Changes to Mosgiel policing have received some buy-in from the community, but doubts remain over their effectiveness.
Under restructuring settled last week, Mosgiel's CIB team will move to the Dunedin Central station and the number of frontline constables will be increased by one to seven.
Mosgiel-Taieri Community Board chairman Bill Feather said he supported the change, while board member Martin Dillon - who previously expressed doubts over the changes - said his fears had been allayed but it was up to police to back up their rhetoric.
However, Dunedin South MP Clare Curran said she remained ''sceptical'' about the changes and the reasons for them.
She had spoken to community members who were ''deeply concerned about the impact on the community''.
''It's the fastest growing part of Dunedin's community and it's geographically separate from Dunedin's CBD,'' she told Taieri Times last week.
''Those CIB people were very integrated in that community.''
She earlier said she had a ''watching brief'' on the changes and that remained.
She was concerned the changes were about ''cost-cutting'', but an increase in frontline staff was good news, she said.
''There is some positives around that and the local community always wants to see more people on the beat, but this is part of a trend that's happening around the country ...
''Community policing requires people on the frontline and in the community but it also requires the back-up.''
Southern district commander Superintendent Andrew Coster said the change allowed a move away from ''bricks and mortar'' policing and was part of a strategy that was ''more street than station''.
Mr Feather said he supported the changes, especially the increase in first responders.
Mr Dillon said it was ''never ideal when jobs go'', but police had provided assurances the level of service would not diminish under the restructuring.
''It's fine by me, because at the end of the day they have to front up,'' he said.
''They supposedly know what they are doing so we have to rely on them.
''It's now in the hands of police to carry on with the good work they do.''
The changes, which will be completed by June 29, will not affect policing in Middlemarch or Green Island.
