at the end of Moy Place that would allow access to the development via existing residential streets. Residents of Sue Avenue and Moy Place opposed the change of status, saying traffic to and from the estate should be on the old highway – not through their streets.
In a statement to Ōtaki Today dated January 7, Wakefield confirmed the judicial review had been lodged.
Director Simon Barber said resource consent was granted for the development by an expert consenting panel.
“The existing consent requires the land at the end of Moy Place to have its legal designation changed from a road reserve to a legal road.” Simon said. “This land is held by KCDC after being set aside for this exact purpose.
“Waka Kotahi, KCDC operations officers, and independent traffic experts all agree that Moy Place is the safest and most appropriate access point for the Moy Estate development.”
He said KCDC managers strongly advised councillors to make the change in legal designation.
“This was consistent with their own legal advice, the advice of their chief executive, the group manager infrastructure services, and seven traffic experts. Despite this, the councillors failed to make the legal designation change required.”
He said councillors failed to make the only available decision and “as a last resort” Wakefield had issued proceedings seeking judicial review.
“We are, however, hopeful that this can be resolved without the intervention of the court. We understand the mayor has requested a further report from KCDC operational staff in order for councillors to reconsider their decision on 30 January 2025.
“Should the councillors continue to refuse to make the only available decision, we have faith in the judicial system to ensure that responsible development is not prevented by councillors refusing to follow the law.”
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