Structural and civil engineering firm Batchelar McDougall Consulting (BMC) was awarded the supreme winner at the Ignite Wānaka Business Excellence Awards held at Rippon Hall last night (Saturday June 10).BMC, which has offices in Wānaka, Queenstown, Christchurch and Invercargill was acknowledged for its growth, strong customer relationships, research and development investment, and its focus on staff and robust governance.More than 200 people attended the awards gala dinner which had been delayed from 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.“The past two years have been particularly challenging and it’s important that we take a moment to celebrate all that we have achieved as a local business community,” Ignite Wānaka chair Jo Learmonth said.The awards gala dinner was attended by more than 200 people.Convenor of judges Wayne Hudson said it was good to see a large number of entries despite the impact of business disruptions in the past two years.“We [judges] appreciated the honest comments from entrants about how hard Covid had affected them and how they were dealing with the impact on their businesses,” he said.“Hopefully they will have learnt something positive during the process of entering.”Businesses competed in 12 categories with the winner in each category eligible for the supreme award.WAI Wānaka chair and Criffel Station co-owner Mandy Bell was awarded the Outstanding Individual award. When accepting her award Mandy made an impassioned plea for us all to “do our bit” to make the Upper Clutha a better place for future generations.Winners of each category are:Milford Asset Management Supreme Business Award: Batchelar McDougall Outstanding in tourism (supported by Lake Wānaka Tourism): Lavender Farm  Outstanding in professional services: Batchelar McDougallOutstanding in hospitality (supported by Drive Accounting): Pembroke Patisserie Outstanding in infrastructure/trades (supported by Findex): Dunlop Builders           Outstanding in retail (supported by LOGIC1): OculaOutstanding not-for-profit (supported by Queenstown Lakes District Council): WAI WānakaOutstanding in sustainability (supported by Queenstown Airport): Wild WireOutstanding young enterprise (supported by Air New Zealand): Village Gift and The Next Chapter (joint winners) Resilience and Diversification Award (supported by Todd & Walker Law): Wild Wire   Outstanding in innovation (supported by Aspiring Law): The Film CrewOutstanding employer (supported by EASI NZ): OculaPeople’s Choice Award (supported by the Wānaka App): The Village GiftThe principal sponsor of the awards was Milford Asset Management and the following businesses donated their time, products and services: Scope Media, Radio Wānaka, Wānaka App, The Messenger, The Film Crew, Rippon Winery, Mitre 10 Wānaka, Entertainment Solutions, Wānaka Marquee & Party Hire, Metalworks Wānaka, and Pacific Linen.PHOTOS: The Film Crew

Wānaka communications consultancy Scope Media has won a top national award at the Public Relations Institute of New Zealand (PRINZ) Awards.The boutique marketing communications and digital PR consultancy won Best Small-to-Medium PR Consultancy of the Year Award in Auckland on Friday night (May 20).Scope Media managing director Celia Crosbie said the awards entry process was a robust exercise, requiring entrants to demonstrate strategic thinking with clients, the ability to deliver against a brief and provide evidence of success, both for clients and commercial results for the business. “This is the award we’ve had our sights set on for several years but we haven’t felt ready to enter till this year,” Celia said. “Our extremely talented Wānaka-based team of marketing communications professionals punch above our weight in the work we do across the district and nationwide, but to be recognised formally as one of the best in the business is so awesome.”The entry included case studies of work that Scope Media produced over the past year – notably, the Home for Healthier Business talent attraction campaign for Queenstown Lakes District Council’s Economic Development Unit; and a regular glossy lifestyle magazine, Property Style, for New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty that has a 30,000 circulation nationwide and has become an essential marketing tool for the real estate company. “Scope Media is an excellent example of a small consultancy displaying resilience, entrepreneurial commitment and adaptability in the face of extreme business adversity,” the judges’ citation said. “When the Covid pandemic caused a collapse of the tourism and hospitality industries in their local community, Scope had the confidence and the creativity to offer affordable PR strategies and programmes that enabled it to continue to grow its revenues.” Celia said Scope Media cares about the community and helping local brands flourish.“We’ve been able to continue making meaningful connections with our people and place, through the privilege of being able to tell their stories.”  The PRINZ Awards recognise excellence in the New Zealand public relations and communications industry, promoting continuous improvement and celebrating best practice. PHOTO: Scope Media 

