Parents and prospective parents bought houses in the Lake Hayes and Quail Rise Estates so they could send their children to Remarkables Primary School at Frankton, only to find zone changes now mean their children cannot attend the Frankton school.
The comments from angry parents are among those in the 156 feedback forms received by the school's board of trustees.
The community was asked its response to the school's proposal to exclude pupils from Lake Hayes Estate, Quail Rise Estate, Tucker Beach, Marina Heights and the northern side of Frankton Rd, from term 2 next year, if the Ministry of Education approved the reduced enrolment scheme.
The reduced zone was "disappointing so early" after the $17.3 million school accepted its first pupils only 18 months ago, the trustees were told.
The rezoning would have a "huge impact" on residents in the affected suburbs and house values had been hit. Many young families could not afford houses in Jack's Pt and Kelvin Heights suburbs, which remained in the proposed reduced zone.
The ministry came in for fierce criticism from parents and prospective parents for not managing or predicting the number of children needing and expecting education in the Wakatipu, despite the first Lake Hayes Estate houses being built 10 years ago. The ministry needed to take more notice of rolls and waiting lists for early childhood centres as reflections of population growth, they said.
Smaller schools of 400 to 500 pupils were preferred over schools of 700 or more.
Making children from Lake Hayes Estate travel past Remarkables Primary School to Queenstown Primary School, instead of to the second closest primary school, in Arrowtown, was "stupid" and "ridiculous", individual respondents said.
"As a person who lives and works in the Frankton community, I want my children to go to school in that community," one respondee said.
Some called for Queenstown Primary to be "brought up to the same standard" as Remarkables.
Parents said they wanted to see a 20-year plan for pre-school to high school education.
Strategic planning for schools and education needs must happen 10 to 15 years before required, another respondee wrote.
Relocating the early childhood education centre away from the Remarkables Primary School site would "at least buy some time".
Many were keen for another school to be built "now" and "as a priority" near Lake Hayes and Quail Rise estates, on land bought by the ministry from either the Queenstown Lakes District Council, or a private owner.
"Please let me go back to Remarkables Primary School," a former pupil wrote.
Feedback forms were available on the Remarkables Primary School website. The school will accept submissions until noon on September 11.
