An eight hectare block of residentially zoned land at Lake Hawea is on the market, and a local real estate firm said development of the block would make Lake Hawea “a satellite township for Wanaka”.

Bayleys Wanaka is marketing the approximately 8.5 hectare block of bare land in Lake Hawea township, which is one of the biggest single wholesale residential development blocks to have been placed on the market in the past decade. Bayleys said the sale should attract interest around New Zealand and even internationally.

“Satellite town urban expansion is spreading to provincial New Zealand with a substantial portion of a quiet Central Otago lakeside settlement being placed on the market for sale,” Bayleys said.

The block (at 195 Lakeview Terrace) has been owned by a Dunedin based family for the past 25 years. It is surrounded by existing residential properties and is classified Township Zone under the Queenstown District Lakes Council plan.

Bayleys Wanaka salesperson Todd Soper said an indicative residential subdivision plan for the site identified the potential to create between 73 to 80 sections from the property.

He also said Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) had indicated its intention to review the Township Zone guidelines later this year, “with the potential that the current minimum section size of 800 square metres could drop to minimum section sizes of 450 square metres”.

At a higher density, up to 120 lots ranging 500–600sqm could be developed, he said.

“Lake Hawea would become a satellite township for Wanaka,” he said.

Hawea Community Association chair April Mackenzie said HCA discussions with the QLDC indicate that lot size is an issue under review, but said she was not aware of a proposal to drop to a minimum section size of 450sqm.

April said the land coming to market showed the proposed Special Housing Area for Lake Hawea was not required. She said the council has raised concerns about over-capacity if section sizes become too small, which she suggested could lead to an “over-capacity for the projected growth”.

The latest QLDC data on population growth suggests the Hawea area will grow two percent over the next 30 years and need on average just another 44 houses a year, April said.

However Todd said the speed at which sections sold at the nearby Timsfield development showed there is demand for green field sites in Lake Hawea “as people find they are priced out of the Wanaka market”.

Forty-two Timsfield sections were released to the market earlier this year and only six remain unsold.

“A new large scale subdivision in Lake Hawea would offer an attractive price point for those looking at entry level property in the district on which to build,” Todd said.

Tenders for the Lake Hawea property close on June 14.

PHOTO: Supplied