Detective Senior Sergeant Colin Blackie has confirmed a CIB gang intelligence unit is operating out of Queenstown.
Queenstown Lakes Mayor Clive Geddes welcomed the move.
He said he was not aware a gang intelligence officer had been based in Queenstown since January, but wished the police "every measure of success''.
People across the Lakes District and Central Otago had always been community focused and resistant to non-organised crime, and there was no reason why it would not stay this way, he said.
Gangs, by their "very nature and existence'', added nothing to communities and they were not welcome in Queenstown, or in any other town in the region, Mr Geddes said.
He had been approached in confidence "on more than a couple of occasions'' by people who were "very concerned and uncomfortable'' about potential gang-related activities taking place in small communities, where properties had been leased.
Gangs were "genuine parasites'' on communities, such as across the Lakes District which "by their own endeavour had made themselves a success'', Mr Geddes said.
Wanaka Community Board chairman and QLDC councillor Lyal Cocks said the resort needed to foster a social environment which would deter gangs and he called for a "more vigilant'' response from the community.
"We can't allow a culture to evolve where gangs become accepted. I'm confident Wanaka people will not allow that to ever happen,'' he said.
However, that should not stop community leaders from being proactive and exploring any legal avenues open to them, such as effecting bylaws to prohibit the wearing of gang patches, Mr Cocks said.
Central Otago Mayor Dr Malcolm Macpherson is overseas and unavailable for comment. Deputy mayor Tony Lepper could not be contacted.
Snr Sgt Blackie said in his 31 years of policing he had never come across a gang member who "contributed positively'' to a community.
