Stage three of Wānaka’s Lakefront Development Plan (LDP) is expected to be completed around the end of September but Lakeside Road will not re-open to two-way traffic until October.

The road has been closed to southbound traffic from the marina to Ardmore Street since February when work on stage three began, but a separate project to improve the road’s footpath opposite stage three means the detour for southbound traffic will remain in place until the project is finished around mid-October, council staff advised.

“Lakeside Road will reopen as soon as possible once it is safe for all road and footpath users,” Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) spokesperson Sam White said.

The $3.7M stage three development is designed to better connect the lakefront from the Dinosaur Park to the marina and includes new shared footpaths, a fenced ‘boardwalk’ along the lake’s edge and native planting. 

Firth concrete trucks line up along Lakeside Road to pour the new shared paths for stage three of Wānaka’s lakefront development.

Stage three was originally scheduled to be completed within four months but was delayed for various reasons, including lockdown and reducing the disturbance to the grebes nesting nearby.

Wānaka Community Board (WCB) chair Barry Bruce said he was thrilled to see stage three’s progress, and the extra space it has created for pedestrians and cyclists and was looking forward to seeing the development open for the community to enjoy. The boardwalk will be officially opened in October.

The completion of stage three will mean two of the five stages of Wānaka’s LDP, adopted in 2016, have been finished. 

The ‘boardwalk’ is only partially erected with several sections still to complete. 

A detailed design for stage two of the lakefront development, opposite Pembroke Park, is nearing completion and will soon be shared with the public, Sam said.

Stage two includes the restoration of the Millennium pathway tiles alongside a four metre wide promenade, right-angle parking on Ardmore Street, and a new toilet block which has already been erected at the Dungarvon Street end of the lakefront.

A budget of $2.8M was originally set for stage two but it will be revised once detailed design has been completed, Sam said.

A four-stall toilet block has been erected opposite the Skate Park as part of stage two of the LDP.

Also underway are concept designs for stages four (town centre; from Dungarvon Street to the Dinosaur Park) and five (marina to the Yacht Club) of the Wānaka LDP.

Concept plans of stages four and five were shared with the WCB in a workshop, Sam said, and council staff will meet with stakeholders this month before releasing the plans to the wider community in October. 

Public feedback of the plans will then be used to inform the detailed design, he said.

PHOTOS: Wānaka App