An ambitious resort complex - including a hotel, backpackers, townhouses, apartments, shops and a winery - has been proposed for a prominent area of Three Parks.The plans for ‘Mount Iron Resort’, proposed for the corner of Sir Tim Wallis Drive and Sir Cliff Skeggs Drive diagonally opposite BP, are on hold with the Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) awaiting an external report.Mount Iron Investments Limited (MIIL) is seeking consent for a resort complex, with mixed use residential, visitor accommodation and commercial development contained on a single section to be subdivided at a future date.The central focus of the resort would be a five-story hotel with 126 rooms and a restaurant; a conference centre, and swimming pool and spa facility in landscaped grounds.The main hotel building would be set back from Sir Tim Wallis Drive. The restaurant and conference space buildings are located between the accommodation building and the road, at a maximum height of 6.75m. The hotel would be surrounded by residential townhouses and apartments, and commercial activity would front the main streets.A three-storey backpackers, with a tavern and shops, is proposed for the corner of Sir Tim Wallis Drive and Sir Cliff Skeggs Drive. It would have 34 rooms, and a restaurant.The hotel takes centre stage, and is flanked by townhouses, apartments, and the proposed backpackers (front, to the right).A bar and winery is also proposed in the northwestern corner of the site, accessed from Sir Tim Wallis Drive.“This will be a licensed premises and it is envisaged it will be themed on the region’s wine production,” the application says.Main access to the resort would be from Sir Tim Wallis Drive with a spine road splitting and linking through to two points on Sir Cliff Skeggs Road. Two apartment blocks are also proposed; one three-levels and one four-levels, which would be used for a mixture of residential and visitor accommodation. MIIL directors Jade Kirk and Damian McMillan.Twenty-five townhouses are proposed around the northern and eastern boundaries of the site, and MIIL is seeking consent for them to be used as residential premises or visitor accommodation. The development would include more than 100 car parks, a coach drop off point and bicycle parks. MIIL has two directors: Jade Kirk, CEO of Kirk Roberts Consulting Engineers Limited in Christchurch; and Damian McMillan, chief operations officer and principal structural engineer of Kirk Roberts Consulting, Tauranga. The company was incorporated in May 2021.IMAGES: Supplied

A new community-driven initiative to ‘reset’ a Wānaka town centre masterplan was formally launched with a presentation to the Wānaka Community Board (WCB) last Thursday (May 12).The aim of the Wānaka Heart initiative is to coordinate an integrated town centre development which will feed into the council’s planning and channel funding to where it is most neededIts key vision is to optimise ‘the lakeside heart of Wānaka’ as a thriving, welcoming community centre.Behind the self-funded initiative is a cross-sector steering group, comprising local representatives of the community, schools, retailers, design, business and property owners, which has been meeting monthly since a public meeting in July last year. The outcome of that meeting was a desire for the community - rather than the council - to coordinate the town centre’s development.The council would continue to be in charge of planning and funding of the CBD development.The masterplan will cover the wider CBD and Roys Bay, from Wānaka Station park to Anderson Heights and Mount Aspiring College, group spokesperson Howie Howard (Ignite Wānaka) said. The plan will build on insights gained from previous studies and town centre plans but will also address increasing competition from Three Parks and recent growth and community development, Howie said.He said some of the key challenges identified included Wānaka’s increasing population and accommodating “consultation fatigue” which might discourage some local feedback. Steering group member Amanda Dorset told the WCB the group wanted input from the wider community as the plan developed.“We want to invite more community representatives to be part of the steering group. It’s important to get people on board who have… been in this community a long time and who understand the character of the town... to make it a truly representative group…,” she said.As well as the WCB’s endorsement for the project, the group was also seeking the WCB’s help to make connections with various stakeholders, to provide feedback and review the developing plans.Following this week’s launch the group hopes to meet with the Queenstown Lakes District Council, Otago Regional Council, Waka Kotahi and mana whenua.The group plans public presentations of a draft masterplan via open days and web based feedback posts in July. Meetings and events are also being planned with the sector groups such as the schools and businesses. Plans will be refined and represented to the public again in September. It is anticipated that the final masterplan report, including proposed development costs and a two-stage timeline, will be presented to the WCB early in 2023 for adoption.PHOTOS: Wānaka App

