A draft Statement of Intent (SOI) for Wanaka Airport is likely to be adopted by the Queenstown Lakes District Council at a video conference meeting on Thursday April 23, on the condition it then be “vastly modified’’.

The agenda item has been brought forward three months because the COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically changed the landscape for the district’s tourism-based economy.

The draft SOI had been prepared before COVID-19.

“In a short space of time operations at Queenstown Airport have completely ceased with the belief that any return to previous passenger numbers is some considerable months, if not years, away,’’ Queenstown Lakes District Council communications officer Jack Barlow told the Wanaka App this week.

Our district, of just 42,000 residents, is regarded as the tourism capital of New Zealand and hosts millions of international visitors every year.

The council is the majority (75 per cent) shareholder of the Queenstown Airport Corporation (QAC).

When the council gave QAC a 100-year lease over Wanaka Airport in 2018, QAC had the goal of operating “one airport company, two complementary airports’’ to address the pressure from increasing visitor movements on Queenstown Airport.

Legislation requires that QAC obtain an approved SOI for Wanaka Airport development.

The council last year rejected two drafts before deciding to receive a modified draft in December and commission a social, economic, and environmental impact report from consulting firm MartinJenkins.

The council’s corporate services general manager Meaghan Miller is now preparing a report and recommendations for how the council should now deal with QAC’s draft SOI.

Her report will be publicly released on Monday April 20, three days before the meeting.

Jack said Meaghan’s recommendation would likely be that the draft SOI be “vastly modified” so that QAC could “focus on recovery immediately’’.

There is no risk of “undue airport development” in the current environment, Quentin Smith says. PHOTO: Supplied 

The options were to “wait and adopt a redundant SOI in July, or adopt it as soon as possible and begin work on a vastly modified SOI by October”, he said.

“The proposal to adopt the current draft SOI meets the legislative need while also providing a clear steer to QAC to deliver a modified SOI later in the year,’’ Jack said.

Wanaka councillor Quentin Smith, a Wanaka Airport steering committee member, confirmed to the Wanaka App that the intention is to “park’’ development opportunities.

“Any future development plans were already parked, subject to fully consulted plans that are subject to council endorsement. The masterplan will now not be completed in the scope of the SOI timeframe,” Quentin said.

“The future of Wanaka Airport is not determined by the SOI. I favour a future that focuses on a small [general aviation] airport that supports training, recreational flying, innovation and technology,’’ he said.

Quentin said there were understandable concerns in the community that bringing the meeting forward might “enable the growth of Wanaka Airport commercial services or expansion of Queenstown noise boundaries’’. 

He clarified: “These things are not enabled by this SOI. Council will be instructing QAC to bring an amended SOI back in October. In the current environment there is no risk of undue airport development between now and then.’’ 

The COVID-19 pandemic also means that work done by MartinJenkins earlier this year is now being revised and won’t be available until May. 

Jack said the councillors had already received a “high-level verbal briefing’’ from the firm. If the councillors agreed to require a modified SOI next week, then the MartinJenkins report could be considered once it is available, Jack said.

The Wanaka Stakeholders Group has raised concerns about the possible expansion of services out of Wanaka. Before COVID-19, it had sought a judicial review of council and QAC decisions.

Glenorchy councillor Niki Gladding this week expressed her opinion online that the council is fast tracking the SOI during the COVID-19 lockdown without the usual public input.

Jack said the COVID-19 pandemic notice prevents a full public forum on April 23 but mayor Jim Boult would be allowing people to email their views (up to 400 words) to [email protected] up to 24 hours before the meeting.

The comments would be circulated to councillors before the meeting and a meeting summary would be posted to the council’s website afterwards, as required by interim legislation, Jack said.