Chance for public to talk bylaws

The Far North District Council is inviting public comment on seven bylaws that have expired.

Those bylaws cover trade waste, land drainage, amusement devices and entertainment premises (all of which expired on October 16, 2016), use of public places (March 25, 2017), vehicle crossings (May 26, 2017), mobile shops and hawkers (July 29, 2017), and reserves (December 9, 2017).

General manager strategic planning and policy Darrell Sargent said a combination of historic changes to legislation and staff movements had resulted in an incomplete list of bylaws and review dates.

Work on the dog management bylaw had highlighted some concerns around the reserves bylaw, which led the administration to locate and investigate the content and status of the full set of council bylaws.

“We recently obtained a legal opinion, which has clarified these provisions, and a legal commentary we have relied on to determine when bylaw reviews fall due, and we now have processes in place to ensure all future bylaws will be reviewed on time.”

The council would develop and seek public feedback on the bylaws during June and July.

“At this stage we are not proposing significant changes to the draft bylaws we seek public feedback on, but that doesn’t mean we won’t change the bylaws after considering submissions from the community. We encourage people with an interest in these bylaws to have their say during the consultation period.”