After canvassing its 1,600 Otago and Southland members, Business South has made a submission on the government’s proposed New Zealand Income Insurance Scheme. The scheme would offer financial support to workers who are made redundant through no fault of their own, or who lose their jobs due to health conditions or disabilities, providing them with 80 percent of their income for up to seven months.  While Business South welcomes a number of aspects of the proposal, chief executive Mike Collins said there are some concerning implications for business as it currently stands – particularly for small to medium enterprises (SMEs) who make up 97 percent of the country’s business landscape. “There should be exemptions for businesses that already have appropriate redundancy provisions in place to support employees,” Mike said. “Employers should be able to opt-out of the scheme where they can demonstrate an existing scheme is operating well.”  Business South is also opposed to including health conditions and disabilities in the scope of the scheme, which would double its cost. Mike said the scheme is poorly timed, given the sustained cost pressures on businesses.  “It is unfair to levy employers at a time when costs are rising and businesses are still recovering from the impacts of Covid-19. “Our members cannot see the benefit of introducing this now – it could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back for many. We consider a more appropriate time would be in two to five years from now.”  He said Business South believes the scheme would be better funded by reprioritising existing government spending and/or a reduction in corporate tax. Workers would also be required to contribute to the scheme through a levy, and Mike said this would have a significant and disproportionate financial impact on low-income workers. A worker on minimum wage would be required to contribute approximately $12 per week.   However, Business South acknowledges there is merit in a scheme that invests in people’s skills.  “The country would benefit from a highly productive workforce that has well-matched skills to job opportunities. The scheme proposes support for retraining and allowing time to match people to the right jobs – this means individuals will not be forced to take a job that underutilises their skills and provides lower pay merely to survive.” Regionally, an income insurance scheme has the potential to soften the blow for a region where a large employer winds down their operations quite abruptly, Mike said, adding it could also help to address some potential risks of the future.  “There are a number of possible disruptions to traditional work and jobs – such things as an increasingly digital and high-tech economy, moves towards a low carbon economy, and the upheaval caused by global shocks or pandemics,” Mike said.   “However, it is important that any income insurance scheme is fair to both employers and employees and doesn’t burden them with unsustainable costs.”  PHOTO: Supplied

Ignite Wānaka Chamber of Commerce board member Jo Learnmonth has taken over as the organisation’s chair following the departure of Andrew Howard.Andrew, who had served as chair of Ignite Wānaka since January 2021, chose to step down due to personal circumstances, and Jo was voted on as chair last week at the monthly board meeting.“The Wānaka business community has endured a difficult two years with the Covid-19 pandemic and the resultant economic crisis that we continue to navigate,” Jo said.“This year will remain challenging for our local businesses. The chamber board is determined to support businesses in the Upper Clutha and advocate on their behalf to help enable the sustainable success of our local economy.”Jo currently works as the operations manager for Wānaka Airport and she has extensive work experience in both public and private enterprise, specialising in business performance at SME (small-medium enterprise) level, as well as with start-ups and corporate project management.  She thanked Andrew for his “leadership and dedication” in serving the Wānaka business community over the past 15 months.Andrew said he had made the decision to step down as chair because, due to other commitments, he has not been able to dedicate the time and energy to the role that is required.“I am still really excited about being a part of this great team and working to support Jo. I have no doubt she is the right person at the right time for us.”The change in board leadership follows the recent resignation of Ignite Wānaka general manager Naomi Lindsay, who is leaving to pursue her own business ventures. See also: ‘Ignite Wānaka general manager resigns’. The board is currently seeking expressions of interest for the role of general manager. The Ignite Wānaka Chamber of Commerce board members are: Jo Learmonth (chair), Celia Crosbie (vice chair), Claire Dooney, Laura Hedley, Andrew ‘Howie’ Howard, John Mezger and Bronwyn McCarthy. Queenstown Lakes District Councillor and deputy mayor Calum MacLeod is an ex-officio member.PHOTO: Ignite Wanaka

A government decision to allow 275 experienced ski workers into the country has been welcomed by local ski field operators.Cardrona and Treble Cone experiences general manager Laura Hedley says the decision will result in the return of staff who have not been able to enter the country due to Covid.“A lot of these staff have been long-time returners to Cardrona and Treble Cone who have not been able to enter the country for the past couple of seasons,” Laura said.“It will be great to have their expertise back in the team to add to the current workforce so we can meet demand and open at full capacity.”The roles include snow sports instructors, ski patrol and safety specialists, snow grooming and snowmaking machinery operators, and ski lift and snow sport technicians.Laura said Cardrona and Treble Cone will require approximately 80 international staff in these roles.Tourism minister Stuart Nash announced the decision on Tuesday (April 12) evening, saying the exception to usual border rules will help the ski industry recruit much-needed talent.“Winter is traditionally the quietest time for international visitors but it is peak excitement on the mountains as snow tourism comes to life,” he said.“Kiwis fill the majority of ski field and snow sports roles. However there are not enough locals with the required skills, certification or experience to meet seasonal short-term needs.”Laura said the industry is working together to ensure all New Zealand resorts have the ability to fill their critical roles. Two hundred and seventy five staff is an estimate based on previous staffing levels.“With a good snowfall, we will hopefully all be able to enjoy a long winter season and with these international staff joining us again, we will be ready to deliver some amazing experiences for our guests,” she said.Tourism New Zealand is promoting New Zealand as a winter destination through a marketing campaign called See You at the Bottom.In 2019 approximately 160,000 Australians visited in winter, spending $211M, around 40 percent of all spending by international tourists As part of the class exception to the immigration rules, the ski sector has agreed to pay at least the median wage of $27 an hour for these roles. This is in line with the requirements of the new Accredited Employer Work Visa which comes into effect on July 4.PHOTO: Tourism New Zealand 

