Restoring the reserve or developing protected land?
A community group opposing plans for major developments around Ben Lomond says shipping more than a million people up the mountain each year is "completely unsustainable".
Bowen Peak Ltd, owned by Australian-based cancer surgeon Dr Guy Hingston, wants Fast Track consent for a $200 million-plus development between the One Mile Roundabout, Ben Lomond Saddle and Bowen Peak.
Last week, the company launched a website further detailing the plans, with include a two-track funicular railway, new commercial ski field, 1500-delegate convention centre, wildlife sanctuary, outdoor education centre, a new 1300-property suburb, and associated developments.
The company says it will lead the way in "restoring Te-taumata-o-Hakitekura Ben Lomond Reserve's birdlife, native forest and freshwater eco system" to the "pre-pakeha state".
But Forward Whakatipu, a group of locals representing mountain bikers, hikers, runners, and families, says despite the "glossy branding and claims of restoration", Bowen Peak Ltd's plans are a "commercial development on protected land".
"It sets a dangerous precedent for fast-tracked developments on scenic reserves, where private profit is prioritised over long-term community wellbeing and the environment," Callum Wood, speaking on behalf of the seven-member board, says.
"Over-development in this fragile alpine environment will disrupt biodiversity, destroy native habitats, impact our local waterways, and put even more pressure on Queenstown’s already strained infrastructure. Shipping an additional 1.1 million people to the Ben Lomond Saddle each year is completely unsustainable for the area."
More than 2400 people have now signed Forward Whakatipu's petition against the plans, on change.org.
The project is being advanced under the government's controversial Fast-Track Approvals Bill, which sees applications assessed by an expert panel and approved by ministers, rather than going through the usual council-run resource consent process.
But the application has not yet been selected - it still needs to be referred to the pathway by Minister Chris Bishop.
Forward Wakatipu says if it is Fast Tracked it will be "pushed through without proper public consultation or environmental oversight".
"We want to ensure our natural landscapes are protected, our water resources safeguarded, and that planning decisions are made transparently — with genuine input from the community and mana whenua."
University of Otago alumni Hingston, meanwhile, has declined to comment until Bishop makes a decision. He is, however, asking for community feedback via feedback@bowenpeak.co.nz and plans to have meetings with iwi, council and the community.
The website details that Bowen Peak Ltd is a family-owned company, with Matthew Hingston the Development Manager. The family have owned a property in Fernhill since 2013, and have been visiting Queenstown since 1985.
"We acknowledge the maunga (mountains) and ngahere (forests) around Tahuna Queenstown are vital, living taonga that should be protected and preserved," it reads.
"Our proposal seeks to appropriately source ongoing funding – not from local rate payers or Aotearoa New Zealand taxpayers – but from international visitors to Tahuna Queenstown, to drive the longer term funding for our planned multi-faceted development to continue ‘Restoring the Reserve’."
The plans include:
- Powerhouse Funiculars or gondolas that will ferry 1.1m people per year from One-Mile to Ben Lomond Saddle
- A 1500-seat convention centre, 500-space car park, retail and hospitality complex at the base terminal in One Mile Recreation Reserve
- A six-seater chairlift and new commercial ski field on Bowen Peak
- A new Fernhill Heights suburb with 1040 apartments and 270 chalets on 56 hectares of privately owned land next to the reserve
- A outdoor education centre and public shelter, including 60 bunk beds, a cafe and toilets, on the Ben Lomond saddle
- A 200-hectare fenced predator free sanctuary in One Mile Creek valley, akin to Wellington's Zealandia
- Wilding pine removal, starting with a $300k logging contract to remove exotic trees below the Fernhill walkway
- New One Mile Creek walkway
