In his report for Thursday's full meeting of the Queenstown Lakes District Council, senior project manager Simon Leary said future housing development justified spending an estimated $5.3million on new water and wastewater pipelines while the bridge was still under construction.
The council's initial modelling had indicated the existing pipelines were ``adequate to meet present and medium-term demand''.
But the future capacity needs of Jacks Point, Hanley Downs and Kelvin Heights made it necessary to bring the project forward, and there were potential cost savings from doing it while the bridge was under construction.
Part of the cost would be covered by developer agreements, and negotiations were already under way with the developers of the 1750-section Hanley's Farm subdivision.
The work would be carried out by bridge contractor McConnell Dowell and paid for through a variation to the company's contract with the NZ Transport Agency.
An independent cost review of the variation would be commissioned to ensure the council was ``receiving value for money'', Mr Leary said.
The design of the new bridge, which is expected to open for two-way traffic at the end of the year, already allows for the installation of the pipes.
Pipelines under the road on the bridge's northern approach would be replaced as part of the project.
