The $125 million Five Mile retail development at Frankton could be a month away from gaining the final go-ahead and developers hope to submit final plans in the next few weeks.
Work was initially due to start last October but delays in finalising three aspects of the resource consent have meant developer Queenstown Gateway has still not been able to start work.
Spokesman Simon Holloway said the company expected to have the final evidence required by Lakes Environmental "back to them in the next couple of weeks".
He said the delays had not jeopardised the availability of labour for the project and he confirmed Naylor Love Construction was still on board.
"Possibly the earthquake in December has shifted that building boom in Christchurch back a few months, so that's probably assisted in terms of Queenstown building," Mr Holloway said.
Lakes Environmental planning manager Brian Fitzpatrick said Queenstown Gateway's consent variation and new application would go to an independent commissioner once they were received.
How long the commissioner's decision would take depended on "how big a change" the documents presented, but he said it could be made "within a couple of weeks", or sooner if it were simple.
The Five Mile development would spell the end of "Hendo's Hole", an excavated site intended to be used as an underground car park for the original Five Mile development.
It was left uncompleted when developer David Henderson abandoned plans for the development.
A Countdown supermarket has already been confirmed for the 26,000sq m big-box retail complex.
Bulk retail outlets, an internal six-screen cinema complex and 40 to 50 smaller retail and food outlets are proposed for a mall based around a two-level department store.
