The unanimous vote this week potentially paves the way for a new unitary authority made up of the Timaru, Waimate, Mackenzie and Waitaki District Councils, under the government’s Head Start pathway.
Subsequent votes left the door open for Ashburton, Clutha and Central Otago to join if they choose to.
And conversations will continue regarding the southern parts of the district, including Waihemo, with Otago councils.
Waitaki District Mayor Mel Tavendale, who moved the motion to look north for amalgamation, said it was a milestone decision for the council.
‘‘Today is a really important day — and it’s probably one of the biggest we’ll ever have around the council table.’’
But there was ‘‘so much still to be done’’ following this week’s direction-setting vote, she said.
‘‘There’s a lot of decisions still to be made.’’
Cr John McCone said: ‘‘The devil will be in the detail.’’
Waitaki council chief executive Alex Parmley will now have to hammer out a proposal with other councils, alongside Mrs Tavendale and deputy mayor Rebecca Ryan, to be brought back to the council at a meeting before a looming August 9 government deadline.
Cr Ryan said she was ‘‘really encouraged’’ by the conversations so far with northern neighbours, especially Mackenzie and Waimate.
Mr Parmley said he ‘‘suspected’’ there would be further decisions to be made, as Waitaki got into discussions with other councils.
Waitaki was excluded from the Timaru District Council’s list of preferred options last week.
The Mackenzie District Council said last week a five-council authority was its preference: it plus Waimate, Timaru, Waitaki and Ashburton.
‘‘I look north, I see communities a lot like ours,’’ Ahuriri ward representative Cr Brent Cowles said.
He said there was an opportunity to ‘‘continue working with similar communities facing similar challenges’’, including in the farming and tourism sectors.
The Waitaki River had dominated discussions over amalgamation at public meetings, Cr Dan Lewis said.
‘‘The challenge is making sure it is not like a child in a three-way custody battle.’’
Seven amalgamation options were presented to councillors ahead of yesterday’s meeting.
The two highest scoring, on perceived likelihood of government acceptance, were a ‘‘Mid, South Canterbury authority’’ (formed by Waitaki joining Ashburton, Timaru, Mackenzie and Waimate) and an ‘‘Otago region unitary’’ (made up of Waitaki, Dunedin, Clutha, Central Otago and Queenstown Lakes).
Both received 20 out of a possible 25 points, the report prepared by officers said.
‘‘There’s no perfect options in here,’’ Mr Parmley said.
Cr Frans Schlack said Waitaki risked becoming a ‘‘backwater’’ of a ‘‘dominant’’ city under any proposal including a large urban centre.
Cr Schlack said he got the impression during Southern Waters discussions that Timaru was ‘‘very dominant and likes to set priorities for themselves’’.
Maintaining local representation and voice would be ‘‘key’’ to the final proposal.
Mrs Tavendale said conversations she had with smaller councils were around making sure ‘‘we are all at the table’’ and party to decision-making, rather than ‘‘rule by one’’.
Cr Jim Hopkins cited recent survey results showing five times more support for joining South Canterbury than an Otago unitary.
‘‘I guess the anxieties about Timaru are not as substantial as the potential anxieties about the bigger centre further south, Dunedin.’’
Waitaki’s community, including iwi and rural leaders, will also be involved as part of detailed plans brought back to the council.
Councillors unanimously passed all the motions in front of them, including two additional proposals from Cr Cowles: to ‘‘commit’’ to protecting the local voice of communities in the district, including Ahuriri and Waihemo; and to seek integrated management of the Waitaki River catchment, including considering a Waitaki River authority if councils were at odds over the catchment.
