The heritage items list is an attachment to the Waitaki district plan and has 159 listings, ranging from well-known Oamaru buildings such as the Criterion Hotel and Forrester Gallery to others, such as the Spade Line Boundary at Lake Ohau, and trees, including the Scott Memorial Oak in Oamaru's Arun St.
In recent years, there have been suggestions the council update the list, more than a decade old, with the possibility of more items being added.
Now, the council has been asked by its committee of the whole to have a consultation document prepared for discussions with key stakeholders. The document would form the basis for a change to the district plan.
The list forms part of the heritage values section in the district plan, aimed at protecting items of historic heritage from inappropriate subdivision, use and development.
The section has objectives, policies and rules to provide protection then, in an appendix, the list of items worthy of that.
The items have two classifications: category A which warrants permanent protection because of exceptional significance, and category B where preservation is encouraged, but the council would be more flexible about alterations.
It includes some items which have also been listed by the Historic Places Trust as category 1 or 2.
Planning officer Rachael Bason said most of the provisions, including the heritage items list, had been drafted by the 1990s and included in the plan made operative in 2004.
The heritage items list hadnot been updated, particularly concerning items listed by the Historic Places Trust, over the intervening years.
Several gaps and variances had been noted between the trust's and council's lists.
Some of the details in the council's list needed correcting, such as legal descriptions and locations, the present name of the item or building and historic places trust category where that had been upgraded.
Adding items to the register would also need a plan change.
She suggested, for example, items from the Oamaru Harbour which were part of the Harbourside plan could be added.
The committee has proposed the council go ahead with the initial stage of preparing a draft document, which would then be used for consultation with the New Zealand Historic Places Trust and its North Otago branch committee, the OamaruWhitestone Civic Trust, building and item owners and NgaiTahu.
The council will make a final decision on that proposal at its meeting on April 3.
