Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) property and infrastructure general manager Peter Hansby has died after a short illness.

Peter had a 35 year career in engineering and infrastructure, and was described by QLDC acting chief executive Meaghan Miller as “a special colleague and, for many, a true mate”.

“Our thoughts and condolences are with Pete’s family at this time,” she said.

Peter has been a contractor, a consultant and a client within the infrastructure environment. 

He held a number of roles with QLDC from 1994 to 2004 including consents engineer and roading engineer. He was a Civil Defence Local Controller and a valued part of the team that responded to the 1999 floods. 

In 2004 Peter worked for City Care Limited for Christchurch City Council and became the Southern regional general manager.

He was appointed emergency response manager for City Care following the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes, a period in his career that he recently said prepared him for any future challenge no matter how big. 

Peter took on a short but critical stint with Aecom as director of the Christchurch re-build in 2013 and started his current role back with QLDC in November 2014 as infrastructure general manager, extending his responsibility to later becoming property and infrastructure general manager.

Meaghan said Peter was a tireless campaigner for improving the way people lived, worked, travelled and played in the district and was a key member of the Kā Huanui a Tāhuna Project Alliance Board. 

“He was an enormously respected and valued member of the QLDC executive leadership team,” she said.

“If there is one small comfort we can all take from Pete’s loss it is that his legacy can be seen right around the district in the multitude of projects he was very proud to deliver. He was passionate about his work, passionate about the Queenstown Lakes District and enormously proud of his family.”

PHOTO: Supplied