Chinese garden part of agenda for ICC’s first 2019 meeting

A PLANNED Chinese garden, which was put on hold last month, will be back on the council agenda today at the first Invercargill City Council (ICC) meeting of 2019.

The ICC voted last month to stop work on the garden immediately after it was revealed it was set to cost the council an extra $280,000 from what was initially budgeted.

The council had originally budgeted $600,000 for the project, and the revised estimate of completion was revealed at being $882,700.

The council will today discuss recommencing work on the garden and for it to be ‘‘altered to allow completion within the original budget.’’

Other matters of note to be discussed today include hearing submissions on the smokefree zone in the Invercargill CBD, as well discussing a report about housing availability from the Southland Housing Action Forum.

The meeting will take place at 4pm at the ICC chamber in Esk Street.