Five Mile development 'not threat'

Queenstown Gateway Ltd's $125 million plan for the former Five Mile site at Frankton will not pose a threat to its neighbouring Remarkables Park complex, according to director Alistair Porter.

Details of the huge retail and entertainment complex, planned by Auckland developer Tony Gapes, were released earlier this week.

Contacted for comment yesterday, Mr Porter said he had never done business with Mr Gapes, but sat next to him, quite by chance, on a return trip from Melbourne about 18 months ago. The two developers discussed their mutual business.

"I met him once, had a long conversation with him about property development - before he bought Five Mile - and that's all I know. He comes across as a very pleasant fellow," Mr Porter said.

He said Five Mile would not pose a threat to Remarkables Park but would be a "complementary satellite" to the much bigger Frankton complex.

The Otago Daily Times has repeatedly tried to contact the media-shy Mr Gapes, a multi-millionaire property entrepreneur, but he is on holiday - possibly in Australia or Fiji.

Mr Gapes graduated from Auckland University in 1990 with a bachelor of property degree and owns a house in exclusive Auckland suburb Orakei - home to some of New Zealand's most expensive real estate.

He is the director of Redwood Group Ltd, has had dealings with the Wellington Tenths trust, built the $150 million Scene apartments in Auckland and his developments often feature Progressive Enterprises Group brands - in Queenstown's case a 4200sq m Countdown supermarket.

In 2008, he made headlines in Auckland with his $1 billion plan to build 1000 apartments and two 13-storeyed towers for the Orakei headland.

Mr Gapes gives few media interviews. In February 2008, he told journalist Deborah Hill Cone in The New Zealand Herald "you journalists only ever write bad things about us and you don't like property developers".

Pressed further, he said there was "no upside" in talking to the media.

His company, Queenstown Gateway Ltd, bought the former Five Mile site from receivers for $12 million and the concept for the 38,000sq m Grant Rd complex features six cinemas, nearly 1000 car parks, national and multinational "big box" retailers, office space, luxury visitor apartments and possibly a bowling alley.