Since establishing in 2004, vivian+espie have provided resource management planning and/or landscape planning advice on over 1,000 resource consent applications, district plan changes, or Environment Court appeal cases in the lower South Island.
Over the last decade we have provided advice and project management services in relation to a very wide variety of projects that have included:
Subdivision Consents / Projects
vivian+espie have been the lead planning and landscape consultants on many subdivisions in sensitive rural locations in a number of South Island Districts. Examples of our work include carefully designed subdivisions in locations such as The Mackenzie Basin, Lake Dunstan, Tarras, Hawea, rural Wanaka, the Wakatipu Basin and rural Glenorchy. We specialise in obtaining land use and subdivision consents in these areas where the visual effects need to be carefully managed. Work has ranged from initial feasibility advice, through conceptual design to detailed design, resource consenting and gaining titles. Projects have ranged from two lot subdivisions through to 200 lots.
Rural Subdivision applications – Queenstown Lakes District
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Spatial Planning / Private Plan Change Projects / Planning Policy
We have assisted a number of clients in the creation of new District Plan zones in order to facilitate development and activities. Some key projects have included the Pukaki Tourism Zone in the Mackenzie District, the Quail Rise, Arrow South and Peninsula Bay Zones in the Queenstown Lakes District, the Rolleston L3 Rural Living Zones in the Selwyn District and the Residential 4A Zone in the Waimakariri District.
Pukaki Downs – Tourism Zone
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Wooing Tree Estate – Cromwell, Central Otago
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Surface of Water Activities
vivian+espie specialise in obtaining consents for surface of water activities. We have worked alongside many clients to assist them with consents for this type of activity. Recent examples include the Kiwi Water Park on Lake Dunstan, boat moorings in the Frankton Arm and a commercial fishing operation on Lake Wakatipu (Queenstown Fishing).
Queenstown Marina Development
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Jetties & Boat Moorings
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Heritage Projects
Our team members understand the complexities of heritage projects having assisted in obtaining consents for many proposals involving buildings. Examples of this work include the historic former Queenstown Courthouse (change of use to a bar / restaurant), (Category 1 Listing with Heritage NZ), a change of use for the historic Glenpanel Homestead (Category 3 Listing), along with Dudley’s Cottage and the Threepwood Stables.
Dudley’s Cottage, Arrowtown Chinese Village (2019)
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Threepwood Stables Dwelling
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Commercial Activities
Our team have worked on many complex commercial projects including presenting proposals to urban design panels and providing expert evidence in the Environment Court. Some examples of projects we have worked on include the Mitre 10 Mega Building at the Frankton Flats area and a new office and retail development on a key central block on Beach Street in central Queenstown. Some of our other projects are detailed below.
Recreational Activity – Hot Tubs
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Cowboy’s Bar – Extension
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Residential
vivian+espie have worked on many consents for home builders and investors alike to enable the full potential of a property to be realised. Whether our clients have been wanting to rent out their current property to visitors or build something that is slightly outside of the District Plan requirements, with our skills and knowledge we have been able to assist them with their projects.
Residential Visitor Accommodation Activities
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Residential Builds
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New Property Purchases
vivian+espie has carried out many Due Diligence reports for its clients to assist in the buying and selling of properties. These reports set out the planning issues and opportunities with a particular site.
Landscape and Visual Effects Assessment
vivian+espie provide specialist services in relation to assessing and reporting on the landscape and visual effects of proposed developments. Assessments range from large scale landscape changes, such as new zones or infrastructural projects, down to the effects of a single building. Examples of our work in this area are a cottage on the Wanaka Mount Aspiring Road and Guide Hill Station in the Mackenzie Basin.
Guide Hill Station – Mackenzie Basin
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Wanaka Mount Aspiring Road – Cottage
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District plan formulation projects
vivian+espie were extensively involved in the formulation of the Queenstown Lakes District Plan in the early 2000’s, including presenting extensive evidence to the Environment Court in the process of settling appeals to the new Plan.
