The Environment Court intends to grant the Spruce Grove Trust resource consent for only four of six proposed residential-rural lots near the Millbrook Resort at Malaghans Rd near Arrowtown - in part to save sightlines to Coronet Peak.
Previously, Spruce Grove Trust had been declined resource consent to subdivide the 9.2ha plot, known as Mill Farm Heights, which was to include six properties located on three sides of the Millbrook Resort between the western side of the resort and Malaghans Rd, beside Meadow Park.
The trust, owned by the Spary family, of Arrowtown, applied for the consent to subdivide the land into 10 lots with a building platform on six of the lots as low-density residential development.
The application was declined by the Queenstown Lakes District Council and was opposed by a group of affected parties, mainly neighbouring residents at the Millbrook Resort, who had stated the development would adversely affect views.
In their preliminary decision dated January 21, Judge Jane Borthwick and commissioners Charles Manning and Alex Sutherland, all of Christchurch, said they had heard "extensive and often conflicting evidence as to where the development would be visible from the resort, and if visible whether or not it would be 'highly visible'.
"The conflict over this relatively straightforward matter appears to have arisen through the conflation of two assessments; namely the degree of visibility of the proposal and its effect on views," Judge Borthwick said.
However, the commission agreed that the inclusion of houses on lots 5 and 6 "would sweep up on to the ridgeline of the hill and intrude into the views" of the ONL (outstanding natural landscape), in this case, Coronet Peak.
"From within Millbrook, dwellings on lots 5 and 6 would dominate and compromise views of the Coronet Peak range ... excluding these lots would ensure that the Coronet Peak range remains a distinct landscape, and the open character of the ONL will not be compromised," Judge Borthwick said.
Parties are now invited to consult and agree on revisions to the landscaping plan.
Judge Borthwick said that if agreement was not possible, the court reserved the right to deal with the matter.