A second supermarket for Lake Hāwea has been given the green light.The Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) has approved a resource consent for a SuperValue Supermarket to be constructed in the township.The supermarket will be on land between Bodkin Street and Parry Crescent, close to the existing Hāwea Store and Kitchen.“We are excited to be bringing a SuperValue supermarket to the Hāwea community to serve the growing demands of the village and surrounding areas,” Project H Ltd spokesperson Ray Macleod said.“The consent allows for a much needed full service supermarket, with its own car parking, and an exciting anchor tenant.”Aerial photograph of the siteThe SuperValue Supermarket ground floor tenancy will have a gross floor area of 450m2 including back of house, office, and staff facilities, while the first floor contains three smaller commercial tenancies.The approved application said 23 car parks are provided on site along with seven bike parks to support and encourage active travel.Ray said he was hopeful the supermarket would be operating by the middle of 2023.“Maybe we will be looking at digging holes come July and it is going to be a 12 month process,” he said.“We are currently working hard alongside Woolworth’s SuperValue management on building consent drawings and once we are further into this process we will be in a position to advise the building programme in greater detail.”The approved application said the proposed supermarket would initially employ around 20 workers, a number of whom would be part time, which would increase total employment in Lake Hāwea by eight percent.The approval follows council’s approval in December 2021 of another supermarket nearby, part of a larger, two-storey development by Quartz Development Group (QDG).Related: Lake Hāwea commercial development approvedQDG managing director Matt Lamming told the Wānaka App he was disappointed to see Project H’s “non complying activity approved without the same rigour that was applied to Quartz Development Group’s resource consent application for complying activity”. Matt said, while he would continue to work with expressions of interest from tenants, he would also “reassess the best return for the land that we hold”. “In all likelihood we will not be delivering a Supermarket to the Hāwea community this year as originally planned,” he said.IMAGES: Supplied

Measuring wind speed and direction in real time is the next phase for assessing the viability of an airport at Tarras, Christchurch Airport (CIAL) has announced.This week two solar-powered wind meters (anemometers) will be installed at the proposed airport’s 750-hectare site and a third will be sited on a neighbouring farm. The anemometers will sit atop masts and are the first phase of an automatic weather station (AWS).“Weather conditions have a major influence on airport planning and to date our analysis has been undertaken using ten years’ worth of historical weather data that was modeled by NIWA,” CIAL project director Michael Singleton said. “This AWS will give us site-specific data to help us further analyse the potential runway alignments.”Michael said the weather station is like those used at most operational airports.“It will measure wind speed and direction, air pressure, temperature, humidity, rainfall, cloud cover and visibility,” he said.“It will help further the deeper analysis of our two potential runway alignments and help us achieve our aim of establishing a preferred alignment by the end of this year.”In September last year CIAL released a preliminary aeronautical assessment of the Tarras site which stated that the proposed airport would be able to serve short-haul international destinations such as Australia and parts of the Pacific.The assessment said the site could support an airfield with a single runway of at least 2.2 kilometres and possibly up to three kilometres.Two runway alignments have been identified in a preliminary aeronautical assessment.CIAL revealed plans in July 2020 to develop a jet-capable airport at Tarras, after the company had spent $45M purchasing land bordered by State Highway 8 and 8A.The controversial proposed airport has received backlash in the Tarras, Upper Clutha and wider Queenstown Lakes community, including from the Queenstown Airport Corporation (QAC) chief executive Glen Sowry, who says it is unclear why the well-served region would need an additional airport. Find more information about CIAL’s plans at Tarras on their website.IMAGES: Supplied

