When walking along a street in Ravensbourne, locals might suddenly find themselves in a field of grass so long it reached their hips — and young children might disappear into the greenery completely, a concerned resident said.
West Harbour Community Board member Jarrod Hodson said the overgrown council-owned grass verges around Ravensbourne and surrounding suburbs were due to the decision made to only take care of grass about 1m from the road or footpath, and to let the grass elsewhere grow wild.
"It’s like this everywhere ... This has been going on for literally four years. It was all fine pre-Covid-19."
The community had been complaining about the grassy wilderness their neighbourhoods were turning into over the years and noted that every other suburb in Dunedin seemed to be "very nice and orderly".
"When I went up to Roslyn the verges were pristine — I mean, we all pay rates in Dunedin.
"It looks like s... here," Mr Hodson said.
The long and flowing grass had prompted questions about fire safety, and whether there was a risk of the hillside going up in flames on particularly hot and dry days.
"I have been tempted to actually mow it, but now it’s just too long for my mower to get through," Mr Hodson said.
When the area 1m from the road and footpath was cut, grass clippings were left to gather in drains and gutters — sprouting and taking root in some drains.
Many of the council-owned grass verges in Ravensbourne were too steep and dangerous for locals to go out and attempt to hack away at the long grass on them, he said.
Many fix-it notes to the Dunedin City Council had been submitted, but submitters had been met with silence on the issue.
"The community has been talking about this for years, but it’s falling on deaf ears and we’re sick of it ... I’m also tired of relaying the same problem to the council again and again."
The Dunedin City Council said it would respond to questions today.
