Mayor Annette Main said the legal advice provided to the council indicated that there was no valid reason to withhold consent. The motion to grant the consents was passed, although councillors Michael Laws, Ray Stevens and Jack Bullock voted against it.
Councillors were unanimous in their decision to appeal, pending the full decision from Justice Young. Mr Laws suggested council seek a legal opinion once the full decision is released later this week.
"This is one High Court judge's decision, and those decisions are routinely overruled," Mr Laws said.
Mr Bullock's motion that Wilson be trespassed from all council parks, reserves and recreational facilities caused considerable debate, with some council concerned the word "all" left the council open to legal challenge.
The legal advice from the council's lawyer, Hayden Wilson, said the council could not trespass Wilson from all council properties, and should be linked to "a reasonable assessment" of places where Wilson could be seen as a threat to public safety.
Councillor Allan Anderson suggested the word "designated" be used in place of "all" but that was rejected by Mr Bullock because each place would have to be specified in the trespass notice.
Eventually, the original wording of the motion was passed, with only Mr Anderson voting against it.
Mr Laws came up with the idea of forming a political lobby group, to discuss with Government the idea of passing retrospective legislation which would allow Wilson to be sent back to prison, and other serial sex offenders to be kept behind bars.
"This is now a political issue - we can get going and take some action as soon as possible," Mr Laws said.
Councillor Rob Vinsen moved that a community safety group be formed, with the intention of drafting a community safety plan for Wilson's release. This group will be made up of councillors and council staff, police, Corrections, probation services, Kaitoke community representatives and others.
Ms Main welcomed the council's decisions and said the council had taken the opportunity to think about what to do next in the best interests of the Wanganui community.
"It is imperative we take a responsible and mature approach on behalf of our community and work alongside them, and relevant agencies, including the police and the Corrections Department," she said.
"Council has adopted a multi-pronged approach to the issues we are now faced with."