At a community and services committee meeting last Thursday, Cr Gladding voted against recommending the full council adopt the updated district-wide policy — first adopted in 2006 — describing it as a "decision-making process, not a policy".
While she was largely supportive of the new policy, and believed it would help guide the community if there was a need or desire for trees to be removed, it did not guide the council.
Cr Gladding told the Otago Daily Times "we’re being tougher on the community than we are on ourselves".
"Obviously, we [the council] have been cutting down a lot of trees — how do we make sure we hear from the community on that?
"Does the policy require us to consult and give us some guidance around when we can remove trees, wholesale, across a large area, or not?"
During last Thursday’s meeting, Cr Gladding used the example of Project Manawa, a cultural and civic heart project on Stanley St, identified through the 2017 Queenstown Town Centre masterplan project.
In June, 2019, the council entered a partnership agreement with Ngai Tahu Property to agree a development plan for the site.
Cr Gladding told the committee she understood "all the trees" on Stanley St, around the recently decommissioned Queenstown Arts Centre building, and on Shotover St, to Henry St, would be felled.
"All those trees are going to go, as far as I know, and we haven’t spoken to the community about that, and yet we’re progressing the project.
"I’m wondering what does this policy do to prevent the conflict that’s going to arise when the community figures [out] this is the plan that we’ve had all along, but we didn’t speak to them about it?
"How does this policy ensure that we are consulting with the community on mass removal?"
While parks and reserves planner Christine Skipworth pointed Cr Gladding to the policy and said the consultation was outlined under the "decision process", Cr Gladding felt a gap remained.
"[The policy] speaks to the significance of trees, but it says that significance will be determined by a qualified arborist — engaging with the community is just a line outside of a policy.
"So, for me, this policy is not going to protect from works that we do, as council.
"For the community wanting to remove a tree, maybe it’s fine. For directing our council ... it misses on that front for me. We need something in there that’s more solid around when we consult, when we escalate decisions ... not just the professional arborist’s decision."
The other committee members — Crs Craig Ferguson, Heath Copland, Val Miller and Niamh Shaw all voted in favour of recommending the council adopt the policy.
