Tomahawk and Ocean Grove will probably be removed from the Otago Peninsula Community Board, after Dunedin Mayor Dave Cull used his casting vote to break a Dunedin City Council deadlock on the issue yesterday.
The council was meeting to deliberate on the Representation Review Panel's recommendations on the shape of Dunedin's democratic layout, and on the subsequent submissions received from the community.
All decisions voted on yesterday remain ''preliminary'' until the meeting, which was adjourned at 5pm, reconvenes on September 1. Once all issues have been considered, the council will have the option of reviewing earlier decisions.
The review panel had recommended Tomahawk and Ocean Grove be removed from the peninsula board, but many councillors said the weight of community submissions against that idea had convinced them such a move was premature.
Cr Jinty MacTavish said the suburbs were in the early stages of setting up community groups, and while it made sense for them to be absorbed into urban Dunedin, now was not the time.
But Mr Cull said Tomahawk and Ocean Grove were more closely aligned with St Kilda and the rest of Ocean Beach than with the peninsula, then used his casting vote.
Otago Peninsula Community Board chairwoman Christine Garey said: ''The Ocean Grove and Tomahawk communities spoke very clearly that they wanted to stay, and we advocated very strongly that we wanted them to.''
The vote showed the council had not listened to those views, she said.
Councillors also voted to accept the review panel's recommendations Chalmers' Community Board include the area between Sawyers Bay and Mount Cargill - previously part of the Waikouaiti Coast Community Board - and that the Otago Peninsula Community Board include Quarantine Island - previously part of the Chalmers' Community Board.
A recommendation to remove Ravensbourne to Blanket Bay from the Chalmers board and incorporate it into Dunedin's urban area was rejected.
Councillors also voted:
• That Chalmers board be renamed West Harbour Community Board.
• That Waikouaiti Coast Community Board stay intact - with the exception of the block of land being transferred to West Harbour.
• To keep the number of councillors at 14.
• To move all councillors to an ''at large'' vote - meaning there would no longer be councillors attached to specific wards.
The council's recommendations would be sent to the Local Government Commission which would make the final decision early next year.
