Glenpanel Development Ltd’s Flint’s Park Ladies Mile development was granted approval for subdivision and land use consent in an interim decision from the government’s fast-track panel issued late last week.
If successful, it would mark the end of a long-running battle for Glenpanel, whose quest for approval under the Covid-era fast-track rules included multiple threats of legal action.
Glenpanel Development director Mark Tylden said he was relieved to have at least got interim approval for his development, but felt the whole ‘‘fast-track’’ process was a farce.
‘‘Queenstown continues to be the most unaffordable place in the country to rent or buy a house. Consent should have been granted in December 2022.’’
The company proposes to subdivide land near the Frankton-Ladies Mile Highway near Queenstown for a housing development, commercial facilities and infrastructure.
It would bring an estimated 400 homes to the Queenstown Lakes district, once complete.
In the interim decision, the panel noted the cultural importance of ‘‘Te Pūtahi Ladies Mile, Te Wai Whakatata and connected lands and waters’’.
‘‘These include but are not limited to Lake Wakatipu and Mata-au as a place to gather food and other resources as identified in the oral histories of the area by mana whenua,’’ it said.
‘‘Importantly, the proposed development does not impact directly on either of the [significant] areas although there is the potential for indirect effects to arise from stormwater and sediment runoff.’’
The panel was also pleased to see the developers would use native planting to restore indigenous ground cover.
It also received reassurance from the Queenstown Lakes District Council that its infrastructure could sustain such a project.
‘‘Council’s property and infrastructure department team have confirmed that subject [to] the implementation and compliance with relevant upgrades conditioned by this consent, sufficient capacity will exist,’’ the decision said.
The Otago Regional Council was also satisfied the development was within Resource Management Act requirements, and supported the proposed development’s ‘‘consolidated and mixed-use urban form, which would encourage the uptake of public and active transport modes’’.
However, Queenstown resident Paul Rogers was less supportive of the proposal, which he submitted did not fit the character of the area.
‘‘I have not previously witnessed such a cavalier and fragmented approach to development approvals ... their culminative effects are increasingly severe.’’
The proposal was ‘‘not supported by adequate infrastructure ... I strongly urge the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) give careful consideration to the long-term social, environmental and infrastructure impacts on the local community,’’ Mr Rogers said.
He declined to comment further when contacted yesterday.
Ladies Mile Pet Lodge also submitted against the proposal, calling it an ‘‘ad hoc’’ development. It was unable to be reached for comment yesterday.
Ngāi Tahu also did not return requests for comment yesterday, but has previously submitted it wanted mana whenua involvement in the consenting process and afterwards.
The original application for fast-track approval was made under the Covid-19 Recovery (Fast-track Consenting) Act 2020 in August 2020.
That application was declined by the original panel in November 2022.
Glenpanel unsuccessfully appealed to the High Court and then successfully to the Court of Appeal.
The Court of Appeal referred the matter back to the original panel for re-consideration in May last year.
Meanwhile, Glenpanel submitted a renewed application for fast-track approval in December 2023, but just for stage one of the original application. This was partly approved by a different (second) panel in August 2024.
The panel then allowed Glenpanel to resubmit its initial project for fast-track assessment last year.
