Board member remembered
The Mosgiel-Taieri Community Board meeting began with a moment’s silence for former Dunedin city councillor and community board member Maurice Prendergast, who died recently.
Board member Brian Miller said he was a friend and board colleague of Mr Prendergast for about 60 years.
"He would chew the fat with me, and mentor me and advise me quite a bit, but that usually led me getting into quite a bit of trouble."
Mr Prendergast began his political life representing a ward of the Maniototo, and after the 1998 amalgamations part of that ward joined the Dunedin City Council area which then was the beginning of his DCC and Mosgiel-Taieri Community Board career, Mr Miller said.
One of the highlights was being able to dine with Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip when he was deputy mayor.
"Maurice was not a big man but he had a big heart and an even bigger passion for Dunedin and especially the Taieri."
Youth issues raised
More opportunities for youth was raised during the public forum of the Mosgiel-Taieri Community Board.
Taieri College head boy Andrew Matheson spoke to the board about youth issues on the Taieri Plain.
It was important the voices of young people were clearly kept in the conversation, and he encouraged the board to engage with youth through an online social media presence, in particular on Instagram.
There was a large concentration of youth in Mosgiel with a hub of schools from primary up to secondary, and different groups of teenagers influenced each other, sometimes positively but often negatively.
"In the last couple of years we have seen an unacceptable amount of theft, loitering, verbal abuse and drug and vaping on the streets," Andrew said.
He suggested getting young people involved in community projects, events and activities that could motivate more positive behaviour.
"We want to unify the community with more youth involvement, more youth planning and events, fundraising, volunteering.
"It is about including the youth, having them involved among the wider community, not separating them."
Road work update
Roadworks on State Highway 1 at East Taieri have been progressing but issues with diverted traffic has been a challenge for some residents.
In an update to the Mosgiel-Taieri Community Board, Downer customer and stakeholder manager Letitia McRodden said the surface of the southbound lane had been excavated and backfilled to give a good base for the road surface. Asphalt had been applied to the first stage of the road surface and two broken drain covers had been replaced. Further work included laying the remainder of the asphalt, applying a waterproof layer and then redoing line marking so the road could open up to two lanes.
Addressing some questions around the operation of the site, she said because the site was in a quiet residential area, work was approved from 6am to 8pm so they were not able to work through the night.
Regarding potential deterioration because of increased traffic along the detour route, she said Downer conducted an assessment along the route prior to work commencing, and would re-assess that route once completed.
If there were any defects that could be attributed to detour traffic, there would be consultation between the DCC and Waka Kotahi about repairs.
New road names for subdivision
New road names for subdivisions at Dukes Rd North and Gladstone Rd North will reflect the nature of the developments.
The Mosgiel-Taieri Community Board approved Enterprise Place as the name of part of a planned business park at 157 Dukes Rd North, and approved Magnolia Lane for a new private way at 219 Gladstone Rd North that features an access way lined with magnolia trees.
New social media policy adopted
The Mosgiel-Taieri Community Board has adopted social media terms of use for its Facebook page which includes the board reserving the right to hide posts and comments and delete or ban users from the page for a list of reasons including offensive language, personal attacks or misinformation.
An amendment was added that for consistency of messaging access to the board’s social media accounts would be restricted to the board’s appointed social media co-ordinator Regan Horrell and chairman Andrew Simms.
A line reserving the right to remove posts that contain "any other material we deem to be inappropriate" had board member Brian Miller objecting to the line being unnecessarily broad.
"That is too broad."
After discussion the draft terms of use was amended to remove this line.
Flood risks highlighted
The Mosgiel-Taieri Community Board chairman Andrew Simms says the Taieri is especially vulnerable to civil emergencies.
In his chairman’s report he said the recent flooding events in the North Island were a reminder to think of storm challenges in the local area.
"We should heed the warning and become more prepared as a community."
Mr Simms said rainfall of 80mm in four hours would cause significant flooding.
"Last month parts of Auckland received 240mm in four hours which would see water up to eaves of houses in some parts of the Taieri."
The Mosgiel-Taieri Community Response Group developed an extensive plan for adverse events including flooding, landslips and earthquakes, Mr Simms said.
However he was concerned the group had no income and no budget to communicate effectively with the community and that should be of concern to the board.
