South Dunedin: Govt may back plan

Discussions about how low-lying South Dunedin should be managed amid climate change could lead to a pitch to the Government for support.

• Liquefaction risk lower than feared in South Dunedin 

Taieri MP Ingrid Leary said a shared vision from sectors of the community - backed by central government and with funding secured - could be in place before the next general election in 2023.

The collective vision should be bold and the community should have confidence in any business case that came from that, she said.

"Central government will back us if we have a shared, common vision that makes sense,"" Ms Leary said.

Discussions had started after the Forbury Park Trotting Club announced last month it intended to shift from its raceway in St Kilda.

The club has been negotiating with possible buyers of the raceway land, as well as leaders in the racing industry.

Despite its coastal location and vulnerability to sea-level rise in the coming decades, the land has appeal as a possible site for housing.

However, it could also be used as a water-holding area to assist flood protection or revert to a wetland.

Ms Leary said the future of Forbury Park was a "subset"" of a larger discussion about how to work in harmony with the South Dunedin landscape.

A lot of money would need to be spent on South Dunedin - proactively or reactively - and she advocated a strategic approach.

About 10,000 people live in South Dunedin.

About 2700 homes are on land at least 50cm below the mean high-tide mark.

Ms Leary said how South Dunedin adapted to climate change was in some ways a national issue and the community could be an exemplar.

She wanted to raise the level of ambition about what could be achieved there.

She expected discussions - informal so far - would develop and lead to a business case being put before the Cabinet.

"We all need to be working with urgency on this,"" Ms Leary said.

A Ministry for the Environment briefing on the area is expected to be the next step.

Dunedin Mayor Aaron Hawkins said people seemed to be evenly split on the future of the Forbury Park land - "between needing to build houses on it at all costs and avoiding building houses on it at all costs"".

"Regardless of where on that spectrum you might sit, it"s critical that our short-term housing solutions, anywhere in the city, don"t compromise our ability in the long term to adapt to a changing climate.""

The trotting club was not in a position to give an update on negotiations, board chairman Craig Paddon said.

Otago Regional Council chairman Andrew Noone said the council had not formed a position on Forbury Park, but it had signalled support for a joint approach to work through climate-related challenges in South Dunedin.