Since that time we have been heavily involved in the current review of the Queenstown Lakes District Plan on behalf of a number of clients, as well as in the settlement of key parts of the Central Otago District Plan, the Christchurch City District Plan and the Mackenzie District Plan. vivian+espie also helped prepare the Business Mixed Use and Residential Design Guidelines which have been incorporated as documents into the Proposed District Plan.
Large scale infrastructural projects
State Highway 6 Kawarau Falls Bridge
vivian+espie have provided key resource management and landscape planning inputs for a wide range of infrastructural projects. From small scale matters like Notice of requirement over existing infrastructure, to The Project Hayes, Mount Stuart and Flat Hills windfarms in Central Otago and Southland; the State Highway 6 Kawarau Falls Bridge; the Manuherikia Irrigation Project and the MacRae’s Flat goldmining operation in the Waitaki District.
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Concessions, licences and leases on public land
Our team have helped our clients achieve their projects on reserve and conservation land. We have applied for concessions, licences and leases on public reserve land. We have also prepared Reserve Management Plans for local government. Approval had to be sought from various parties including the harbour master, Contact Energy and Land Information NZ.
Kiwi Water Park
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Queenstown Marina
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The above are some examples of the broad and varied work we have carried out for some of our clients. We will be happy to discuss our track record in relation to your own individual type of project.
- On the Crown Terrace between Queenstown and Wanaka, vivian+espie obtained consent to subdivide two lots into three allotments and create two new building platforms with associated earthworks and landscaping. The notified consent was granted with no submissions and no hearing.
- In rural Wanaka, vivian+espie obtained consent to create a discrete residential building platform in an area of Outstanding Natural Landscape. The consent was granted without the need for a hearing.
Due to these subdivisions being in a rural zone we combined a planning and landscape approach. This landscape design led approach helped us gain resource consent for the building platforms and dwellings that satisfied the strict assessment matters and tests set out in the District Plan.
vivian+espie have been retained by Pukaki Tourism Holdings Limited (PTHL) for more than a decade, providing resource consent and policy planning advise on various tourism related activities.
We prepared submissions on behalf of PTHL on Plan Change 13 of the Mackenzie District plan, which culminated in, after several Environment Court appeals, a section 293 application to approve the Pukaki Tourism Zone on Pukaki Downs Station (as well as relocating a 50 hectare rural residential zone from one side of the property to the other).
We have also since been involved in various resource consent applications implementing the Tourism Zone provisions, including the establishment of the lavender farm and commercial activities.
vivian+espie assisted the client in obtaining a Private Plan Change in relation to part of the Rural Resource Area 6, within the Central Otago District Plan. This change enabled the client to establish the land surrounding the vineyard as a boutique living and lifestyle space, featuring community amenities, light commercial activity and prime residential lots.
Queenstown Marina is a 195-berth marina with an associated wave attenuator to deflect wave energy away from the interior of the marina. The development also includes floating sheds, fuelling services, secure parking and land based commercial buildings.
vivian+espie assisted the client by obtaining consents from both the Otago Regional Council and the Queenstown Lakes District Council to establish and operate the marina in the Frankton Arm of Lake Wakatipu. This work involved applications for a land use, water permit and discharge permit from the ORC and a land use and subdivision consent from QLDC this was as part of a joint notified application.
This decision was appealed and went to the Environment Court where the appeal was successfully mediated. The Environment Court issued a Consent Order granting the consent.
vivian+espie assisted a number of clients in obtaning consents for boat moorings and jetties in the Frankton Arm of Lake Wakatipu. This has involved obtaining consents under both the Operative District Plan and the Proposed District Plan.
Dudley’s Cottage in Arrowtown dates back to c.1880 and is one of the oldest stone cottages in Arrowtown. In 2009 the reincarnation of the cottage into a retail premises and café commenced through a notified resource consent obtained by Blair Devlin vivian+espie. The building is listed as Category 2 with Heritage NZ and is directly adjacent to the historic Chinese miners village, a Category 2 heritage item and an identified archaeological site.
