Christmas shoppers battling roadworks in central Dunedin have also had their nostrils assailed by an unpleasant odour.
The mystery smell has caused waves on social media and now the Dunedin City Council says it may have an explanation.
"We believe the odour is the unfortunate consequence of a couple of factors, including the compost we’ve placed on our new plants along George St.
"There may also be small amounts of residual gas in stormwater pipes, or the surrounding soil, which has been stirred up by our recent work to replace ageing pipes under George St."
The council said in a statement Fire and Emergency New Zealand and Genesis Energy had checked the area yesterday morning and were satisfied there was no cause for concern.
"The odour may crop up again from time to time, particularly after rain, but should start to settle down again over the next few weeks," the council said.
Dunedin resident Sam Dreaver was out doing some last-minute Christmas shopping yesterday when he walked past some "nice looking" new plant beds in George St.
"Smells like fertiliser, it’s not that bad and it keeps the plants happy and healthy.
"I have no problems with them, the plant beds look real nice."
Fellow Christmas shopper Natalie Simmons said she did not notice the smell yesterday until it was pointed out to her.
"I did notice there was a pong early this week when I was on my lunch break but it’s not too bad today.
"I’ll survive a bit of a bad smell. I think onion fields definitely smell worse."