Some Wānaka accommodation providers say they are still waiting for the reopening of the border with Australia to make a significant difference to their booking numbers.In mid-March PM Jacinda Ardern announced that New Zealand would reopen to vaccinated visitors from Australia from April 12, just ahead of the Easter break and the Australian school holidays; and vaccinated travellers from 65+ other countries would be able to arrive from May.Lake Wānaka Managed Accommodation office manager Liz Webster told the Wānaka App that since the announcement, bookings have been “slowly filling up”.“It’s not the big surge we were hoping for: It’s not like the Aussies are pouring into Wānaka,” she said.The company manages a range of holiday homes, apartments and other accommodation in and around Wānaka.Another accommodation provider, Mandy Enoka, says there’s “certainly not a flood of bookings coming in and much excitement.”Mandy is the director of Wanaka Selections Holiday Homes and Te Wanaka Lodge, which combined can sleep 300 people per night. “From what we understand and what we’ve been told by our Australian guests enquiring they are having trouble securing insurance,” Mandy said.“There’s a lot of reluctance to commit; a lot of distrust in whether alert levels will change.”Trans-Tasman travellers have historically made up 40 percent of New Zealand’s international arrivals, around 1.5M Australians per year.Liz said she believes one of the reasons Australian visitors aren’t making bookings is because they are choosing to stay with family after long periods being separated.However, both operators said booking numbers are looking more promising further into the year, particularly for the winter holidays. Accommodation providers say they have stronger bookings for winter, which is when tourism minister Stuart Nash said he expects visitor numbers to start to increase. PHOTO: Charlotte Kiri PhotographyThe slow-ish start to new bookings following the border reopening announcement was signalled by minister of tourism Stuart Nash.He said initial bookings to New Zealand from international tourists would be “measured”, before travel started to pick up for winter holidays and ski tourism, before the peak summer season.Lake Wānaka Tourism (LWT) general manager Tim Barke said many local businesses were “cautiously very excited” about the arrival of international visitors, even if the impact wouldn’t be substantial right away.“This is the certainty they have needed to start planning and getting their businesses back up and ready to welcome our manuhiri (guests) from overseas.”Australian visitors will arrive in New Zealand from next Tuesday (April 12).

A significant private capital raise by tourism giant RealNZ will be used to help it grow, invest in technology and expand, RealNZ CEO Stephen England-Hall said.A group of leading Kiwi investors including Milford Asset Management, Rod Drury, Jonty Edgar, Martin Dippie, and Brendan Lindsay have joined RealNZ in what the company said was one of the largest private capital raises in New Zealand tourism.RealNZ owns and operates numerous tourism companies in Queenstown Lakes including Treble Cone Ski Area, Cardrona Alpine Resort, and Queenstown Jet, as well as numerous others further afield.“Following the appointment of CEO Stephen England-Hall, the last 12 months have been a period of significant change for RealNZ, with a fresh strategy, group-wide reorganisation, rebranding and common purpose all implemented, a purpose that has helped attract some of New Zealand’s leading investors and set RealNZ on a path to a stronger future,” RealNZ chair (and Queenstown Lakes mayor) Jim Boult said.New funding will support RealNZ’s growth.The investment coincides with the announcement of New Zealand’s staged border reopening.“We are on a mission to accelerate the shift to sustainable tourism and this will help us do that,” Stephen England-Hall said.Investors were chosen based on their connection to the regions RealNZ operates in, as well as their key areas of knowledge.Founded by Les and Olive, Lady Hutchins, RealNZ has been family-owned since the 1950s and the family, who have also invested in this equity raise, will retain a majority shareholding in the business.Stephen thanked the departing board members.“I’d like to acknowledge the outgoing board members, particularly Jim Boult and Sue Sheldon, who have given incredible guidance throughout the capital raise process, and for their generous support through these challenging times,” he said. “This investment signals the start of the next chapter of RealNZ and I know they will all be proud to see where this journey takes our business next.”PHOTOS: Supplied

After eight years of service to the Wānaka chamber of commerce (Ignite Wānaka), general manager Naomi Lindsay has resigned to pursue her own business interests.Last year Naomi launched a food tourism business called Forage & Feast and recently she became the new leaseholder of the cafe at the Wānaka Lakes Health Centre.“I have had an amazing time working for Ignite and the business community in the last eight years and the decision to leave was not easy,” Naomi said.“I firmly believe though it's important to know when it's your time to move on and give someone else the chance to take Ignite to the next level with the same passion and spirit I did many years ago.”Naomi created and managed a number of events for Ignite Wānaka including the Ignite Wānaka Business Awards PHOTO: The Film CrewIgnite Wānaka chairperson Andrew Howard said Naomi’s enthusiasm was a great match with the business community’s culture and helped drive Ignite Wānaka’s success.“Naomi’s brand and passion has been synonymous with Ignite Wānaka for the last eight years,” Andrew said. “She has overseen significant growth in the membership base, and the event and training opportunities that we deliver.”Andrew said the board is working with Naomi on a transition plan to ensure the continuity of Ignite’s services while they seek someone to fill the role.Naomi will take up the cafe lease at the Wānaka Lakes Health Centre in April.

