Southland District Council (SDC) have announced that area offices and libraries will remain closed under the Red Traffic Light setting, with staff working remotely from home. 

However Gore District and Invercargill City Council's public facilities currently continue to remain open.

SDC chief executive Cameron McIntosh says council will be offering contactless pick-up or home delivery for those wanting to check out library books.

He says closures will be reviewed regularly, and will be changed at busy times, such as rates payments or dog registration.

Other public facilities, such as toilets, playgrounds, parks, reserves, cemeteries, and halls, are open and will continue to be cleaned and maintained.

McIntosh says the decision to close council buildings has been made to protect staff. 

“We are closing libraries and area offices, not as a lockdown, because we aren’t in lockdown, but because most of our libraries and area offices are staffed by only a few people and we are limited in resourcing this if they get sick.”

“Our number one aim through Red is to provide our services to our communities as much as possible and so to do that, while considering staff health and resourcing, we are having to do things a wee bit differently.”  

For more information, visit https://www.southlanddc.govt.nz/my-southland/covid-19/