The upgrades were initially set for 2028, but the Queenstown Lakes District Council have accelerated delivery of the new infrastructure to coincide with the introduction of a protozoa barrier (UV disinfection) for the township this year.
Luggate’s drinking water is treated with chlorine, which provides an effective barrier against bacterial contamination.
It is regularly tested at the source, post-treatment as well as through its distribution zone.
The council’s investment at Luggate has been flagged for some months and is part of a programme both to future-proof capacity and install protozoa barriers — in this case a new UV filtration plant — across all council supplies.
The Luggate scheme does not have these barriers, which were necessary to comply with the treatment requirements under national drinking water guidelines.
"The new treatment plant will ensure drinking water in Luggate remains safe and achieves compliance, and new bores will help to provide enough water to meet the needs of this growing community," council general manager property and infrastructure Tony Avery said.
"The project also includes development of a new long-term reservoir site up by Wānaka Airport, which will eventually include significantly increased storage capacity as part of future investment in the area."
The council provides a reticulated water supply to more than 17,000 properties in the district, through its 12 water treatment plants.
It also manages 680km of pipes that require 34 pump stations to move the water through the network.
The protozoa barrier (UV disinfection) was expected to be operating in time for Christmas this year, with all remaining work completed by February 2026.
Some disruptions were to be expected around Luggate while work was undertaken.
This would include temporary traffic management, construction machinery movements and additional noise and vibrations in the area.
The northbound lane on Church St will be closed 24 hours a day for about four weeks starting from September 1.
Crews will excavate and trench for the installation of new water supply pipes in the area.
Resident access for properties on Church St near State Highway6 will be maintained and a detour for all other northbound traffic will be in place using Shortcut Rd.
— Allied Media
