But the decision on the future of the 2.5 acres of land overlooking Oamaru Harbor will ultimately come down to Waitaki Mayor Gary Kircher and councilors, who will vote on the issue at today’s council meeting.
As part of the council’s public consultation process on the future of Forrester Heights, which ran from April 1 to May 16, the community was given three options to consider: try to make Forrester Heights a reserve, sale of or all of the land and use the funds to benefit the community, or leave it as it is for now – do nothing.
Of the 905 submissions received, about 70% supported reserve status, while 30% agreed to sell some or all of the land and use the community benefit funds.
The submissions, which were heard by councilors at hearings on May 30 and 31, were very helpful, Mr Kircher said.
“I appreciate everyone who made a submission, whatever their views were,” he said.
“All this helps us to make a decision; whether it is with the majority or not, we will find out [today]. “
There were many discussions among councilors about the various points raised in the submission process, but Mr Kircher did not know what position each councilor took.
Board members can ask questions today and debate the issue further before making their final decision, he said.
“At this point, I do not know how that mood will go.”
The report that will be tabled at today’s board meeting addresses many of the questions and concerns raised during the submission process, and concludes that a sale of some or all of the land remains the preferred option.
A sale posed the least legal risk to the council, and was an accepted use of donated land under the Local Government Act 2002, the report said. The market will determine the price, and the council may choose to include certain restrictions on the use and development of the land.
The report says the change of Forrester Heights from donation land to a reserve will require the council to pass a local bill in Parliament to create a new law.
“This process will involve significant investment in officer’s time and money and could take several years, with no guarantee that the bill will be passed,” it said.
“The land will not be sold, so the council will not have additional funds to use for purposes consistent with the donations.”
The council has been tasked with making the best decision for the district – environmental, economic, social and cultural – and addressing the legislative risk must also be balanced against addressing the reputation risk, the report said.