Builders are 'running out of work'

The commercial and residential construction sector is "running out of work in Queenstown", the resort's Chamber of Commerce chairman, Alastair Porter, has warned the Queenstown Lakes District Council, and he has been backed up by two major construction companies.

Mr Porter said the council could act as a catalyst for development now, which would stop skilled tradesmen leaving the resort for work elsewhere.

Mr Porter spoke during the public forum of the council's utilities committee meeting this week.

He urged councillors to bolster the fortunes of the building sector by designating the missing link in the eastern access road.

Designation would spur the confidence of developers interested in the second stage of Remarkables Park Town Centre, he said.

The missing link is between the Queenstown Airport runway end safety area and the eastern access road section already covered by the council's notice of requirement.

The road in its entirety would link Remarkables Park Town Centre with State Highway 6, near Glenda Dr.

Mr Porter, who is managing director of Remarkables Park Ltd and Shotover Park Ltd, said the non-residential construction sector was the second-largest in Queenstown.

Competitive rates could be secured for building projects during the downturn which would keep labourers in the district and create development contributions and rates for the council, he said.

When asked to comment on the drying up of commercial construction work and the risk of losing trades people, Amalgamated Builders Ltd said it shared Mr Porter's concerns.

Amalgamated Builders was working on two commercial projects in Queenstown and three projects in Wanaka, all of which were due for completion by the end of this year.

Director and Central Otago manager Karsten Pedersen said Amalgamated Builders employs about 50 tradesmen in the Southern Lakes area, which was slightly up on staff levels 12 months ago.

However, "the current level of new commercial construction projects commencing in the short term is the lowest we have seen for a number of years".

Naylor Love said its construction workload was reduced compared with the 10-year boom the resort had experienced.

Regional manager Justin Calder said the boom began to peter out about mid-2009.

The company now employed 45 full-time carpenters, labourers and apprentices, about half the number of two or three years ago.

"The South Island's pretty hard hit, but it's not all doom and gloom.

It's relatively quiet compared to how it was.

It's common knowledge the banks are not loaning for projects."

Naylor Love was involved in major non-residential construction projects, including the $17.3 million Remarkables Primary School.

Up to 20 staff had worked on the school at its peak, but the project was essentially finished in July.

About 25 Naylor Love staff were fitting out restaurants and bars within the Kawarau Falls complex, but work would conclude in October or November, he said.