Latest news with #FreedomCampingAct
Otago Daily Times
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Freedom camping bylaw on the agenda
Developing a freedom camping bylaw for Queenstown Lakes is like "tiptoeing through tulips", a council manager says. Speaking at a full council workshop yesterday, community services general manager Kenneth Bailey said the new bylaw had to be practical, enforceable and compliant with the Freedom Camping Act, but acceptable to the community at large. Although the district could never "meet the tsunami of demand", it had to provide enough freedom camping spots without having to "lawyer up", Mr Bailey said. The council has to replace its 2021 bylaw, which was declared invalid by the High Court last year, on a technicality, after a legal challenge by the New Zealand Motor Caravan Association. Consultation on a draft bylaw is set down for July and August, and the new bylaw is expected to be approved in October. A report prepared for councillors said freedom camping in reserves was prohibited by the Reserves Act, but the ban could be lifted via ministerially delegated powers, as the council had done before for the Red Bridge reserve near Luggate. Principal policy adviser Luke Place said making provision for freedom camping only on council land, effectively streets and car parking areas, had drawbacks. Staff had identified 22 car parking areas in the district where freedom camping might be possible but, given only a portion of the parking spaces in each area would be made available for the activity, it could be confusing for freedom campers to understand what was allowed and "tricky" to manage. Given those difficulties, and council officers' "on-the-ground experience" from the past summer season, he recommended reserves be considered. Another option was to draft reserve management plans to manage freedom camping on specific reserves around the district, Mr Place said. Unlike the ministerial delegation approach, they could be managed under the Reserves Act instead of the permissive Freedom Camping Act regime. Cr Gavin Bartlett said there were enough Department of Conservation camping sites for freedom campers to use, and preferred that reserves be "left as they are" as the law intended. However, Cr Quentin Smith said allowing freedom camping on a small number of reserves would "spread the load" across the district without affecting nearby residents.
NZ Herald
16-05-2025
- NZ Herald
Onerahi residents demand more action over vehicle dwellers at foreshore
He noted there were numerous rules for the Beach Rd area. Some were the council's responsibility to enforce, such as the rules under the Freedom Camping Act and the Traffic and Parking bylaw. Enforcement of the alcohol ban and general antisocial behaviour was up to police. Residents believed many of the vehicle dwellers were not genuinely homeless so shouldn't be exempted from Freedom Camping rules. They suggested the council could check the true status of the vehicle dwellers, issue more trespass notices and provide alternative spaces for them to go. A council spokeswoman confirmed many vehicle dwellers were not genuinely homeless but said the situation was nonetheless complex. One woman said she knew of residents who were considering selling their homes because the situation had become so bad. She alleged a wide range of anti-social behaviour by vehicle dwellers, including drugs, violence and yelling and loud music throughout the night. Residents felt forced to change their exercise routes and had started using personal alarm devices, the woman claimed. She stressed her concerns were not only for Onerahi residents but also for the wider community that liked to use the foreshore too. 'There is a feeling that the council and police are more concerned about the rights of an antisocial few rather than the Onerahi and Whangārei communities,' the woman said. The spokeswoman said the council ultimately took a risk-based approach to dealing with vehicle dwellers, taking account of the housing shortage, and the time of year. She refuted residents' claims the council had stepped back its earlier monitoring because staff also felt threatened by the vehicle dwellers. She said WDC did all it could within the legislative framework available and had also installed bollards to prevent people from parking close to houses. Council staff had no power to move the vehicle dwellers on during the day, but had good traction in moving them on at night, the spokeswoman said. She confirmed council staff met with about 20 of the residents last year and had suggested they fundraise for a CCTV system, which neither police nor the council could afford. The residents had also been advised to form a citizen patrol, which police would support. However, residents argued it was not up to them to ensure public spaces were safe; everyone had the right to use the area without feeling threatened or intimidated.
Otago Daily Times
15-05-2025
- General
- Otago Daily Times
Low rate of freedom camping leads to bylaw being dropped
PHOTO: ALLIED PRESS FILES There will be no targeted bylaw to control freedom camping in Central Otago after the council was told the number of complaints received did not warrant one and the problem was more perceived than actual. A decision on whether or not to develop a freedom camping bylaw had been deferred by the council for two consecutive years, as elected members adopted a wait-and-see approach in response to new nationwide rules. Now, the mayor and councillors have directed staff to consider a bylaw under the Reserves Act instead and work on this is expected in early 2026. Council group manager of community experience David Scoones said the council also had other powers to deal to any problem camping behaviour, including the ability under the Freedom Camping Act to fine people stopping overnight not in self-contained vehicles. Over two summers, staff had monitored complaints received related to freedom camping in the district. Between November 2023 and March 2024, there were 15 related service requests and between November 2024 and March 2025, 13. However, only a handful of them were related to the council's land. In a report before the decision, staff said, "it is doubtful that the number of freedom camping issues encountered would meet the test to determine that a bylaw is the most appropriate way of addressing the perceived problem". However, at the meeting Mr Scoones admitted Lake Dunstan, with a number of designated free overnight camping spots on its shores, had a reputation of being one of the "noisiest" lakes in New Zealand, according to Land Information New Zealand. The council will need to return a $110,000 government grant from 2022, tagged for the development of a freedom camping bylaw.
