The Queenstown Lakes District Council is pressing ahead with a land exchange in Lakeview.
A swap of council-owned freehold land for an equal area of reserve land - described by council staff as essential for realising the Lakeview site's development potential as part of plan change 50 - was approved at the Queenstown Lakes District Council's full meeting yesterday.
The reserve land, now occupied by the Queenstown Lakeview Holiday Park and about 50 privately occupied or rented cabins, will be reclassified as recreation reserve.
The council will then ask Minister of Conservation Maggie Barry to exchange the reserve land for the freehold land.
Staff proposed the swap in March, arguing it allowed the best location of future buildings, roads and open space to maximise the efficient use of the site and manage environmental effects.
Potential uses of the reserve land include a market square, a Ngai Tahu Tourism hot pools development and securing sections of the Ben Lomond Reserve bike track now on council freehold land.
A one-month public consultation period on the proposal closed in May and only two submissions were received - one opposed and the other neutral.
Under plan change 50, 15ha of the resort could be rezoned, ushering in new height limits for buildings and enabling a convention centre to be built. Councillors approved the exchange; Cr Simon Stamers-Smith abstained.
