A Wānaka resident keen for Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) to be renamed is testing public interest in the idea.

The resident (who asked not to be named at this stage) believes there is public support for the idea, which was originally mooted in 2023 by Wānaka Upper Clutha Community Board members Chris Hadfield and Cody Tucker (who is also a QLDC councillor).

The idea was scotched by the council in 2023, which said a name change was not a priority.

The Wānaka resident said a driver for the name change was the likelihood of Wānaka growing larger than Queenstown in coming years.

“Any project I’m involved in I like to look 20 or 30 years ahead,” he said. “Will the name be relevant for the district in 20 years?”

He was not putting forward an alternative name, saying that would be a job for others, but said a generic name like ‘Southern Lakes District Council’ could be an option.

“Queenstown will think they are having something taken away, but they’re not. This is just about a regional name that is more suitable.”

He also said the issue of cost had been raised in the past and he believed it could be done with less expense over a four year period.

Wānaka is projected to grow larger than Queenstown in coming years, which is a driver for the change. PHOTO: Wānaka App

The resident has set up an email address for people to respond to with their view ([email protected]) and will post on a local discussion group for those who are on social media.

He said he hoped to receive “close to 1,000 responses” in support of a name change. If that happens, he plans to form a local group to lobby for a referendum in the upcoming local body elections in October/November this year. 

“If support didn’t come in it would be a dead duck,” he said.

“To be successful we will be required to get the support of 10 percent of the ratepayer population.”

Wānaka Upper Clutha Community Board chair Simon Telfer told the Wānaka App a proposed name change had not been discussed by the board since it was proposed in 2023.

Speaking as chair but not on behalf of the board, he said he was in favour of a name change, “especially given two of the three large freshwater lakes in the district are in the Upper Clutha”. 

“Wānaka is also growing faster than Queenstown and is projected, in coming decades, to be the larger population.”

However, Simon cautioned that the implementation cost would be a barrier, as would the fact “the district's power base still resides in Queenstown and it has zero appetite to rename”. 

Chris Hadfield said in 2023: “Perception is reality. If we keep saying we’re Queenstown Lakes, people will just accept that we are part of Queenstown. And we’re not. We’re separate; we’re different.”

This week, he told the Wānaka App that “nothing has really changed” and he continued to support the idea of a name change.

Read more: Name change suggested for QLDC