A local farmer will benefit from a new arrangement between wool garment company Devold and its growers.Going against industry norms, Devold will pay its New Zealand growers a fixed premium price per kilogram, which would add $9M to the New Zealand wool industry.Devold, a major Norwegian clothing brand created in 1853, has just one New Zealand store, located in Wānaka.Bendigo Station supplies wool to Devold and co-owner and operator Stew Perriam said the contract was unique.“One of the big positives of the contract is that it rewards us as growers,” Stew said. “It gives us certainty as we move forward.”The status quo in the current wool contract systems sees growers paid a fluctuating rate based on the market average.However Devold growers will receive a fixed premium as well as a bonus payment of two dollars per kilogram above the new rate should the wool meet certain criteria. “To produce the very best garments we need the very best wool so… the sentiment must be reflected in what we pay our growers,” Devold Wool Direct (the company’s buying arm) general manager Craig Smith said.“We are the first in the industry to place such value on our supply chain but I hope we won't be the last.”Stew said premium merino growers strive to be right at the top.“Having this contract in place gives us the confidence to produce the very best wool we can,” he said.Devold CEO Catherine Strange said the company will be looking to fix this contract for a further four years (five in total) once the situation in Ukraine has stablised. Once a five-year contract was concluded it would push the value of the new contract over $40 million, she said.“We remain confident in the Devold brand’s strong market position and continued growth,” she said. “Our growers are very important to us and we will do our utmost to ensure their contribution is valued.”PHOTOS: Supplied

The top watchdog has criticised a government tourism fund, that handed out hundreds of millions dollars, for a lack of transparency and clarity - and many in the industry are fuming.The Auditor-General's report released today confirmed many of the concerns small operators raised when the $290 million Strategic Tourism Assets Protection Programme (STAPP) fund was allocated in 2020. It was paid out to 127 businesses.It found ministers handing the money out struggled themselves to define what a strategic asset was.Some criteria was unclear.Tens of millions of dollars were given to business owned by profitable parent companies, when the money was supposed to support struggling businesses.And official advice to halt the programme was ignored.The Auditor-General concluded the limited documentation meant it was hard to determine value for money or to adequately explain the decisions.Questions began when former tourism minister Kelvin Davis unveiled millions in STAPP funding for Discover Waitomo and Whale Watch Kaikōura before applications had even closed in June 2020.Not long after, more than $10m was earmarked for AJ Hackett Bungy in a grant and loan.Other successful applicants had to wait until August that year, and less than a month later, there were calls for a review.The Office of the Auditor-General decided to step in by February last year, announcing it would take a close look at STAPP given the amount of public money on the table.The office declined to be interviewed but in video, released to media on Thursday afternoon, senior inquiries specialist Helen Colebrook said there were definite areas for improvement."We had some concerns about the transparency of the process in that decisions weren't always clearly documented."Ministers can make whatever decisions they want and they will take advice from a range of people. However, it needs to be very clear why they've made the decisions they have, particularly if that differs from advice that's been provided by officials."And decision-makers - the tourism recovery ministers - did not accept official advice to stop STAPP or fund a few tourism businesses instead.In the future, Colebrook said government departments should ensure criteria was clear so applicants knew whether it was worth applying and those who did apply were eligible, and that all decisions were well documented for transparency and public trust.Heritage Expedition co-owner Aaron Russ said the process was far from fair."I think 100 percent the government sat back and picked favourites and chose who they wanted to see at the finish line."The majority of their guests for their remote trips were from overseas.He applied, and was rejected."There was certainly a significant lack of clarity around what was being looked for, what the criteria were, and as an operator in an incredibly challenging situation at the time, really difficult to engage and get any clarity as well."The successful applicants got grants or loans from between $148,000 to $8.6m - some got both.Finance Minister Grant Robertson said the government needed to act swiftly and decisively during a pandemic."We will always look at those decisions again and, in hindsight, we may make slightly different decisions."But overall, I stand by the fact that the tourism industry needed support. There were significant issues for particularly operators that were very significant for their town or their region, and we had to act."Heliview Flights co owner Yolanda Foale's Cromwell-based business was also unsuccessful.She said they were severely disadvantaged by a flawed system."Us as a small business is having to compete against big business that has been favoured by government, and ... on top of the Covid problems, it's made life double difficult by having to compete against businesses that have been given a hand out - taxpayer money."And it is because criteria hasn't been consistently applied. Government's gone on a whim of picking winners and losers."The time for words was over, she said."The Auditor-General is asking for another review. Us on the front-line, we don't need another review, we need action now."We need to know how they're going to correct these injustices. What's going to be done about it."Hiking New Zealand co-director Daniel Murphy did not apply for STAPP funding, saying it did not look like they were eligible."In hindsight, looking at who did get funding, we wish we had applied because it appears that those companies didn't meet the criteria either."But they got funding out of the STAPP process."It has been a source of frustration."We were just puzzled at why these companies that had big parent companies and a lot of money behind them got funding when it was sort of clear they hadn't exhausted other means of funding, which was very clear in the criteria."The Auditor-General's office was calling for a formal review in the next few years to see whether STAPP made a difference.RNZ approached the former tourism minister Kelvin Davis to speak on the fund he announced and had previously defended.He passed the buck on to the current Tourism Minister Stuart Nash.Nash told Checkpoint: "We're always wise in hindsight.""Ministers were operating under great urgency at a time of massive uncertainty as we know, and they had to make decisions quickly."He said the Auditor-General had the ability to look at it "in the cold hard light of day".Nash said he did not accept that money was given to large companies that did not need it.PHOTO: RNZ / Dom Thomas

