Advocates for the retention of Wanaka's town green belt and showgrounds facilities want the Wanaka Community Board to back a greenfields site for a proposed events centre, swimming pool and sports facility.
However, during an unscheduled public forum debate about the proposed Wanaka events centre yesterday, a Wanaka businessman called for more input from sports-minded groups.
"It seems that the people debating and deciding this issue don't, and won't, be the ones using [an events centre and sport facilities] all that much", Peter Marshall told board members.
Town green belt advocate Lesley Burdon said any new events complex built at the Wanaka Showgrounds would destroy the area's scenic lakeside reserve character.
Mrs Burdon has long advocated for the formalised preservation of Wanaka's unrecognised green belt, which runs from Wanaka Station Park along the lakefront to the Wanaka Showgrounds, camping ground, and up through the old hatchery site at the source of Bullock Creek.
The green belt continues east from a hillside reserve on Faulks Tce to include the golf course, before extending north to green areas connecting with Lismore Park and encircling the main part of the original Wanaka township.
Although not many people knew of its existence, the green belt should be protected from inappropriate development, such as major sporting ground facilities, she saidFormer board member Neville Harris said he was "gobsmacked" at the notion the showgrounds and township camping ground would become the heart of a new events centre.
Any council decision to site "massive buildings" at the showgrounds, such as those at the Queenstown Events Centre and a pool complex similar in size to Frankton's Alpine Aqualand, would be appealed to the Environment Court, he said.
Residents with properties near the showgrounds would be against any large-scale construction because it would impact on their lakeside outlooks.
A greenfields site was the more appropriate location, he said.
Mr Marshall said Wanaka had to decide whether it wanted "sports-minded kids" to be biking five or six k[ilometre]s to an out-of-town greenfields site, having parents driving to drop their children off, or having the community centre centrally located.
Sports fields and facilities were a common feature in green belts at other New Zealand cities, such as Wellington.
The town's central camping ground was unlikely to be there in 20 years' time and did not deserve special protection, while holiday parks outside of Wanaka were under-used.
The trio were joined by board member Jude Battson as they called for the Wanaka Community Board to be at the forefront of a decision on the matter, which is the responsibility of the Queenstown Lakes District Council.
