Management plan now in place for Omākau reserves

The Omākau Reserve Management Plan, which was consulted on recently, was adopted by the Central Otago District Councill this week (29 November 2023).

The reserve management plan involved four reserves: Omākau Recreation Reserve, Wilson Street Reserve, Ophir Recreation Reserve and Ophir Ice Rink Reserve.

Public submissions were sought over a two-month period from June to August 2023, and 39 submissions received from the formal submission process. A community drop-in session was also held on 17 August 2023. The draft management plan was updated following community feedback, resulting in the final management plan.

At the meeting in Alexandra, the Council adopted this plan, which had at first gone to the Vincent Community Board in October where some amendments and changes were suggested. The Board positively acknowledged that there were a large number of submissions received from the younger generation.

There were two suggestions from the community regarding the Omākau Recreation Reserve that have been implemented into the plan following public consultation – a future walking track and allowing for the cricket field to be shared seasonally with football.

Vincent Community Board member, Cr Tracy Paterson, commended the Council’s Parks and Recreation team for taking a proactive approach to the reserve management plan.

“It’s good to see that the community’s comments have been incorporated.”

Parks Officer Maria Burnett thanked Cr Paterson, and all who had taken part in the process.

After the meeting, she said that having a reserve management plan provided certainty around decision-making for the four reserves.

A crucial outcome from the consultation regarding the Omākau Recreation Reserve, meant that the Omakau Community Hub can now be established on the reserve. The management plan allows for the existing rugby clubrooms and camp kitchen to be decommissioned, with the clubrooms to be housed in the new hub, and a new camping ground kitchen to be constructed next to the existing ablution blocks. The playground may be relocated to the location of the existing clubrooms.

A summary of submissions can be found in the report in https://centralotago.infocouncil.biz/ and on the Council’s consultation platform: Omakau and Ophir Draft Reserve Management Plan | Let’s Talk Central Otago (codc.govt.nz):