Tracey Roxburgh

Wakatipu audiences will be kicking off their Sunday shoes this week as more than 65 Wakatipu High School pupils take to the stage, performing Footloose.

Controversy is brewing in the heartland, with some clubs angry the Central Otago final will be played in Alexandra regardless of which teams qualify.

The decision to install scanners at Dunstan and Lakes District hospitals was a "pragmatic and positive solution for the future delivery of sustainable services in the wider region", Central Otago Health Services Ltd deputy chairwoman Brenda Wills said yesterday.

Entries opened for the 2013 GodZone event on Friday, held for the first time in April, which was expected to attract high-profile adventure racing teams.

Miss Otago will find out tomorrow if months of preparation have paid off, as she vies for the title of Miss Universe New Zealand in Wellington.

Queenstown's proposed independent school - likely to be a multimillion-dollar project - could be open in two years.

Some of the most inspirational women in New Zealand business imparted their knowledge and advice yesterday to a sold-out conference at Hilton Queenstown.

The Tourism Industry Association is calling for the Queenstown Lakes District Council to reconsider its plans to impose a targeted visitor rate, which would "unfairly penalise the commercial accommodation sector" with some large hotels likely to pay $25,000 a year more in rates.

A project that began about 18 months ago will come to fruition on Monday, when every school across the Central Otago and Lakes districts receives its Gold 150 education packs, compiled by the Lakes District Museum and funded by the Central Lakes Trust.

Two Queenstown entrepreneurs are taking the film industry by storm, having gained more than $US280,000 ($NZ339,000) in global funding less than a week after launching their new product, the Genie.