Arrowtown residents resoundingly oppose plans to expand the village by up to 215 homes, judging by the avalanche of opposing public submissions received by the Queenstown Lakes District Council.
Submissions on the proposed Arrowtown South plan change 39 closed on Wednesday.
At least 490 were received - 425 in opposition, 63 in support and two neutral, including the Arrowtown Village Association.
Opposers "to every aspect of plan change 39" said infrastructure could barely cope with existing demand.
They were concerned about the increase in traffic and the impact on amenities, water and air quality.
The "heritage character" of the town should be protected, many submitted.
Centennial Ave resident Roger Shepard said Arrowtown was special and the council should honour plan change 29, which considered providing an urban boundary around the town.
"Don't let greed destroy its uniqueness. England has 60 million people yet [they] still preserve their beautiful villages."
The majority of those opposed lodged one-sheet submissions.
Some came from individual members of the same families.
A handful of opposing submissions were from Dunedin and Invercargill residents who owned holiday homes in Arrowtown.
Supporters described Arrowtown South as a "well thought out" subdivision with natural boundaries, which would create more housing for families in a park-like environment.
Butel Park resident John Potts said the town must have structured and controlled growth to progress.
"To cap the building in Arrowtown would be the start of an inward spiral of depression . . . The people of Arrowtown have no right to shut the gate on Arrowtown."
Arrowtown South spokeswoman Alexa Forbes declined to comment yesterday, until farmer Roger Monk, one of the landowners involved, and planner John Edmonds had read the submissions.
Plan change 39 proposes to rezone about 30ha of rural general-zoned land as "Arrowtown South special zone" for the construction of up to 215 residences, plus 12.2ha of open space, including 4.6km of public trails and footpaths, and a village area.
The proposed area is located between McDonnell Rd and Centennial Ave, and bounded along its southern boundary by the Arrowtown Golf Course.
The total number of submissions received would be known by Monday, council senior policy analyst Karen Page said yesterday.
A summary would go out for further submissions by the end of February.
A hearing was tentatively expected in May.
