However, Mr Brownless said he supported it a bit reluctantly. "I'm a bit worried...it gives me cause for concern.''
He said it was important that people got out and had their say.
"How can the council facilitate the development of a supermarket, and what will the council be asked next to facilitate for private enterprise.''
The only councillor to oppose going out for public consultation was Catherine Stewart.
"It is not the council's business to be in business...it is up to private enterprise to achieve things.''
Ms Stewart said reserves should not be utilised for this type of thing.
Deputy mayor Kelvin Clout said there was a pressing need for a supermarket at Welcome Bay and it was "contingent on the council to help facilitate the process''.
A report to the community and culture committee by strategic adviser Ben Burnand said two independent assessments had indicated that the suburb could support a small to medium-sized supermarket.
Projected growth of Welcome Bay meant traffic congestion would benefit from a centrally located supermarket.
"This would require further analysis which could be carried out during the proposed community engagement."
Another benefit would be to provide employment opportunities for the community, he said.
Three council-owned reserves are being investigated for the supermarket: Waipuna Park on Kaitemako Rd, Waitaha Reserve next to the shopping centre and Owens Park next to Welcome Bay Primary School. Welcome Bay's population was 15,000, or 18,000 when rural areas were included.
The council received a private proposal in 2011 which included a potential supermarket but it did not progress because of issues acquiring private land.
In 2015, council staff contacted supermarket chains to gauge whether a supermarket was viable in Welcome Bay. The providers confirmed that they had spent years evaluating site options in Welcome Bay and exhausted all opportunities for a development on private land.
It led to the council embarking on a project to assess the suitability of council-owned sites.
"A key objective is to ensure there is no loss of service in terms of any existing community or sports facility,'' Mr Burnand said.
"With no suitable private land currently available, it is highly unlikely that a supermarket development will occur in Welcome Bay unless council looked to facilitate such a development through the use of council-owned land.''
The outcome of consultation would be reported back to the committee later this year to help the council decide whether to progress further with sites for a supermarket development.
Redeveloping Welcome Bay's existing shopping centre to include a supermarket was described as being very difficult for a developer because the shops had 12-year titles. And at 4000sq m it was half the minimum size needed for a supermarket.
Welcome Bay Community Centre manager Anna Larsen understood there was a private property that a supermarket could lease but there had been little dialogue with the owners of the land.
Former councillor Mary Dillon said after the meeting that she would like to see tangible evidence that supermarket companies had done their homework in trying to secure privately owned land.
The Lighthouse Church next to the shopping centre owned a big undeveloped piece of land that had been rezoned commercial.
