Council adopts eight new bylaws
20 June, 2008
From: Nalinesh Arun - CCC Communications Team
CHRISTCHURCH CITY COUNCIL MEDIA
RELEASE Council adopts
eight new bylaws Christchurch Mayor Bob Parker has
congratulated councillors and staff members for bringing in
eight new bylaws for adoption before Council within the
allocated time frame. Twenty two of the 34 bylaws in the
Christchurch City/Banks Peninsula districts needed to be
reviewed (or left to lapse) by 30 June 2008 under the Local
Government Act 2002 which placed requirements on all
councils their older bylaws within a particular
timeframe. The Mayor, as well as a number of other
councillors, praised Cr Sue Wells for the outstanding work
in heading the review of each of the bylaws. Cr Wells, Chair
of the Regulatory and Planning Committee and the Chair of
the hearing panels for all of the recent bylaw reviews, was
commended for the energy she brought to the review. He
also praised the Council staff involved in the review,
saying: "We are the tip of the iceberg: behind us is the
huge amount of staff work that enabled this to happen." He
then asked the Chief Executive Officer Tony Marryatt to
convey his appreciation to the staff. Mr Marryatt was also
praised for bringing the issue of refunds on traffic fines
to the Council. It was about governance, about having an
open mind and about performing their duty in relations to
legislature, said Mr Parker before the Council unanimously
passed the new bylaws The eight new bylaws adopted by the
Council are Dog Control, Public Places, Traffic and Parking,
Water Related Services, Parks and Reserves, Marine and River
Facilities, Stock Control and the General Bylaw. The new
Stock Control Bylaw formerly resided in Traffic and Parking
but it is now a stand-alone bylaw after a recommendation
from the Hearings Panel.
The new bylaws are largely
updated versions of the existing bylaws. The review
involved rationalising and updating the bylaws so that they
are appropriate to the current context. * The new Stock
Control Bylaw controls the management and movement of stock
on roads, in order to protect people, traffic and stock,
while safeguarding the condition of the road. * The new
Public Places Bylaw enables the management of public places
in order to balance the various different, and sometimes
competing, lawful uses for which public places may be used.
* The new Marine and River Facilities Bylaw regulates and
controls activities on, in and around Council-controlled
marine and river facilities for the benefit and enjoyment of
all users of those facilities. * The new Parks and
Reserves Bylaw regulates activities in parks and reserves in
order to protect these assets and to balance different uses
for the enjoyment of the public. * The new Water
Related Services Bylaw regulates water supply, wastewater
and stormwater drainage in order to manage the supply of
water by Council to premises and to deal with certain land
drainage issues. * The new Dog Control Bylaw is intended
to regulate and control dogs. It imposes obligations on
owners to ensure that dogs do not create a nuisance, or
endanger or injure people, wildlife or other animals.
* The new General Bylaw contains provisions which are
common to all of the Council's bylaws, will ensure that the
Council's bylaws are administered and enforced in an
efficient, fair, transparent and consistent manner. * The new Traffic and Parking Bylaw regulates and
controls traffic and parking, to balance the competing
demands on the road space, while maintaining a safe and
efficient infrastructure. Several decisions on revoking
bylaws or allowing them to lapse were made at recent Council
meetings. These were the BPDC Public Swimming Pools Bylaw
1972; the CCC Public Swimming Pools Bylaw 1979; the BPDC
Amusement Devices and Shooting Galleries Bylaw 1996; and the
BPDC Nuisances Bylaw 1996. The matters covered by these
bylaws are now covered by other legislation or do not need
to be regulated, as they can be managed by other means.
Copies of the bylaws, as well as the Hearing Panel's
Report to Council will be available at all Council offices
and Service Centres, and on the Council website
www.ccc.govt.nz/bylaws before July 1, when the new bylaws
come into
effect. ends
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