Golf Course Rd residents Peter and Lisa Jackson have appealed a Queenstown Lakes District Council resource consent decision that approved a change in the development of the large-scale retirement village.
Aspiring Lifestyle Retirement Village Ltd and Wanaka landowners Peter and Dee Gordon received approval from the QLDC last month to amend earlier resource consents for the village, which were issued in 2008.
The 46.88ha village site on the corner of Golf Course and Cardrona Valley Rds encompasses two planning zones - a rural residential zone, which requires large section sites, and a rural general zone, which allows for more dwellings.
The developer wants to increase the density of dwellings in the second stage of villa construction by an extra 12 residential units, by relocating the buildings between zones.
The QLDC granted permission to the developers to proceed, despite the plans being in breach of the density zone standard as defined by the council's district plan regulations for rural residential land.
The Jacksons filed an appeal to the Environment Court last week that set out 14 grounds calling for the QLDC's consent to be declined "in its entirety".
Mr Jackson said the principle of their opposition to the retirement village plans was the density of buildings on the site.
There were other neighbours in Golf Course Rd who were against the development's change in plans and increased site density, he claimed.
Other neighbours had been excluded "by the council" from appealing the amended village plans, Mr Jackson said.
Stage one of the retirement village - consisting of 13 dwellings off Golf Course Rd - is nearly complete.
Eight stages are planned and, once completed, the complex will comprise 110 residential units, 46 independent apartments, communal and recreational facilities such as a village green, tennis courts, bowling greens, a library, and a hospital and privately operated medical centre.
The proposed change in density was designed to create a more even spread of dwellings across the whole site and provide a greater sense of community for residents, while also making the villas more attractive to buyers, Aspiring Lifestyle Retirement Village director Aaron Armstrong said at a hearing in December.
Yesterday, a spokesman for the developers, Richard Anderson, said they were not prepared to comment on the appeal, as negotiations were expected to begin with the Jacksons "over the next few weeks".
