Lake Hāwea Holdings’ owner Matt Laming attended last week’s Wanaka Community Board (WCB) meeting to speak to his application to ‘acquire’ over 300m2 of council-owned land near the Hāwea Store & Kitchen. 

Earlier this year it was revealed the company had applied to redevelop the Lake Hāwea commercial area for “a comprehensive complex of commercial, retail, office and visitor accommodation use”.

At last Thursday’s (August 12) meeting, WCB members considered Matt’s application to acquire four pieces of council road reserve: three are long, narrow strips of grass adjacent to Capell Avenue, and the fourth is a 150m2+ section next to Bodkin Street.

See also: Big changes proposed for Lake Hāwea commercial zone

The council may sell the land under a process called ‘stop and dispose’, by which road reserve is purchased at an agreed price and removed from council’s ownership permanently.

“Our view is simply that acquiring that land puts it to a better use than being left as a fairly large road reserve indefinitely,” Matt told board members. “And obviously it does allow us to expand our proposed commercial footprint which, given the likely growth in Hāwea, is probably … under-catered for.”

An artist’s impression of the proposed development. IMAGE: Supplied

Lake Hāwea Holdings owns the land at 35-27 Capell Avenue, 89 Parry Crescent and 3 Bodkin Street, all adjacent to the Hāwea Store & Kitchen, but IWC Holdings, of which Hamish and Erica Mackay are directors, owns the store and its site. 

Matt said Lake Hāwea Holdings did not have a commercial partnership with IWC Holdings but had “worked with them constantly over the last three years in terms of the proposed development”.

Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) councillor Quentin Smith said he was “reasonably comfortable and neutral” with disposing of the three smaller sections providing there was a good outcome, but he opposed council losing ownership of the fourth, and largest, section.

“Road reserves are quite a valuable asset for our community and there’s a whole range of uses for them,” Quentin said, including providing space for services (water, power, telecommunications); shared paths; bus stops; parking and so on.

The Bodkin Street site. PHOTO: Wanaka App

Quentin said he would prefer to offer a ‘license to occupy’ (a temporary lease of the land for an approved activity). 

Councillor Niamh Shaw said while the land sale would be of “commercial benefit” to the developer she would also like to see the proceeds of the land’s purchase to be of further benefit to the community.

“This land is currently owned by the council for the benefit of the community and if we’re going to sell this land... there should be a good outcome in terms of financial benefit [to the community],” she said.

A revised recommendation, which included a revaluation of the land for disposal, would provide for a better outcome for the community, she said.

The WCB passed an amended recommendation which will go to full council for final approval: to require a new valuation to be completed before sections one to three were sold and, for the fourth section, to grant Lake Hāwea Holdings a license to occupy.