Locals who have spotted a structure on an Outstanding Natural Landscape (ONL) zoned Roys Peninsula outpost will be pleased to hear it is temporary.

The long, narrow structure is visible (particularly in the afternoon light) from the eastern shores of Lake Wānaka on an outcrop on Buchanan Rise, near the tip of Roys Peninsula.

Property owner Matt Chapman (a New Zealand permanent resident and wellness entrepreneur) told the Wānaka App it covers a building site where a house is under construction and, when the house is complete, it will be removed.

“Unfortunately it can’t be mitigated at the moment,” Matt said. 

“I’m sensitive to it too.”

The structure protects the building site from the elements and it’s the only practical option during the construction phase, he said.

The consented house - a very large, four-bedroom house with library and den - will be built into the hillside and topped with a ‘green roof’ (one which is covered in vegetation) - so it won’t be visible from afar once completed. 

An artists’ impression of the house under construction on Buchanan Rise. IMAGE: Supplied

Matt said he was here for the same natural beauty other residents appreciate.

His intention is to be “super respectful” and he is currently undertaking extensive regenerative planting and pest management on the 108ha ONL-zoned property, which demands “the highest standards of conservation”, he said.

Queenstown Lakes District Council media and channels advisor Sam White said the council understood that building work was currently underway at the site, and signs of it were “likely to be visible at a distance”.

Matt also has consent for a second building on the property, a farm building, which will be used to store farm machinery and to propagate native vegetation.

The building will not be visible from Wānaka or adjoining properties.