Speaking exclusively to Mountain Scene during his visit to the resort last month, he adds: "So I’d just say to the people of Queenstown, you should be grateful you’ve got a National-led government that’s sorting it out, delivering fast-track legislation.
"But don’t talk out of both sides of your mouth, saying ‘I want to take years and years of discussion and debate’, and thinking about all the environmental impacts, versus actually getting things built and done, whether it’s, you know, intersections with some of your roads you’ve got problems with, your bridges, certainly with respect to school buildings, certainly with respect to housing developments."
The government’s put seven Queenstown projects of so-called regional or national importance on a list that once the Bill’s passed - before year’s end, Luxon says - those behind them can apply for them to be considered by an expert panel. Local projects include housing developments below Coronet Peak and at Gibbston which have attracted the opprobrium of nearby residents.
Asked if the panel will look at natural landscapes, Luxon says "the expert panel will look at that as well ... and rest assured they’ll balance the economic with the social, with the cultural and environmental".
However, he says the Bill’s thrust, as its name suggests, is "to make sure we crash through very tortuous and very expensive resource consenting timelines which have actually been slowing up development in New Zealand".
In addition, he says other measures include self-certifying builders so a house doesn’t require 15 inspections. "I saw an example recently, I think it was in Queenstown, where an inspector had to come out [to] inspect a brick wall that was halfway up a house ...
"The inspector got sick, the appointment couldn’t happen for another two weeks, and as a result construction was halted."
Ripe for regional deal?
The PM confirms the government’s now inviting all councils to submit proposals for a regional deal between central and local government that’ll drive economic growth and deliver much-needed infrastructure - previously it intended inviting just five regions to apply.
But, from what Luxon’s saying, Queenstown’s council - which hopes to partner up with Central Otago District Council and Otago Regional Council - would have a good case.
"I love Queenstown, knew it well from my old life in tourism as well .. and it has some unique characteristics to it - very high property prices, very expensive to get serviced accommodation in place.
"We’ve got major pressure on roading and infrastructure - roads, schools, hospitals, and weunderstand all of that - but that’s where we need the council and the local community to step upto the mark, think strategically, put a really good growth plan together, and then think about long-term infrastructure that supports that growth."
