The Council has opened public feedback on two policies this week, including the Gambling Venue Policy which outlines rules for venues with pokie machines and TAB venues within Mid Canterbury.

Group Manager of Democracy and Engagement, Toni Durham, said that it had been 12 years since the topic was last publicly consulted on. She noted this was an opportunity for the community to have their say on how many gaming machines a venue could have, how many venues could be established in the district and where they could be located.

“Council is proposing a few changes, so it’s important that we hear whether our residents support them, but more broadly, it’s a chance to ensure our rules around gambling venues are still serving our community well,” she said.

Toni explained that the proposed changes included introducing a district-wide cap of 20 gambling venues (currently, twelve venues are operating) and prohibiting venues from establishing in socio-economic areas with high levels of deprivation. Existing venues would be able to relocate with their machines to an alternative site, provided they meet certain conditions outlined in the policy.

“The Council is proposing a controlled growth approach, which will allow the number of venues and machines to gradually increase alongside population growth, while maintaining controls to minimise harm,” she added.

A recent social impact assessment showed that Ashburton has a higher number of gaming machines and slightly higher problem gambling intervention rate per capita than the national average. However, there was no significant increase in gambling-related harm identified since the last report.

“Local people know what’s right for their community, and they need to tell us, so we can ensure we have the balance right,” said Toni.

Feedback is also sought on minor changes to the Dangerous and Insanitary Buildings Policy following a request from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) to include ‘affected’ buildings, in line with changes to the Building Act 2004.

Affected buildings are defined as those that could pose a risk to people’s safety or to nearby properties due to their proximity to dangerous buildings.

Feedback on both policies closes on Monday 27 October. Residents can find out more and make a submission online at itsourplace.nz