A sea of boxes has been shipped from Italian company Myrtha Pools for the Elsie Stewart Community Library and Pool project in Milton. The boxes contain the components for the 25-metre pool and learner pool and have been unloaded into Council’s construction partner Calder Stewart’s warehouse in Milton. Their arrival is a great relief of the Council team working on this project, because of the impacts on shipping due to the war on Iran. Read more: 

What's going on with our other major capital and community projects...

 In late September, Union St/SH1 in Milton temporarily reopened and the detour via Centennial Ave was lifted. 

The highway will remain open until early November, when it is hoped conditions will be right to lay the final layer of asphalt between Springfield Road and Melville Ave that will complete the repair and resurfacing. This should take about a week, during which time the highway will temporarily close and the detour reinstated for this period. In the meantime, a 30km/h temporary speed limit is in place on that section of Union St/SH1. Temporary repairs will continue on Melville/Centennial avenues and permanent remedial work will begin after the asphalting is completed on the highway. Our contractor Andrew Haulage 2011 Ltd has begun the trenching and installation work along Union St. This project has been a long haul for our community and travelling public and we appreciate the continued patience while we work through this project that is future-proofing Milton’s stormwater and wastewater pipe infrastructure.

The Gray Street Plaza, part of Milton’s main street upgrade, has been partially reopened.

Some sections of turf are still to be installed. This will be completed when the weather is warmer, and a small section of the plaza will remain fenced off temporarily until that work can be completed. The feature wall, with its brick veneer finish, will also be completed at that time. 

Improving Milton’s main street was one of the top priorities identified in the Our Place Milton community plan and Council’s Long Term Plan. In September 2025 Council's contractor started work on the makeover, the final phase of improvements to Milton’s CBD main street area. The approved budget of $1.1 million to complete the plaza work was less than what was originally decided as Council acknowledged while the work was important, it needed to be completed with a reduced scope and budget. This mainly affected construction of the fence along the plaza’s northwest side and the decision to extend it, which delayed progress initially. The project has remained within budget.   

You may have seen our Waste Team about, taking a wee peek inside your recycling bins, to check we’re making the effort to Recycle Right...

You’ll be stickered according to how you’re doing with a green, orange or red sticker. Keep those plastic bags, *soft plastics, lids and household waste, green waste, glass etc, out of the recycling bin, and you’ll be recycling right Our normal three strikes contamination system continues alongside the bin audit, which will be ongoing. Meghan our Waste Minimisation Officer will show you how it works. See more. 

*Good news on the recycling front: Soft plastics recycling has returned to the district with New World Balclutha once again offering a service to divert these recyclables from landfill. See more.

The Government says it needs additional time to decide which Head Start local government reform proposals to simplify local government should progress. 

Under a tight deadline on 10 August, Central Otago and Clutha district councils jointly submitted a Head Start proposal to Government, proposing a new provincial council bringing together our two districts, along with the Queenstown Lakes district, on the expectation that a decision might have been made during September-October. Read more. 

Clutha District Mayor Jason (Jock) Martin expressed his frustration that Cabinet will not be considering these proposals until early-2027, which are to be put in place before the 2028 local government elections, and the potential impact on jobs and regional representation. Read more.

The Waitahuna War Memorial Hall Committee has been granted funding from depreciation reserves to install a new kitchen for $15,064.35 plus GST, with an additional contingency amount of up to $10,000 to cover unexpected expenses such as borer in the walls.   

Council has agreed to stop an unformed legal road (1609 Waipahi Station Road, Clinton) to enable improvements to farming operations on the adjoining property. The road to be stopped amounts to about 22,250 m2. Approval would be sought from the Minister of Land Information, and consultation initiated, under the Local Government Act. After that, a purchase price would be negotiated based on an independent valuation. 

Council has agreed to extend the current stock underpass exemptions for a further four years subject to on-going review and continued good management of these sites. For more details, refer to council agenda item.  

A temporary road closure has been approved for Blue Spur and Munro roads in the Lawrence area for a rally sprint event on Saturday 17 October, from 8am to 5pm. This will be run by the Otago Sports Car Club in place of the Lawrence Rally. 

The Telford Bursary Committee, comprising of Mayor Martin, Crs McAtamney, Harrison and McCrostie met on 19 June 2026 to consider the applications and awarded the bursary as follows: Zoey Marshall $2,000 and Shaydon Hunter $1,000.

The roading network maintenance and greenspace maintenance contracts have been extended by five years and SouthRoads awarded the extension. In 2022, Council awarded South Roads Limited Contract 821–Roading Network Maintenance ($36.04 million excluding GST) and Contract 831–Greenspace Maintenance ($7.42 million excluding GST). The 5 + 5-year contracts expire on 30 June 2027. The proposed extensions would continue both contracts to 30 June 2032, providing continuity of essential roading and greenspace services. Contract 821 is included in Council’s NZTA-endorsed Transport Procurement Strategy 2026–2029. 

• Workshop - Wednesday, 14 October, 8.45am 

• Risk and Assurance, Thursday, 15 October, 9.30am 

• Council - Thursday, 15 October 2026, 1.30pm. 

• Youth Council – Monday, 19 October. 6.30pm 

Agendas available HERE. Meeting dates available HERE.

We know we live somewhere special. Check out the guide to keep in the loop with what's going on in the Our Place Clutha What's On Guide.  

We're keen to celebrate Clutha - the past, present and future. If you have photo, an artefact or heirloom with a story attached about our District, send it to:  communications@cluthadc.govt.nz

Pictured, Milton's main street from the Hocken Library.

Anything you need assistance with, contact us.

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