Council

The project working group preparing the Bluff wastewater consent has been given until September to prepare its submission. Council’s Infrastructure and Projects Committee was told yesterday that the team will continue to prepare a two-year consent which will give them time for the new legislative changes to settle. Legal

* Former Invercargill councillor Karen Arnold must clear her gorse-covered section after losing a dispute. * Arnold blames gorse from Bluff Hill land, co-owned by the council and DOC. * A panel ruled property owners must manage gorse on their own land. A former Invercargill councillor has been ordered to clear her overgrown

* Southland mayor Rob Scott confirmed plans to stand again in October's election. * Some councillors remain undecided while others confirmed they will step down. * Nominations open on 4 July, with voting scheduled for 11 October. Southland councillors have described their current term as “challenging,” with many still undecided about

Invercargill Mayor Nobby Clark maintains that releasing his alternative paper proposing 3.9% rates increases was not interfering with the democracy process. Council chief executive Michael Day told media this week that Mayor Clark’s proposal would take community consultation about the required service cuts of the the equation, and

A pilot bin inspection initiative across Southland has already received a hostile response from some residents, and inspectors are now wearing body cameras to record incidents. WasteNet contracts manager Mark Simpson told the Infrastructure and Projects Committee meeting yesterday that since starting in February, there had been a couple of

Residents of Staunton and Fowler Roads have sent a petition to the Invercargill City Council about the state of their road, but a lack of funding means it’s unlikely to be sealed anytime soon. Nick McCleary spoke in the public forum of the Infrastructure and Projects Committee meeting on

* Environment Southland reported a rise in illegal dumping, including rubbish, vehicles, and animal carcasses. * The council recovered costs for only a few incidents, putting pressure on its budget. * A potential rates increase may be needed to cover cleanup and enforcement efforts. Illegal dumping is becoming a costly issue for Southlanders,

The Invercargill City Council has reported an increase in hostile behaviour towards staff, with 29 cases of verbal abuse in just two months. The Risk and Assurance Committee were briefed by health safety and wellbeing manager Tash Anderson at a meeting on Tuesday. Over the past year the number of