The district's two community boards called "visioning" meetings in Dunback, Palmerston, Moeraki, Kurow, Omarama, and Otematata from February 21 to March 10.
Waitaki District Council policy and business improvement manager Mike Roesler said about 250 people attended the six meetings - a first step towards the community boards creating plans that indicate priority projects for the boards to advocate on, things the boards would do on the ground "with their own resource", including local volunteers, and possibly how the boards operate.
"The meetings were, on the whole, very positive," he said. "From an officer's perspective there were no real `bolters' in terms of surprise issues, but rather an observation of the boards and their communities aligning with what matters."
Ahuriri community board chairman Graham Sullivan said with communities in the Waitaki Valley "taking off" zoning issues - both commercial and residential subdivision opportunities - were a common topic, especially in Omarama and Otematata.
In Otematata of the roughly 450 houses most were kept as cribs, yet with just 200 permanent residents in town, he was pleased up to 50 people attended the meeting.
He preferred not to talk in detail about the issues raised at the meetings before the meeting's facilitator, Sandra McIntyre, of Dunedin, reported back to the community boards in two weeks.
Waihemo community board chairwoman Kathy Dennison said community visioning meetings had last taken place in 1999. In 2006 a council-initiated process had been started, but had not amounted to much.
She hoped the process, expected to be completed late this year, would result in a tangible five-year or 10-year plan for the board.
She said residential subdivision was an issue raised at the meetings in Waihemo, as was economic development. There was growth, poultry farms had expanded, but there would always be the possibility of a "post-mining" era when the Macraes mine closed.
"We have a major employment source here, but further down the track, one year it might not be here. It's just looking at what visioning we could be doing to try to strengthen the future for us."
