Christmas-New Year opening hours and services

Published on 08 December 2023

A smiling young woman wearing a headset logs a request for service on the computer in front of her while she takes a call from a resident.

While our offices are closed from 12pm Friday 22 December until Monday 8 January, lots of our awesome team will be working right through to keep the city ticking.

We've put together this handy list so you can check when you need to put your rubbish and recycling out over the holidays and find out about opening hours at libraries and other Council facilities. And don't forget, our contact centre never sleeps! Day or night, if you have a question:

We're here to help.

Here's a shoutout to everyone who works through the holidays to keep our city running. Thank you!

Kerbside rubbish and recycling collections

Christmas Day falls on a Monday this year, so there will be a couple of changes to kerbside collections.  

If your usual collection day is Monday, please don’t put your rubbish and recycling out on Christmas day. Instead, put it out on Saturday 30 December. 

Can't wait that long or going away? You can drop off your Council rubbish bag at the EnviroNZ transfer station in Matthews Ave for no extra charge. 

Please remember to have your bags, bins and crates on the kerbside on your allocated day by 7.30am.

Not sure whether to put out your wheelie bin or your glass crate? Use our simple online tool to find out.

Check your rubbish and recycling day

Christmas tree collection is the week beginning Monday 8 January

For this one week in January, you can leave your real Christmas tree on the kerb and we'll collect it. The trees will be turned into chippings for parks around Palmy.  

You can also drop them off for free at our Awapuni Resource Recovery Park right through January. 

Please make sure all the decorations are removed before recycling the tree.  

Got broken Christmas lights? We can recycle these too! Drop them off at our Ferguson Street Recycling Centre, free of charge.  

Recycling facilities (mostly) open

All our recycling facilities are closed on Christmas Day. Please note reduced hours for the public holidays on Boxing Day, New Year's Day, and 2 January. Other than these 4 days, they'll open as usual.

For all opening hours at individual facilities, including Ashhurst Transfer Station, see our facilities page.

Rubbish and recycling facilities

Palmerston North City Library

Our incredible library team are taking a break in-between the Christmas and New Year public holidays this year, so make sure you stock up on your loans before they shut down!

We won't leave you stranded though. You can always access great books and movies from Libby, BorrowBox, Kanopy and Beamafilm, even if the library is closed.

Youth Space's last day open for the year is Thursday 21 December.

Ashhurst, Awapuni, Central and Roslyn Libraries and Te Pātikitiki are all open until midday on Friday 22 December before closing for the holiday.

All our libraries reopen on Wednesday 3 January. For individual opening hours, please see the City Library website.

Palmerston North City Library

Council offices and Customer Service Centre

The Civic Administration Building and Council Service Centre on Te Marae o Hine The Square will be closed from 12pm on Friday 22 December. They will reopen on Monday 8 January.

Animal management

For any dog or animal queries or complaints over the summer break, please phone us: 06 356 8199 

This includes if your dog goes walkabout. Call us to see if we've picked it up. If your dog is microchipped and registered and your contact details are up to date, we'll be able to reunite you quickly. If we can't, your dog may be taken to the pound.

If your dog is in the pound, you are welcome to collect them on the Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of each week. Please phone the number above to arrange a time with one of our animal control officers.  

Dog adoptions are on hold over the break and will start back up again from Monday 8 January, should we have any dogs suitable for rehoming.

Building services

The last day for building inspections is Thursday 21 December. Bookings reopen again on Monday 8 January. However, we'll have some limited spots available over the interim for any urgent requests. To book, phone: 06 352 8777

You can still apply for a building consent over Christmas-New Year. However, please note that for applications made from Wednesday 20 December onwards, the clock won’t start until Wednesday 10 January. Our team will be reviewing applications in the interim.

 

We stop processing building work information requests and LIMs on Wednesday 21 December but you can still apply.

We'll resume building work information requests on Wednesday 3 January, and LIMs on Monday 8 January. 

Parking  

Our parking wardens won’t be available on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and Sundays. Apart from that, they’ll be about and about on our streets to help you with all your parking needs.  

If you ever need their assistance, please phone us: 06 356 8199

Central Energy Trust Wildbase Recovery

Central Energy Trust Wildbase Recovery shuts for a short Christmas break at 4pm on Thursday 21 December.

It will then be open from 10am until 4pm the following days:

  • Wednesday 27 December to Saturday 30 December
  • Wednesday 3 January to Saturday 6 January
  • Tuesday to Saturday for the rest of the school holidays.

Caccia Birch House

The beautiful grounds at Caccia Birch remain open throughout the holidays for walkers, dogs on leash and everyone else to enjoy. It's a great spot for a picnic! Though please note there will be no access to public toilets while the historic house itself is closed.

Caccia Birch House will be closed from Friday 22 December and reopens on Monday 8 January.  

iSite

The iSite’s last day open before Christmas is Thursday 21 December. 

It will then be open from 9am to 5pm the following days: 

  • Wednesday 27 December to Friday 29 December 
  • Wednesday 3 January to Saturday 6 January 

The iSite will reopen as usual on Monday 8 January.  

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