Park Approvals and Bookings

If you are planning something within Council’s parks or reserves, talk to the Parks Team early at enquiry@ncc.govt.nz. They can provide feedback on whether or not your proposal is consistent with Council's current plans and policies and the likelihood of obtaining landowner approval from Council.

Applications open in June to apply for licences for short-term temporary operators in Nelson City Council’s Parks and Reserves (excluding mountain bike shuttling, guiding and coaching). Click here for more information.
If you run a food business from a bicycle or e-bike, Council is also trialling a new roving food cart licence for the 2026/27 summer season, and we're looking for one operator to take it on. More info here.

Council sometimes gives formal approval (a concession) to people or groups who want to use council-owned parks and reserves. These approvals may take the form of a lease, licence or a permit and can include:

Commercial activity on a park or reserve (e.g., a night market, mobile vendors trading on a park or reserve, commercial shuttling, guiding or coaching of recreational users)
Creating or installing something (e.g., network utility infrastructure, sports facilities and clubrooms)
Using an area for an organised recreational activity not provided for through the usual Council booking process such as the standard sports fields or venues booking process.

The following agreements are generally used:

Licence - an activity that doesn’t prohibit other parks and reserve users from occupying the same area when the activity isn't operating, nothing remaini on site overnight and often intermittent or short-term access (e.g., a mobile food cart)
Lease - medium to long term use that requires exclusive use of a particular area (e.g., a building)
Adopt a Spot agreements – where community groups, schools and individuals agree to enhance and take care of an area of land.

Not all applications for approval are granted, as we must weigh up requests against our responsibilities as protectors of the land.

Your application will first be assessed by our Parks and Property staff who will consult with our other specialists about any potential impacts of the activity.

Where you are seeking to run a mobile food cart, check out our guidelines and information on food safety regulations here.

Fees and payments

Council’s fees and charges are listed here.

Annual rent for a lease is generally calculated by way of a market rental valuation and is charged out at a commercial or community rate depending on the operator status.

For monthly or periodic payments, you will be required to complete an application to open a customer account which will involve credit and reference checks.

How to apply for landowner approval

Application forms for landowner approvals can be found here:

Helpful information

Click here to find Council's Reserve Management Plans

Categories for Nelson Parks and Reserves

Adapted from the New Zealand Recreation Association Parks Categories Framework, August 2017

Category	Explanation
Sportsground	Parks (often quite large areas) set aside and developed for organised and informal sport and recreation facilities and buildings, often multiple use.
Neighbourhood Park	Parks developed and used for informal recreation and sporting activities, play and family-based activities and social and community activities. The intended users of these parks are residents of the local community.
Public Garden	Parks and gardens developed to a very high asset and horticultural standard with collections of plants and landscaping for relaxation, contemplation, appreciation, education, heritage, events, functions and amenity/intrinsic value.
Esplanade/Foreshore and walkways	Areas of open space that are often linear in nature that provide pedestrian and cycle linkages, wildlife corridors and access to water margins. May provide for environmental protection.
Landscape and Conservation Reserves	Parks that offer the experience and/or protection of the natural environment, containing native bush, coastal margins, forestry, farm parks, wetlands, riparian areas and waterbodies. Two serve as water supply catchments.

What we don’t approve

We don’t process applications for:

Resource or building consents
Offsite mitigation that has been proposed as part of a resource consent
Requests for land not owned by the Council, such as private land.

More information

If you require more information please contact the Parks Team: enquiry@ncc.govt.nz.

Bookings

To make bookings for our facilities, parks and reserves, make an application via Our Venues page.

Grazing of livestock in Nelson’s reserves

If you wish to graze livestock on public land within Nelson, you must seek permission and enter into a lease agreement with the Council. Applications are evaluated based on the following criteria:

• The location where the animals will graze.

• The adequacy of fencing to contain the livestock.

• The applicant’s qualifications and experience in handling the animals.

• Potential for the animals to cause a nuisance to the public.

To apply for permission to graze livestock in a park, reserve, or road reserve, complete the online form here.

Please note: There is a fee associated with each lease agreement.