Consultants Baxter Design Group designed the extension for Queenstown Lakes District Council to complement the Camp Street upgrade, currently under way.
Company principal Paddy Baxter, who designed the terraced side lawns of the Village Green built in the early 1990s, said the additional planting and seating was an extension of the existing character of the Village Green.
The Village Green started as a flat gravel car park with a pipe under it.
The flat grassed areas either side of the open stream were based on a series of rocky river terraces, Mr Baxter said.
The extension, which takes in three car parks on Ballarat St, will include new seats and additional cherry trees to complement those already on Village Green.
Specially constructed steel panels will trace the history and development of Queenstown's central business area.
History on display will include the story of the old White Star Hotel, which burnt down at New Year in 1970.
The panels will be made of etched steel, with flax motifs cut out at the bottom and specially designed lighting, and set among stone-wall extensions of the existing stone terraces and cherry trees, Mr Baxter said.
"It's all about giving them [the panels] a sense of place."
A large slab of Timaru bluestone, to be situated beside new seating near the KFC outlet, is designed to provide a robust table.
It will be specially lit from underneath to make it appear as if it is floating.
While the area had some detailing unique to the Village Green, the design was aimed at keeping the space simple and complementing the Camp St upgrade as part of the overall town centre landscape development, Mr Baxter said.
The Village Green provided a valuable contrast to the waterfront area, the other main public space in town, he said.
Work on the Village Green extension will start in about two weeks.
