A "family-flavoured" proposal for a four-block rural residential development at "the Triangle", Speargrass Flat, was heard by a Queenstown Lakes District Council resource consent commission recently.
Family consortium Winton Partners New Zealand Ltd proposes subdividing 40,028sq m of land at Speargrass Flat Rd, 8km southeast of Arrowtown, into four residential lots ranging from 9100sq m to 12,600sq m in size.
"The Triangle", also known as the "Domain Road Triangle", is bounded by Speargrass Flat Rd to the north, Domain Rd to the east and Lower Shotover Rd to the west and surrounded by several similar residential rural lifestyle developments.
One neighbour had opposed the plans for the rural general zoned subdivision but withdrew before the hearing.
The development would include the building of a pond on lot 3, an entrance cutting of 6m of protected hedgerow and the gravelling of a public walkway easement that passes through the site.
Winton Partners lawyer Russell Ibbotson argued there was "no justification" to isolate the proposed development from the surrounding developments, which were similar in character to what was proposed.
He said the Environment Court had previously ruled the Other Rural Landscape status of "the Triangle" was one no longer "characteristic of the poetically rural and Arcadian landscapes".
The four houses would be "subject to design controls which are also in keeping with and reflective of the surrounding development", he said.
Mr Ibbotson said his client, developer Chris Meehan, who was raised in Cromwell and lived in Sydney, planned to live at lot 1 for three months of the year, while his sister and her family would live at lot 3.
"There is a local and family flavour to this application. It is not simply a developer-driven application by any means."
The commissioners reserved their decision.
