Emerging Planners Congress Speaker
Lauren has 30 years’ experience in all aspects of consenting large scale development projects using a range of processes including traditional two-step consenting, direct referral, special legislation (Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Act 2011 and the Greater Christchurch Regeneration Act 2016) and more recently applications under the COVID-19 Recovery (Fast Track Consenting) Act 2020. Lauren has successfully consented a number of high profile and complex development projects including the Dunedin and Christchurch stadia, the Hagley Building at Christchurch hospital and the Christchurch Justice and Emergency Precinct. She is currently leading the consenting of the new Dunedin Hospital, and has been advising various infrastructure agencies in relation to the reform of the Resource Management Act 1991.
Lauren is highly sought after as a strategist and combines her legal knowledge with an in-depth understanding of the development sector, providing pragmatic and highly effective strategies to accelerate the consenting of major projects.
Presenting with Rachel Murdoch:
After 30 years of operation, and countless debates, reviews and amendments, the RMA will be repealed and replaced with a new regime of environmental management, comprising three separate pieces of legislation. This session will provide an overview of that reform – what it is seeking to achieve, how it might differ from the RMA, and some of the opportunities and challenges that it might pose for our natural and urban environments.
