An application by Skyline Enterprises for a right-of-way easement beside its proposed new gondola base building has drawn opposition from two neighbouring businesses.
Kiwi Birdlife Park and Ziptrek Ecotours gave submissions opposing the tourism giant’s application at a Queenstown Lakes District Council hearing panel yesterday.
Skyline is proposing a $60 million redevelopment of its gondola operation that would involve building a bottom terminal more than twice the size of the existing one.
If the project gets the go-ahead, it would need the right of way to maintain vehicle access to a staff car park behind the terminal.In his report for the hearing panel, which comprised councillors Calum MacLeod and Simon Stamers-Smith, council parks and reserves planner Aaron Burt said the proposed accessway would be just under 5m wide and would cross a reserve that was now a "partially sloping and somewhat unkempt embankment".
It would be bordered by a retaining wall and cater for cyclists and pedestrians, as well as vehicles.
Kiwi Birdlife Park manager Paul Kavanagh told the panel he was "incredibly concerned" about the impact of construction noise and vibrations on the park’s kiwi.
Skyline had agreed to relocate an outdoor breeding pen that was now only 2m from the easement, but was disputing the need to relocate the park’s nocturnal kiwi house, which was 28m from the easement.
Were the kiwi to be affected, the park would be breaching its permits to hold wildlife in captivity, Mr Kavanagh said.
"We are not trying to stop the development, we are just trying to look after the welfare of our animals."
Planning consultant for Skyline, Sean Dent, said adverse effects from the construction work would be scrutinised as part of the resource consent hearing process for the entire gondola redevelopment.
Skyline’s resource consent application will be notified on Wednesday. It would include an assessment of "acoustic and vibration effects" on the park.
Counsel for Ziptrek, John Young, said the proposed easement conflicted with a council licence it had to build a zipline pole and anchor point at one end of the reserve strip.
Were the council to grant the application, clear provision would need to be made for the future zipline structure.
Although its written submission was opposed to the application, Ziptrek’s position was now one of "partial support".
"It isn’t difficult or problematic to resolve."
Counsel for Skyline, Graeme Todd, said the council licence Ziptrek claimed to have for the proposed structure had yet to be formalised.
But that was a matter for Ziptrek and the council to resolve, and was not an impediment to the council granting Skyline the right-of-way easement, which would remain subject to any conditions that arose from the resource consent hearing process, Mr Todd said.
Last week, Skyline was ordered to remove industrial waste from the staff car park that the proposed easement would maintain access to.
The company was storing oil drums, old batteries, scrap metal and cable used for its gondola cableway operation on reserve land, leased from the council, behind its gondola terminal.
