It concerned a proposal by its owner, former Queenstown Lakes District Council chief executive Adam Feeley, to re-zone his family’s 6.2ha block.
Sitting at the western gateway to the township, it is bordered by The Hills golf resort to the south and, across a road, Millbrook Resort to the west.
Mr Feeley’s development plans for the property were first revealed in 2014 — controversially while still council boss — with an unsuccessful application under special housing area rules for a 20-section subdivision.
A submission four years later on the council’s proposed district plan (PDP), seeking two types of residential zoning for the land, was rejected by council commissioners.
A subsequent appeal to the Environment Court was turned down early last year, but subsequent informal discussions with the council have led to the latest proposal — a type of rural lifestyle zoning called "precinct" — getting council support.
The zoning requires a minimum 6000sq m section size — with an average of 1ha — and allows homes of up to 500sq m.
If the proposal is approved by the court, Mr Feeley could apply for resource consent to subdivide the site with up to five new sections, in addition to his existing home and separate cottage.
Agreed upon behind closed doors, it would not have reached the light of a courtroom were it not for Dunedin environmental engineer Dave Hanan.
Those rights came about from his mother, Dame Elizabeth Hanan, writing a brief submission on the PDP in 2015.
Mr Hanan told the court this week the land on the western side of McDonnell Rd had reached a "tipping point".
The Feeley proposal, and others for land further south along the road, represented "incremental development which bit by bit is eroding the very rural character of the land".
"A line has to be drawn in the sand."
The proposal was at odds with the "vast majority" of views of the community, he said.
A series of community workshops, strategic plans and "visioning" documents, based on consultation with Arrowtown residents and ratepayers over nearly 30 years, had consistently reflected a desire for the land to remain rural.
Arrowtown Village Association chairwoman Susan Rowley told the court its position of wanting to see the township’s distinct "green boundary" protected remained unchanged.
"The community has been saying it again and again."
Mr Feeley’s consultant landscape architect, Yvonne Pfluger, said the proposed zoning represented development of a density similar to that of neighbours Millbrook Resort and The Hills resort.
The effects would be "low, localised and not adverse".
Mr Feeley’s counsel Ian Gordon said the urban growth boundary would remain as a "defensible edge" to the township.
The council’s counsel Sarah Scott said any member of the public had had the opportunity to make a submission during the PDP hearings and join the appeal as an interested party.
"There is no [Resource Management Act] requirement, or any obligation on the council or the court to consider community views or aspirations over and above this," she said.
Such a requirement would place an "unjustified and unreasonable burden" on the council.
Mr Feeley is one of three landowners on the western side of McDonnell Rd with Environment Court appeals seeking to rezone their land for housing.
Mr Hanan and his supporters intend to take the other two appeals to court as well, with the next, by Queenstown developer John Guthrie and local real estate agent Richard Newman, due to be heard in December.
A crowdfunding page to support the group’s costs has raised about $27,000 to date.
This week was the sixth time in seven years Mr Hanan has appeared as an interested party in resource consent or rezoning appeal hearings relating to the land.
Judge John Hassan and commissioner James Baines reserved the court’s decision at the hearing’s closing on Thursday, but in closing comments, Judge Hassan signalled its "line of travel" towards approving the rezoning.
However, seven homes was "too many" for the site, and the court would not "leave to legal chance" the potential for that to occur by "stealth or cunning means".
Mr Hanan’s evidence of strong opposition to the proposal among an "aghast" community, and concerns about a lack of engagement by the council, was acknowledged by the court, Judge Hassan said.
"I leave aside whether it’s a fair feeling — the important point is it’s a feeling."
However, he emphasised the court’s decision had to be guided by the evidence and the law.
"Those matters don’t lead the court to a different view in terms of the most appropriate zoning outcome."
The decision is not expected until well into next year.
