Approval was given this week for RCL Homestead Bay Ltd to develop thousands of houses in the Homestead Bay area, subject to conditions.
The application was given approval under the Fast-track Approvals Act. The development faced opposition from various parties but the panel made up of Queenstown lawyer Jayne MacDonald (chairwoman), environmental scientist Dr Jane Kitson, engineer Alan Pattle and resource consent hearing commissioner Rosaline Day-Cleavin approved the development.
RCL Homestead Bay Ltd is set to host an open day today. It was the company responsible for the neighbouring Hanley’s Farm development.
NZTA said as part of the fast-track process for the development it provided input to the expert panel and had been in regular contact with RCL regarding developer agreements and intersection designs.
NZTA said it expected RCL would fund the new SH6 intersection to Homestead Bay and upgrades to the existing intersections at Jack Hanley Dr and Māori Jack Rd once traffic volumes reach pre-agreed trigger levels.
When asked if that meant an agreement was signed, a NZTA spokesman said that was their understanding of the developer position though not necessarily formalised in agreements.
RCL could not be contacted.
The consent had a condition which required the roundabout to be completed prior to stage one of the development being completed.
NZTA said it was preparing a strategic network plan for Queenstown, which will identify a 30-year programme of interventions to address capacity issues caused by growth, including for the SH6 southern corridor south of the Kawarau River.
This plan was scheduled to be completed by the middle of this year.
Funding for any future improvement projects would be subject to prioritisation in the next and subsequent national land transport programmes, NZTA said.
Meanwhile, Queenstown Lakes District Mayor John Glover said time-of-use charging on roads might be something to look at as the town got even more housing. Fast-track applications, if all approved, would add another 7000 houses to the resort, leading to more people and more cars.
He said time-of-use charging might be able to spread some demand and lead to better use of the roads.
"We’ll wait and see how that sort of fits into our tools locally. I think time-of-use charging is very much something that will be considered."
Legislation passed last November allowed time-of-use charging to be carried out in New Zealand.
Mr Glover said it might be the next logical step to change behaviour.
"Yeah, I mean, it’s about how you change the time of use of people. Obviously, if you’re going to do the school run, you’re going to do the school run at that time.
"There’ll be other people that, if they’ve got choices, might be able to make their journeys at different times.
"I go to my office down the Franklin Rd at quarter to seven in the morning, and it takes me eight minutes.
"If I’m trying to do that an hour later, it would be a different story."
"But, yeah, it’s probably the next logical step to change behaviour. I think it will be one of the funding tools that councils will use."
