An approximately 8.5 hectare block of bare land in the township of Lake Hawea -some 17 kilometres north of Wanaka - is one of the biggest single wholesale residential development blocks to have been placed on the market in the past decade.

The largely rectangular block at 195 Lakeview Terrace is surrounded by existing residential properties. The gently sloping tussock and grassed block has been owned by a Dunedin based family for the past 25 years, and is now being marketed for sale by tender through Bayleys Wanaka, with tenders closing on June 14. The land is classified Township Zone under the Queenstown District Lakes Council plan.

Bayleys Wanaka salesperson Todd Soper said: “An indicative residential subdivision plan for the site identified the potential for the creation of between 73 to 80 sections from the existing single property.”

“The site has access off Lakeview Terrace via a 20 metre wide road which is a sufficient width to accommodate a local road capable of handling up to 200 individual sections.

“The property has good visibility in both directions along Lakeview Terrace to allow for safe entry and exit into what could be the new enclave.

“Queenstown Lakes District Council had indicated its intention to review the Township Zone guidelines later this year, with the potential that the current minimum section size of 800 square metres could drop to minimum section sizes of 450 square metres,” Mr Soper said.

“Based on a higher density design, it is feasible that up to 120 lots ranging in size from 500 – 600 square metres could be yielded from the site.”

Mr Soper said the Lake Hawea land could well see the settlement become a satellite township for Wanaka.

“Wanaka housing developments such as Northlake, The Heights, Kirimoko, and Hikuwai bringing sections onto the market for between $350,000 and $550,000. A new large scale subdivision in Lake Hawea would offer an attractive price point for those looking at entry level property in the district on which to build,” he said.

“The drive from Lake Hawea to Wanaka is only some 18 minutes, less than a suburban commute in the likes of Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and the congested roads getting into Queenstown.”

Sections in the nearby Timsfield development at Lake Hawea which were released to the market earlier this year have been selling for between $249,000 and $300,000. Of the 42 Timsfield sites released, only six remain unsold. The sites ranged in size from 800 square metres to 1,300 square metres.

“The speed at which Timsfield has sold down shows there is demand for greenfield sites in the town as people find they are priced out of the Wanaka market,” Mr Soper said.

The Government’s 2013 census figures report that Lake Hawea has a population of 2175 residents, compared with 6,471 people recorded as living in Wanaka. The census also noted that Lake Hawea township was made up of 906 owner/occupied dwellings, and an additional 363 ‘crib’ holiday homes.

The latest information from Statistics New Zealand from its 2018 estimate lists Lake Hawea as having a population of 2,760 and Wanaka 8,900.