An initial two storey commercial building was approved in 2015 and in 2019 we obtained a further resource consent to construct an additional two storey commercial building within the heritage setting, featuring a café/restaurant on the ground floor and office space on the first floor. Consents were required to alter and add to a Category 2 heritage building with works also within a protected tree dripline. The site is listed with Heritage New Zealand as an Archaeological site.
Throughout the process, vivian+espie provided planning advice to successfully obtain affected party approvals from Heritage New Zealand (HNZ), Arrowtown Planning Advisory Group, QLDC Park and Reserves and the Department of Conservation. The 2019 consent was able to be granted on a non-notified basis.
vivian+espie provided the client with a Landscape and Visual Effects Assessment Report to assist them in obtaining consent to erect a dwelling that incorporates the historic Threepwood stables building. The Threepwood area was the location of early colonial farming in the Wakatipu basin and the stables date from the early 1860’s. This historic setting created a sensitive location. Our landscape reporting and advice took the application through a publicly notified process to successfully gain resource consent.
vivian+espie assisted the client in obtaining consents to operate a commercial recreational activity consisting of thirteen wood-fire hot tubs with supporting service buildings, to include changing rooms, toilets, site office, staff room, plant rooms and water tanks.
We have also assisted in obtaining consents to operate an ebike hire operation, for use within the property, commercial and staff accommodation buildings, plus a further 10 hot tub ancillary to motor home stays.
vivian+espie assisted the client in obtaining the required consents to extend their operation into an adjoining tenancy and also to alter the external appearance of the building within the Queenstown Town Centre Zone.
vivian+espie has assisted 50+ clients in obtaining the required consents to run residential visitor accommodation from their properties in the Wanaka and Queenstown areas. We are able to prepare the required ‘Visitor Accommodation Management Plan’ and can advise on associated rates and development contributions payable.
vivian+espie has assisted many clients in obtaining the required consents to construct residential units and flats where the design of the property falls outside the normal ‘bulk and location’ controls with regard to building heights, setbacks from boundaries, recession planes or site coverage. Resource consent for earthworks is often necessary and we have frequently obtained such consents.
vivian+espie provided the client with landscape and visual effects assessment reports to enable them to obtain the consents required to construct a lodge, tourism and research operation and also a specifically designed Homestead, to replace the existing one, within the Farm Base Area of Guide Hill Station in the Mackenzie.
vivian+espie provided landscape design, assessment and urban design services to NZTA throughout the process of gaining all approvals for the new highway bridge at Kawarau Falls. This involved guidance on design and landscape assessment and evidence at a Council and Environment Court level. This also included the preparation of an Urban Design Masterplan in relation to NZTA internal policies.
vivian+espie provided the client with a landscape and visual effects assessment report to enable them to locate a dwelling, garage and sleep out in the Wanaka Mount Aspiring Road area. The site was in a sensitive Outstanding Natural Landscape location so a thorough design and landscape assessment was required to successfully gain consent via a publicly notified resource consent process.
Resource consent was sought to place an inflatable water amusment device on the surface of Lake Dunstan to be operated on a commercial basis during the summer months.
Queenstown Marina is a 195-berth marina with an associated wave attenuator to deflect wave energy away from the interior of the marina. The development also includes floating sheds, fuelling services, secure parking and land based commercial buildings.
vivian+espie assisted the client by obtaining consents from both the Otago Regional Council and the Queenstown Lakes District Council to establish and operate the marina in the Frankton Arm of Lake Wakatipu. This work involved applications for a land use, water permit and discharge permit from the ORC and a land use and subdivision consent from QLDC this was as part of a joint notified application.
This decision was appealed and went to the Environment Court where the appeal was successfully mediated. The Environment Court issued a Consent Order granting the consent.
