Wanaka businesses outside the town's CBD will get ultra-fast broadband in the second half of 2019.
The timeframe was confirmed by Chorus yesterday after last week's announcement Wanaka would be one of 151 towns involved in the next phase of the UFB roll-out.
Ignite Wanaka Chamber of Commerce chairman Alistair King welcomed the news, saying he hoped the town was a high priority.
"Wanaka has a large community of people who work from home and we've suffered with slow internet speeds for some time. We're eager to get confirmation of a commencement date for actual works to begin in the district.
"The sooner the works begin, the quicker the community can get access to high-speed services and ultimately that is what we all want.''
Queenstown Lakes deputy mayor Calum McLeod said the ultrafast broadband could not come soon enough.
There were "corporates who are lining up to come to Wanaka but 2019 will give them two years to plan for the move''.
A Chorus spokesman said Chorus was in the process of confirming start dates for work and expected to have those dates within the next few months.
In April 2015 Chorus extended fibre into the Wanaka CBD and in mid 2016, it provided gigabit service to The Cell, a shared office space in Wanaka for start-up entrepreneurs, innovators and professionals, giving the business community access to UFB for the first time.
Jason Watkins from Wanaka's Centre of Unique Business Evolution (The Cube), which works with businesses working out of The Cell, said UFB was fundamental to many business activities and without it most companies The Cube was involved with would probably be unable to operate.
Central Otago Mayor Tim Cadogan has criticised the timeline in his region and was reported last week as saying the dates announced for the roll-out in Alexandra (2020), Clyde (2023) and Roxburgh (2024) were "unacceptable'' and he was "not happy about'' Ranfurly missing out altogether.
"However, I must also recognise and be pleased with Cromwell being one of the first places to have the roll-out completed in New Zealand,'' he said.
- By Kerre Waterworth
