Plans for an Undie 500 rally to Dunedin this year are likely to be revealed next week, despite city leaders this week telling organisers the event was still not welcome in Dunedin.
The event's organiser, Canterbury University's Engineers Society (Ensoc) backed by the University of Canterbury Students Association met Dunedin Mayor Peter Chin and police, fire service and University of Otago representatives on Thursday.
Mr Chin said organisers wanted to meet to gauge feeling for an event this year and discuss their ideas. They had appeared disorganised and presented no specific plans, he said. He and other city leaders had told the two groups the city remained opposed to the event.
"We do not want an Undie 500 in Dunedin. Of course, we have no control over them... but they do it in the knowledge this is our position."
In recent years, celebrations at the Dunedin end of the rally have brought dangerous and disorderly behaviour problems.
In 2006 and 2007, large crowds of drunk people gathered in Castle St in the student area, bottles were thrown at police and the fire service and several fires were set.
In 2007, despite co-operation between the organisers, the police, public health units and councils along the route, from Christchurch to Dunedin, and a liquor ban in North Dunedin, 69 people were arrested and the fire service attended more than 70 fires in the North Dunedin area.
Last year, an unofficial rally was organised after Ensoc pulled out because of a lack of support from officials and other organisations in Dunedin.
About 40 cars travelled south from Christchurch, but many more hangers-on attended celebrations in Dunedin. Thirty people were arrested.
Students association president Steve Jukes said officials basically conceded at this week's meeting that the city had no mechanism to stop the Undie 500.
"Our intention was to say we've heard your concerns and we will work towards mitigating them. I think we have a plan that will do that."
The University of Canterbury Students Association was "fully supporting" Ensoc this year, so it could have some say over what was planned.
He said a decision on the event would be announced on Tuesday. A suggestion an event was planned for Waitati, north of Dunedin, was not correct.
This year, Ensoc had employed an event management company to organise events in Dunedin at the end of the Undie 500, along the lines of social events Ensoc traditionally held in Christchurch during the academic year. These events included barbecues and balls.
"Nobody is suggesting the events in 2006 and 2007 were at all satisfactory," Mr Jukes said. If this year's event went ahead, it would be defined and controlled.
Mr Chin said the city would have to deal with any Undie 500 event as officials became aware of what was planned.
The Dunedin City Council planning and environment committee will consider on Monday a request from the council liquor licensing officer for a temporary liquor ban in North Dunedin covering the weekend of the likely dates for an Undie 500 event.
