Queenstown Lakes councillor Leigh Overton said that he was not against the design plan from Sarah Scott Architects Ltd, likening it to a large kite.
"I just don't know whether is is a kite that will fly in the court of public opinion," he said.
Board member Jude Battson's original summation of the concept design as "absolutely dreadful" was modified when she was told the public would have a say on the final design.
"I just doubt whether it fits with the historic traditions of Wanaka Station Park," she said.
Wanaka architect Sarah Scott said she stood by the contemporary design for the structure, which she described as a "summer-house".
The design incorporates a "hyperbolic-paraboloid" roof, which gives the structure its distinctive shape, she said.
Ms Scott's self-described "incredibly clever" concept design got the backing of board members Dick Kane and chairman Lyal Cocks, with the pair complimenting the "different" and striking" architecture of the proposal.
Wanaka Station Park was gifted to the council in 1975 by descendants of farming pioneers the Sargood family, who established the original homestead for the area's first major farming station at the site.
Board members voted for an alternative design to be drawn up for consideration when the design and rotunda proposal is put out for community feedback.
