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News the long-running legal battle to protect the shape of Saddle Hill could be over has been well received by residents living near the landmark.

The Court of Appeal released its ruling dismissing the appeal by Saddle Views Estate against a High Court ruling, which upheld an earlier Environment Court decision that found a resource consent issued in 1960 to allow quarrying on the hill was no longer in force.

Saddle Hill Community Board chairman Scott Weatherall said the community board was ``pretty stoked'' about the decision but would need to wait to see what happened next.

``Do they stop all quarrying altogether right now or do they get time to tidy up and make it safe? And will the owners apply for resource consent? We'll just have to wait and see.''

The reaction from the community so far had been almost 100% positive, Mr Weatherall said.

Saddle Hill was culturally important to both Pakeha and Maori, so to have the ridge-line protected was ``fantastic'', he said.

``Having grown up in Brighton, Saddle Hill was obviously important, and the story of Captain Cook naming it and its significance to Maori was a big part of that.''

Mr Weatherall said he understood the process was never about stopping quarrying but rather about clearing up the consent issue.

Mosgiel-Taieri Community Board chairwoman Sarah Nitis said residents regularly talked to her and the board about the issue, so it would be ``very well received'' in the community.

It was a well-known landmark important not only to people living on the Taieri but also the Brighton coastal community, she said.

The Dunedin City Council has claimed victory in the lengthy legal dispute but Calvin Fisher, director of Saddle Views Estate, has vowed to continue the fight.