Otematata will impose a liquor ban during Labour Weekend in an attempt to curb problems caused in recent years by young people visiting the Waitaki Valley holiday village.
The temporary ban, which is likely to also be imposed during the holiday season from December 26 to January 2, and next Easter, had the unanimous support of about 15 people at a public meeting in Otematata on Saturday.
A proposal will go to the Ahuriri Community Board meeting on July 12.
It will then be considered by the Waitaki District Council and has to be publicly notified before it can be brought into force.
In recent years, hundreds of young people staying in Otematata and at the lakeside holiday park have boosted the village's usually resident population of less than 200, causing major problems.
Last year, their behaviour came under fire from police, residents, the Ahuriri Community Board, and the Otematata Fire Brigade, which had to deal with the antics of drunken teenagers on Saturday and Sunday nights.
Police had to cope with drunken behaviour and damage, leading them to warn that they were not going to babysit teenagers given alcohol by their parents and let loose to wander the streets.
Omarama had a temporary liquor ban last festive season, and its success led to Otematata's proposal.
Community board chairman Craig Dawson, who chaired Saturday's meeting, said yesterday there were initially concerns from some of those present about how the ban would be policed.
The main concern was the effect it would have on responsible people, for example adults carrying liquor to a neighbour's barbecue.
However, after Kurow constable Craig Bennett had explained how a ban would work, it was unanimously accepted by those at the meeting.
"It was a case of trusting the system," he said.
Mr Dawson said the proposed ban would stop anyone carrying open bottles of liquor and would cover the whole town, from the 80kmh speed signs on State Highway 83 to past the golf course on Loch Laird Rd.
It would be applied at Labour weekend to see how it worked, and then it would be refined, if necessary, for Christmas and Easter.
