Residents of Lake Hawea are gearing up for expansion.
The Queenstown Lakes District Council in the process of reviewing its district plan, and the Otago Daily Times has been told of submissions asking for more land in the township to be made available for commercial purposes, including tourism.
The Lake Hawea Community Association has called for an area around the township's only shop and restaurant to be rezoned for more shops.
Association president Paul Cunningham this week said the land was vacant aside from one house and, apart from an occasional market in the summer, it was little used.
''It would be a goer, I think. Why not?''
The idea had arisen from a well-attended series of community workshops earlier year.
Mr Cunningham was uncertain about what sort of shops might be built in future.
''But the town's growing. There will be a need for various things. It's more to get the zoning right and see what comes to us.''
The owner of the Lake Hawea Camping Ground, Richard Burdon, said he had made a submission to have 7ha of freehold rural general land behind the camp rezoned rural visitor to enable new tourist accommodation, and possibly hot pools, to be established.
Existing rural visitor zones include Cecil Peak, Walter Peak, Cardrona, Blanket Bay, Arthurs Point, Arcadia Station and Windermere.
Mr Burdon said he had talked to the council and the community association about the rezoning and was open to further discussions.
The camping ground itself is on part of a recreational reserve and while there was no submission suggesting that should change, Mr Burdon was looking for changes to the ''designations'' governing the use of the reserve, last reviewed in the 1970s.
Mr Burdon said tourists were seeking an increasingly diverse range of accommodation.
''We're trying to accommodate all the different needs and wants of the tourism industry, which is rapidly changing.''
These included the requirements of Indian and Chinese tourists, wedding parties and those who preferred ''glamping'' to traditional New Zealand-style camping.
''How do you cater for all those people in a given area?''So we're just trying to plan so we can accommodate these sorts of things.''
Mr Burdon believed further development was a ''good fit'' with the camping ground.
''It means we can build a better business around the camping ground, which at the moment is more of a seasonal business than a 12-month-per-year business.''
The camp was busy for about seven months, and would be more sustainable if it grew ''a little bit more'', Mr Burdon said.
