A former Invercargill councillor has been ordered to clear her gorse-covered section after losing a battle with the council she once represented.
But Karen Arnold said she was giving no regard to the outcome and blamed the gorse on neighbouring land which is co-owned by Invercargill City Council.
The vacant section in question at Theodore St, Bluff, has failed eight inspections since 2022.
Ms Arnold is adamant the cause of gorse and broom on her land is Bluff Hill/Motupōhue, which is at the rear of the section and co-owned by the council and the Department of Conservation.
The council got its way, however, with a determination released on Monday which said the presence of gorse on the hill did not give others a pass.
The panel accepted having the plant on the boundary was "not appropriate or helpful", but said the council took steps to address this, which could not have impacted it emerging on Ms Arnold’s section.
Reports show some mistakes were made in dealing with the matter, including the council issuing a non-compliant bylaw notice in October 2022 which forced it to clear Ms Arnold’s section at its own cost soon after.
The panel also felt the organisation should have considered the time of year when issuing the December 2024 notice.
In response to the hearing outcome, Ms Arnold said the council was "continually investigating itself and finding that it’s not at fault".
Ms Arnold said she gave the result no regard because she raised her issues under the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act and did not recognise the panel as having the capacity to consider the matter.
The council told Local Democracy Reporting it had operated within its rules and obligations for inspections.
Bluff Hill/Motupōhue was managed to meet the requirements of the Southland Pest Hub, which recommended gorse be kept 10m from neighbouring boundaries, council group manager consenting and environment Jonathan Shaw said.
A map image from 2016 showed gorse had grown from the fence line between two private properties — not public land — and appeared to have been left unchecked for years, he said.
Ms Arnold was elected in 2013 and 2016, but stood down near the end of her second term.
In 2018, RNZ reported she had declared bankruptcy after losing a defamation suit against Stuff and then-mayor Sir Tim Shadbolt.
• LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
