Hearings on The Thames-Coromandel District Council's Proposed District Plan have now closed and the hearings panel is in deliberations.

District Plans controls the way land is used, developed and subdivided within the district. The current Operative District Plan was notified in 1997 and became fully operative in 2010.

Council says a lot has changed since the late 1990's and they are legally required to review the District Plan every 10 years.

'The district plan is important,” explains council, 'because it identifies the key resource management issues in the Coromandel, what the community wants to be done about the issues and ways to achieve the outcomes the community wants.”

Over a nine-month period, 11 hearings were held covering 29 days. A total of 203 submitters appeared before the panel to present evidence in support of their written submissions.

Panel chair Mark Farnsworth says overall the hearings have gone really well.

'We have been really impressed with the level of support for the Plan and the quality of evidence received.”

The panel now anticipates it will have its recommended decisions to council by the end of the year, with council then looking to have its decisions released around March, 2016.

Submitters who are not satisfied with the council's decision on their submission can then appeal the decision to the Environment Court.

For more information visit the Thames-Coromandel District Council's Proposed District Plan webpage at: www.tcdc.govt.nz/dpr