A new tourism marketing campaign launches in Australia this week to build demand for travel to New Zealand as the country prepares to reopen borders to its first international visitors.The prime minister announced yesterday (Wednesday March 16) that the borders would reopen to Australians on April 12, and to many other countries around the world by May 1, with local businesses and organisations celebrating the move.See also: ‘Ready to welcome the world back’: border to reopen in time for EasterThe campaign, which features videos such the one below, aims to bolster bookings in the early reopening period, which is expected to start slowly.Lake Wānaka Tourism (LWT) general manager Tim Barke said opening the border to Australians before Easter would allow demand to grow in the following months.Visitors tend to take a while to work out their plans, Tim said: “I think the first people that will be travelling will be people visiting friends and relatives. It will increase over time.”Stuart also said there would be a “rebuild” period ahead. “International travel will be very competitive and airlines will take time to build up their schedules and routes,” he said. “The initial bookings from international tourists will be measured.” “In the first few months we expect people will travel mainly to connect with friends or family, before travel picks up for winter holidays, ski tourism, and ultimately our peak summer season in 2022/23.”Tim said while it would take a while for businesses to “get up off their knees”, opening up to Australians and others is still “really welcome news”.“[Local businesses] are looking forward to getting back to business.”Trans-Tasman visitors have historically made up 40 percent of international arrivals to New Zealand.PHOTO: Wānaka App

Business South is canvassing its members for their views as it prepares to make a submission on the Government’s proposed Income Insurance Scheme, which would offer financial support to workers who are made redundant.  The proposed scheme would provide workers with 80% of their income for up to seven months in the event they lose their job through no fault of their own.  The Government plans to introduce the redundancy scheme in a bid to improve workforce resilience and provide a buffer against any future economic and policy shocks.New Zealand and Australia are the only countries in the OECD that do not already offer such support. “There are clearly strong opinions on the scheme and we encourage business to voice these and work with Business South so we can advocate on their behalf,” says Business South Chief Executive, Mike Collins.  Business South will make a submission to the Government on behalf of southern businesses before the consultation period closes on April 26, 2022 and will consult widely to ensure the submission accurately reflects the depth and breadth of views among the southern business community. “The aim is to provide different opportunities for businesses to engage in this process, and we strongly encourage them to do so,” says Mr Collins. “It’s important to share the voices of southern businesses, so the Government is aware of their views and any impacts they foresee for their operations.” Businesses and individuals can have their say on the New Zealand Income Insurance Scheme here. 

