Quail Rise residents lined up to criticise a real estate agent's application to subdivide her property at a hearing in Queenstown this week.
Portree Dr owner Helen Broomfield already has consent for a residential flat behind the original home on the property, and has now applied for consent to subdivide it off.
That has raised the ire of nearby residents, because it breaches a private covenant preventing homeowners in Quail Rise from subdividing their sections.
Speaking at the consent hearing before commissioner Denis Nugent on Tuesday, resident Lindsay Sowerby said the 42 submissions opposing the application showed the "resentment and concern'' in the community.
The application was the final stage in a "well-planned, cynically-staged process to achieve the greatest financial return from what should remain as a single property''.
Another resident, Greg Thompson, said the council had been ``conned'' when it approved the consent for the residential flat, because it was clear the applicant always intended to subdivide the property.
Although the Queenstown Lakes District Council was not a party to covenants on titles in the subdivision, it could not ignore the issue, Mr Thompson said.
If it did, Quail Rise residents "might as well throw away our covenants as not being worth the paper they're written on''.
Rob Young said granting the consent would "open the way for further subdivision and infill housing'' in the area.
Ms Broomfield's proposal requires a non-complying consent because it would create an additional lot to the 35 originally specified for Quail Rise's first stage.
It also breaches rules for site coverage and internal boundary setbacks.
Her legal counsel, Jayne Macdonald, said the application was the subdivision of a separate residential unit rather than a flat.
The new dwelling, which consisted of a flat and an adjoining two-bedroom sleepout, was of "generous'' size at 160sq m.
Lawyer Emma Dixon said the newer dwelling was "almost completely'' screened from the street by the original home and approval of the consent was unlikely to set a precedent.
Although many sections in Quail Rise were large enough for two dwellings, the original homes were often built in the centre of their sections, making it impossible to build and subdivide off a second dwelling.
Approval of the consent would provide a home for "someone within the region that is struggling to find suitable accommodation''.
Ms Macdonald will file a written response to issues raised by the council and submitters before Mr Nugent makes his decision.
