Dunedin City Council liquor licence project officer Kevin Mechen said people must have their say on the proposed new local alcohol policy or face the consequences down the track.
''There is one opportunity for people to have their say. If they like it, they should say. If they don't like it, they should say.''
The Government has given councils much greater powers over how alcohol is managed in their community.
Mr Mechen said ''vocal'' alcohol industry groups were sure to have their say during public consultation, expected to start in September.
The Southern District Health Board, police and the Hospitality Association of New Zealand have already been involved in talks over the alcohol plan.
Some other cities have already put their plans out for consultation, but there were benefits in not being the first, because the city could learn from others' mistakes, Mr Mechen said.
''Get it right the first time, rather than have it go pear-shaped.''
If people did not have their say on the plan and then found someone was trying to open a liquor store near their home, they might find they had ''missed the boat'' and were unable to stop it, he said.
If people had a problem at home they talked about it, but people seemed much more reluctant to talk about community problems, he said.
''It is about getting the community motivated to talk about what is happening.''
Approval of the local alcohol plan is a responsibility likely to fall on the incoming council after October's elections.
Being unable to ''fill in the blanks'' also made coping with sexual assault even more difficult for victims, she said.
About 46 cases were reported in Dunedin last year, which was believed to represent only about 10% of actual sexual assaults, Dr McIlraith said.