A Wānaka couple has applied for consent to establish an annual open-air cinema event at Glendhu Bay, similar to the long-running Black Barn OpenAir Cinema, to be held each summer for the next 10 years.Edelweiss Productions Ltd, owned by Urs and Doris Blum, applied for resource consent in September last year to establish the movie event in a paddock on the corner of Motatapu and Mt Aspiring Roads, opposite the Glendhu Bay motor camp.The plan was to start this March but the ongoing Covid pandemic restrictions means the inaugural event is likely to be postponed to 2023.  It’s proposed to hold the Glendhu event during either February or March each year, working in with other local events traditionally held at that time of the year, such as the Motatapu Race,Tuki Festival, Ripe Food and Wine Festival and so on. The proposed location of the outdoor cinema at Glendhu Bay opposite the Glendhu Bay motor camp. If approved, the event would last up to nine nights, from 6:30pm to 11:30pm, and is considered to be “small-scale” - hosting a maximum of 1,500 guests. Guest parking would be onsite and the application suggests a return bus service from Wānaka would be trialled over the first few years.The consent application is supported by Glendhu Station landowners the McRae family as well as Glendhu Bay motor camp’s managers Phil and Pene Hunt.Phil said the concept of an annual open air cinema event is great: “We’re up for anything like this which brings something new to Glendhu.”Edelweiss Productions Ltd is based in Havelock North but is owned by Doris and Urs Blum who moved to Wānaka a year ago. Urs declined to comment.Edelweiss has successfully operated the annual Black Barn OpenAir Cinema in Havelock North at Black Barn Vineyards for 17 years and in their consent application they said they were “keen to bring this unique experience of 'A movie night under the stars' to Wānaka”. The consent application to the Queenstown Lakes District Council is currently pending.PHOTOS: Edelweiss Productions

A volatile operating environment due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in a decline in revenue and profits, Queenstown Airport Corporation (QAC) has announced in its half-year earnings report.QAC says passenger numbers reduced by 27 percent for the period July to December 2021 when compared to the same period in 2020.“Nationwide and regional lockdowns and movement restrictions were in place for more than half of the six-month reporting period, resulting in significantly reduced passenger and aircraft movements,” QAC board chair Adrienne Young-Cooper said.“There were no flights between Auckland and Queenstown, usually our busiest route, for 178 days creating an extremely challenging business environment.”Domestic passenger arrivals and departures decreased by 30 percent to 482,005 over the reporting period.QAC board chair Adrienne Young-CooperThe trans-Tasman ‘bubble’ was open for a short period from April 2021 to July 2021. In July there were 12,960 international passenger movements and none for the remainder of the year.Total operating expenditure increased from $4.5M to $6.4M which Adrienne said is well below pre Covid-19 levels.“The increase in total expenses in the reporting period compared to the previous year can be attributed to the resumption of some operating expenditure necessary to ensure organisational resilience and preparedness for recovery, including a 10 percent increase in our workforce,” she said.QAC chief executive officer Glen Sowry said businesses operating at both Queenstown and Wānaka airports have been severely affected. “Providing support to the operators at the airports has been an integral part of our response,” Glen said.“To date 68 tenants have received support, valued at $9.85M, and $2.6M for the reporting period. All businesses at Queenstown Airport are continuing to operate.”In November 2021 a five-year management services agreement between QAC and the Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) was formalised. Under that agreement QAC will operate and manage Wānaka Airport but does not have responsibility for long-term planning and capital investment decisions for Wānaka Airport.QAC is a council-controlled trading organisation (CCTO) which owns and operates Queenstown Airport, and manages Wānaka Airport and the Glenorchy airstrip on behalf of QLDC under management services agreements. The company is owned by QLDC (75.01 percent) and Auckland International Airport Limited (24.99 percent.Find QAC’s full interim report here.PHOTOS: Supplied

Wānaka restaurant Kika has done it again, with yet another accolade at the prestigious Cuisine Good Food Awards.Each year Cuisine selects more than 40 experts from around the country to anonymously judge restaurants and find the country’s 100 best.Kika made the top-100 list 2017, 2018 and 2019 and 2021 (the awards didn’t take place in 2020 due to Covid-19) but this is the first time it has received a “hat”, awarded to restaurants singled out for an exceptionally high standard.“We are over the moon at receiving a hat,” Kika owner James Stapley said. “It’s a great boost to the team and all of our hard work.” “We are still doing what we have always done but great to be recognised,” James said.He told the Wānaka App support from locals had been crucial during the “incredibly difficult time” for hospitality in recent years.“I’m personally eternally grateful for the amazing support we have had by the Wānaka locals. Without that continuing support it would be a different story.”Cuisine judges, who shared the top restaurant list on February 22, said Kika’s reputation “thunders on”.James said at Kika the team always strives to make delicious, interesting food with “lots of layers of flavours”.“Kika exudes warmth and welcome, which is what they’re all about. Stapley regularly changes the menu to marry with the seasons, but these plates are made for sharing.”Kika’s Roman gnocchi, mushroom puree and confit garlic cream was singled out by Cuisine judges as a top dish to try.James said Kika has always strived to make food that is both delicious and interesting.“The food is simple but complex,” he said. “Lots of layers of flavours.”Kika was Wānaka’s only restaurant to receive a Cuisine hat.PHOTOS: Supplied