Zoning Analysis

Detailed guide to the zone rules engine, overlay scanner, and NES-DMRU granny flat feasibility tools.

6 min readUpdated 2026-05-11Property Map

Zone Rules Engine

The Zone Rules engine extracts structured development standards from the operative district plan for the subject zone. For Auckland, rules are drawn from the AUP operative sections. For Christchurch, Chapter 14 of the CDP is used.

StandardAUP MHU ExampleAUP MHS Example
Maximum height16 m / 5 storeys11 m / 3 storeys
Recession plane55° from boundary55° from boundary
Front setback1.5 m3 m
Side/rear setback1 m (non-daylight affected)1 m
Site coverage50%40%
Minimum landscaped area20%35%

Overlay Scan

The overlay scanner runs 46 parallel spatial queries against Auckland Council's ArcGIS REST services. Results are grouped by category and displayed with the operative plan reference for each positive hit.

  • Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga listed places
  • Auckland Council heritage scheduled items (Schedule 14)
  • Volcanic viewshafts — 4 m D20A corridor
  • Notable Tree Protection Areas
  • Special Character Areas (Business and Residential)
  • Significant Ecological Areas (SEA)
  • Coastal Storm Inundation + 1m Sea Level Rise
  • Mana Whenua Area of Interest (19 iwi, RMA s6(e) and AUP D21)

NES-DMRU Granny Flat Feasibility

The NES-DMRU (National Environmental Standards for Dwellings in Medium Urban Residential areas) engine assesses site eligibility for a minor residential unit (granny flat) under the Resource Management (Enabling Healthy Homes) Amendment Regulations 2022.

  • Regulation 7 Recession Plane Exclusion — Tests whether the subject lot can accommodate a structure without triggering a recession plane notification requirement.
  • Site Coverage Budget — Calculates the remaining buildable footprint after existing structures.
  • Dual-Track Output — Shows both the resource consent path and the building consent only path based on site parameters.

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