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Public Amenities Bylaw and Public Safety Bylaw

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We want to hear about times you've noticed someone being a bad neighbour or community member. What behaviours do you find disruptive or offensive in public spaces?

We review bylaws every few years to make sure they still meet our community’s needs. This is your chance to tell us what you think and help shape the rules that keep our community safe and enjoyable.

Bylaws are local rules set by the Council to keep our community safe and healthy. They cover things like where you can park, what pets you can have, and how we use public spaces.

We are reviewing both our Public Amenities Bylaw and Public Safety Bylaw together, because they aim to make our public spaces safe and enjoyable. We want to hear from you about what changes are needed to improve these spaces.

  • Public Amenities Bylaw: Sets standards for places like parks, libraries, and cemeteries to ensure they are safe and enjoyable for everyone.
  • Public Safety Bylaw: Sets rules to keep public spaces safe and minimise nuisances and anti-social behaviour.

We want your input on these bylaws. You can share your thoughts through our website, email, or at Council offices. Keep an eye out for community engagement events and surveys.

A few key issues to consider:

  • Important Issues: Do the bylaws adequately address the issues you care about?
  • Safety and Nuisance: How can we improve safety and reduce nuisances in public places?
  • Alcohol Ban Areas: Should we keep alcohol ban areas as they are?
  • Keeping of Animals: Are there any changes needed in how we regulate pets in our communities?
  • Cemeteries: How can we better manage and honour our cemeteries?

We will be gathering feedback in the coming months and using it to draft updated bylaws. Your input is crucial to ensure these bylaws work for everyone in our community.

Click here to share your feedback:

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Bylaw?

Bylaws are local laws made under national legislation by Council in response to local circumstances and needs. The main purpose of bylaws is to manage nuisances, offensive behaviour and to support public safety in the community.

Bylaws are generally made under the Local Government Act 2002. Bylaws are broadly made to cover one or more of the following purposes:

  • to protect the public from nuisance,
  • to protect, promote, and maintain public health and safety and,
  • to minimise the potential for offensive behaviour in public places.

Some other Acts also empower local authorities to make bylaws on specific topics, e.g. the Waste Minimisation Act 2008.

We are required to review our bylaws every five years after they were first made and then every ten years after that to ensure that they are fit for purpose and meet the needs of the community and Council.

Latest Bylaw news

Upcoming Events

Want to have a chat about the Bylaws and what's in them?

Council staff will be available for drop in sessions on the following days and times:

10am - 2pm, 19 Oct 24 at Kiwanis Family Fun Day in Campbell Park, Morrinsville

12pm - 2pm & 4 - 6pm, 21 Oct 24 at the Matamata-Piako Civic and Memorial Centre

11am - 1pm, 23 Oct 24 at the Te Aroha Visitor Centre

Project Timeline

Pre-engagement phase

September/October 2024

Drop-in sessions

19-23 October 2024 (see above)

Drafting of Bylaws

November 2024

Council to approve draft bylaws for consultation

December 2024

Public consultation

March - April 2025

Bylaw Adoption

1 July 2025

Contact us

We're happy to answer any questions you have about this - feel free to contact us on:

  • This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  • 0800 746 467 

You can also sign up for updates by selecting Bylaws under the Documents section, or fill out a feedback survey here.