The badly-worn verges on the side of the state highway near the Mobil service station will be replaced with trees and grass.
Cr Lex Perkins said the area had been "annoying" him for years.
"It's the main entrance way to town and it's very shabby and untidy. It's not a good look for people arriving into town. It doesn't look nice does it?" he said.
The council had an agreement with Five Mile developers to keep the borders at that end of Frankton Rd tidy but had neglected the verges for years.
"I can't understand why councils haven't tidied this up for the last 100 years. Let's get it tidied up. Let's get into it," he told fellow committee members.
A report to the committee by council project manager Russell Engelke said the area was badly worn by cars and was used as overnight parking by residents of a nearby apartment block.
"The visual effect upon entering Queenstown is far from desirable," he said.
The residents would have to park in other parts of Frankton once the renovation was complete.
Consultation with nearby landowner McDonald's Restaurants was continuing.
The company has applied for resource consent to build a 139-seat restaurant beside Mobil.
The committee also adopted a landscape plan to give the Lake Hayes Pavilion a $250,000 makeover.
The pavilion, on the Lake Hayes Recreation Reserve, is used for events such as the annual A&P show, dog training and weddings.
Mr Engelke said there had been an increase in the number of reserve users since the loop walking track around Lake Hayes was opened.
"This, along with regular pavilion use, the twice daily bus movement and the recent utility upgrades, have all led to the car park being totally degraded to either a dust or mud surface. This is far from desirable," he said.
The landscape plan includes 30 car-parking spaces, bus loading and green areas.
The pavilion building will also be plastered and painted, with a new concrete courtyard and utility area to be added.
The plan will go out for tender, with a budget of $250,000.
The committee also approved two new public toilet blocks for Lake Hayes.
It approved $65,000 for toilets at the north end of the Lake Hayes Reserve and $60,000 for toilets at McBride Park, Lake Hayes Estate.
