Queenstown Lakes Spatial Plan

The Queenstown Lakes Spatial Plan, the first to be prepared for the district, was adopted by full Council on 29 July. The final plan is available for viewing below.

Submissions were collated and processed in preparation of the hearings which took place on 3 and 4 May 2021. All the recommended changes outlined in the report from the Hearings Panel Chair were incorporated into the final plan. The Spatial Plan Schedule of Changes for the final draft can be viewed below.

Public submissions on the draft Queenstown Lakes Spatial Plan were open from 19 March until 5.00pm on Monday 19 April 2021. All public submission are available for viewing below.

Places succeed and perform best when central and local governments work together with iwi, business, industry and the community to deliver a shared vision for their community. The Whaiora Grow Well Partnership is an Urban Growth Partnership between Central Government, Kāi Tahu, Queenstown Lakes District Council and Otago Regional Council.

The overarching goal of the partnership and the Queenstown Lakes Spatial Plan is to ‘Grow Well’ or ‘Whaiora’ in te Reo Māori, which translates to “in the pursuit of wellness”. The partnership provides a forum to align decision-making and collaboration on the long-term direction for the Queenstown Lakes District. It acknowledges that the Queenstown Lakes District is facing growth-related challenges across housing, transport and the environment that may have flow-on effects nationally, particularly given the importance of the Queenstown Lakes area to Aotearoa New Zealand’s tourism sector.  

The Queenstown Lakes Spatial Plan sets out the partnership’s long-term approach to address these challenges.

Creating a Spatial Plan involves considering where and how we live over a long-term period. In this case the plan is looking out to 2050.

Spatial planning involves working with the community to identify:

• Existing and future urban areas

• Existing and future infrastructure needs

• Priority areas for investment and action

• Areas to protect and enhance

• Areas subject to natural hazards

• Other strategically significant priorities

Three principles and five spatial outcomes guide the direction of the Spatial Plan to Grow Well | Whaiora and address the challenges and opportunities facing the Queenstown Lakes District. The Spatial Plan also identifies strategies and key initiatives to achieve the outcomes.

Understanding the future opportunities and challenges for residents, business and visitors, how we futureproof and manage infrastructure, and protect our exceptional environment is key to delivering a Spatial Plan. The long-term vision and the direction of the Spatial Plan will help to guide both short-term decisions about recovery and move towards a more managed and sustainable approach to growth when demand returns in the future.

Engaging with the community is an important part of the process. Following our early Partnership work we led a district wide community conversation about growth and how our district can ‘grow well’ for the next 30 years and for generations to come.

In November 2019 we ran a community workshop roadshow in seven key areas, co-hosted with local resident associations and groups. 

We also hosted targeted community engagement exploring scenarios for how growth could occur in the Upper Clutha and Wakatipu along with conversations with the community in settlements that could be considered growth areas in the future.

These conversations were an opportunity for our community to provide meaningful input into the formation of the draft Spatial Plan which was released following Council approval on 19 March 2021.

To read detailed feedback summaries of our early engagement and view key project dates head to letstalk.qldc.govt.nz/spatial-plan

The next phase of work with the Grow Well Whaiora Partners will be delivering the programme of work identified in the final Plan.

Going forward, the Spatial Plan will be reviewed on a three-year cycle except for the next plan cycle, which will be completed within two years. This is to enable the Spatial Plan to inform the 2024 Ten Year Plan and 30 Year Infrastructure Strategy.

For Spatial Plan news keep an eye on the QLDC Facebook page