Two southern councils have joined forces to lodge an unusual request with the public this week — proposals for a new joint headquarters.

Invercargill City Council and Environment Southland are testing the open market for a joint new office space in Invercargill through a “registration of interest” approach.

Developers with available space can pitch their proposals to the council by 11 November for a chance to secure the dual tenants.

But the councils also listed a host of requirements.

That included around 7,000 square metres of space, of which 5,222sqm was required for office accommodation.

There also needed to be room for public services, storage and parking.

A preferred new location for the two councils would lie somewhere within the shaded rectangle. Photo: Supplied

Items listed as “nice to have” included 3000sqm of additional space for an art gallery plus room for a cafe.

And both councils preferred the location to be within an area known as the Invercargill City Civic Spine — a 0.125 square kilometre rectangle bordered by Don St, Tay St, Dee St and Deveron St.

Invercargill City Council’s existing building is on Esk St which runs through the middle of that rectangle, while Environment Southland is at the north end of the city.

The report noted the city council had recently sought temporary accommodation for the next five years because of deterioration, while Environment Southland faced maintenance issues.

It also said the process avoided reference to shared services or re-organisation — a hot topic in the south — because they were complex matters subject to separate work streams.

Invercargill City Council currently employs around 280 people and Environment Southland around 190 people.

Proposals for sites outside of the preferred area could also be considered.

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air