The consultation period for the proposed relocation of the Mosgiel criminal investigations police team has now ended.
The period was extended to last Friday after a group of residents created a Facebook page named ''Save Mosgiel Policing'', about 600 people signed a petition and some filed submissions to keep the four specialist officers in Mosgiel.
Otago coastal area commander Inspector Jason Guthrie explained the move to the Mosgiel-Taieri Community Board earlier this month.
The Mosgiel CIU team would be relocated to Dunedin.
Insp Guthrie has cited ''efficiency of service'' as one of the main reasons for the proposed move.
''We will be able to prioritise high-risk cases in the region, including child protection and sexual assault investigations.''
Mosgiel resident and community board member Martin Dillon signed the petition and filed a submission but said it was likely that the proposed move would go ahead.
''At the end of the day, it's operational, not political, so they can go ahead anyway.''
''It might get to be political when the statistics come into it.''
Mr Dillon said locals' main concern was that the service level of policing in Mosgiel would suffer as a result of the move.
Mosgiel resident John Freeland said 595 petition signatures in four days was ''not a bad effort, considering the area's population of around 14,000''.
''If we had longer, I am sure we would have got more,'' he said.
Insp Guthrie has acknowledged submissions and will review them before making a final decision on the move.
