The Queenstown Lakes District Council approved a bylaw that would make freedom camping restricted in urban areas, but will allow the activity at 15 sites in the district which include 158 parking spaces.
The bylaw also allows freedom camping on some of the district’s rural roads.
Save Clean New Zealand, a group founded by residents on Beacon Point Drive, started a petition which gathered 110 signatures over one week.
"There needs to be something in place to police freedom camping," group member Andrea Beryl said.
"I still strongly disagree that they are allowing slots in residential areas."
She opposed the bylaw’s restricted freedom camping areas near Beacon Point Drive and Allenby carpark, near Mt Iron, as two locations that would impact the surrounding homes.
"I ask the councillors, would you want people camping outside your house every night?"
The group had not yet presented the petition to council, but Ms Beryl said she had been sending out emails every day for a week, urging the council to pause their decision.
The group also confirmed they are seeking legal advice to determine their next steps.
The draft bylaw received 383 submissions, the majority of which were in opposition including 236 saying it was too permissive.
Councillor Gavin Bartlett, who was also chairman of the bylaw hearing, said that although he initially had concerns about the policy he now feels it is necessary.
"Without a bylaw in place our district is open to unrestricted freedom camping on all local authority land without any limitations," he said.
"This would seem to be the opposite result of what many people who might be opposed to the bylaw are seeking."
The hearing panel had gone through over 1000 pages of submissions and listened to 58 people online and in person.
Some of the submitters expressed their concerns about the apparent permissiveness of the bylaw and allowing most rural roads to be considered restricted camp sites.
Ms Beryl said the group understood that the council was trying to put something in place that can control freedom camping, however they felt there were still gaps in the bylaw that had not been properly addressed.
"There’s still inconsistencies," she said. ". . . With the rural roads, some of the roads there is no where to park on them yet they’re on the maps as somewhere that you can freedom camp."
Cr Bartlett along with several other councillors around the table agreed that the issue was with the freedom camping act and not the bylaw.
Currently, the Freedom Camping Act 2011 permits freedom camping by default on most Council land in New Zealand, while the Reserves Act 1977 generally prohibits camping on reserves.
QLDC cannot prohibit freedom camping across all of its land but can create bylaws with rules to manage the impacts of freedom camping.
The only council member who voted against the bylaw was deputy mayor Quentin Smith who said he could not support the policy.
"I just can’t quite bring myself to approve something that enables and advertises freedom camping in the urban area," he said.
Ms Beryl said the Save Clean NZ group will be meeting soon to decide what the next course of action is and how to proceed with the growing number of petition signatures.
The bylaw comes into effect on December 1.
