Move to put Community Board meetings back on local agenda

The Christchurch City Council will consider reinstating all Community Board delegations at an extraordinary Council meeting tomorrow.

In March, the Council temporarily revoked the Board delegations in response to the Government’s announcement the country was going into COVID-19 Alert Level 4 lockdown.

Tomorrow’s proposed change would reaffirm the Council’s commitment to enabling Community Boards to make local decisions.

The Perth Street roading matter that the Council considered on 30 April highlighted the challenge of the full Council that is focused on citywide issues dealing with a local matter.

The Council will also consider asking the seven Community Boards to prioritise their work programmes in line with the challenges that the COVID-19 crisis presents.

Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel welcomes the proposed reinstatement, saying it is “an important milestone in the pandemic recovery”.

“We need to restore powers to Community Boards so local areas can determine what is best for their neighbourhoods,” the Mayor says.

“It is important that everyone feels connected to local decisions affecting their future.”

Appropriate health and safety precautions are proposed to be put in place to allow the Community Boards to meet safely. This will include changes to the meeting room layout to ensure that people sit separately and adhere to physical distancing requirements.

Where it is not safe for the public to attend, a record of the meeting proceedings will be taken and published.

Meetings will be restricted to Board members and some staff, and a log will be kept of those present to enable contact tracing, if needed.

People will still be able to join the meeting remotely, and presenters will be asked to do so or provide written statements. Any spaces potentially open to gatherings will be locked.