Tracey Roxburgh

If Housing and Building Minister Nick Smith was looking to pick a fight with Arrowtown residents, ''he's not going to get one'', the town's elected representative says.

He is tall and broad; a Guinness world record-holder; a magician on the basketball court; and, I concluded after spending 15 minutes with him, an all-round good guy.

A $10 million, 195-berth marina on Lake Wakatipu has been given the green light by the Environment Court.

Less than a week after St John Wakatipu took possession of three new 4WD ambulance response vehicles, two were put to use in Dunedin.

Last month, former Queenstown resident Cassie Chow had a dream night.

The Queenstown Lakes District Council looks to be stuck between a rock and a hard place, as its Gorge Rd site is deemed not fit for purpose.

Deciding to cross a swollen creek on the Milford Track in "biblical" rain was a "significant contributing factor" in the death of 21-year-old Sydney student Yessica Asmin last year, the Mountain Safety Council says.

More than 1000 new properties have been proposed for the Wakatipu under the Queenstown Lakes Housing Accord.

Projects to improve Queenstown Airport may be brought forward to cater for an extra 140,000 passengers expected to travel to the resort with Air New Zealand next year.

The Arrowtown cenotaph has been restored, after a two-year labour of love.

Kingston residents are again being asked if they want to break away from the Queenstown Lakes District and align with Southland.

A new code of practice for rental vehicle operators, aimed at improving safety for all drivers in New Zealand, will begin next month.

Proposals to strengthen Arrowtown's Athenaeum Hall will be considered by the Queenstown Lakes District Council as part of the forthcoming Long Term Plan deliberations.

A stoush is brewing in the Wakatipu over Special Housing Areas proposed under the Queenstown Lakes Housing Accord.

Two countries, two earthquakes - the effects of the Canterbury earthquake in February 2011 and the Japan earthquake and tsunami the following month were devastating. Four years on, Tracey Roxburgh hears from experts about strategies for helping children cope.

A neighbour of a man missing with his 11-year-old stepson says he knew him ''reasonably well'' but he ''kept himself to himself''.

Arrowtown businessman Scott Stevens has won the Arrowtown by-election by a landslide, getting  756 votes.

A $298 million contract was signed this week for four public-private partnership schools, including the new Wakatipu High School, due to open in February 2018.