Things such as the fast broadband project for the region and the tourism visitor strategy were areas which would not take the Government two years to get started and they would have an immediate benefit for the region.
"If they use what's already here it won't take years of debate to get consents and some traction.
"The Dunedin City Council has a waste water plant upgrade on its plans. Could that be brought forward to stimulate the economy?"
Mr Christie hoped when Prime Minister John Key announced his plans to help grow the economy that he realised different parts of the country faced different risks in a recession.
"The Government needs to realise that pockets of small businesses react differently. We are not all living in Auckland.
"Regional and sector specific proposals are important."
When considering what the chamber would like from Wednesday's package, which is designed to help small and medium-sized businesses, Mr Christie hoped there would be a proposal to help businesses hold on to staff during tough times.
Falling staff numbers and higher unemployment would hurt productivity at a time when everyone needed to be part of the solution.
"There will be a cost for rising unemployment but I would rather see that going into helping businesses retain staff."
Help for staff training was also needed in this period, he said.
In addition, he hoped some education would be available for businesses on how to survive a recession.
Ensuring that any money spent added value to the economy was also important, particularly when the Government had indicated no new spending would be included in the plans other than what had already been promised.
The chamber would like continuing support for export-oriented businesses, including help for trips to trade fairs or visiting overseas markets.
With countries throwing up trade barriers in response to the global recession, it was more important than ever that New Zealand's exporters received encouragement to sell into overseas markets, Mr Christie said.
He was impressed with the efforts the Government was making to instil confidence into the market place, he said.
Now was the time for strong leadership.
"There is underlying confidence in Otago but people are holding back on making spending decisions because everyone else is saying how bad things are. Delaying the decisions is prolonging the downturn.
"Local businesses are getting on with their trade and are finding prospects out there. Money is being made well beyond what they expected," he said.
"I wouldn't want to be anywhere else than Dunedin right now. There are so many opportunities for us down here. The tyranny of distance is not an issue.
"Smart people making a lot of money are the ones that are seizing day."
