Last 'visioning' workshops in Queenstown then Wanaka

The final workshops in the Shaping our Future visioning process will take place in Queenstown and Wanaka this week.

Workshops in the smaller communities of the Queenstown Lakes District (Kingston, Luggate, Arrowtown, Glenorchy – Makarora has a visioning workshop this evening) have produced a range of similar desires for the future and organisers are keen to see how these will differ from those of residents in the district’s larger towns, who are encouraged to take the opportunity to have their say at the final meetings.

Steering committee spokesman David Kennedy hopes that the work done so far will inspire people.

“There’s been an outstanding response from the smaller communities and we’ve learned about what they value and how they see their future. There is much that those in the bigger towns of Queenstown and Wanaka need to consider as we develop a vision we can all share, district wide.”

So far, the Shaping our Future facilitators have found that people who’ve attended the smaller community forums feel very connected to their communities, enjoy a tight knit, supportive relationship with others who live there and value heritage and history, freedom and access to the outdoors and recreation.

Common themes in discussions about how people wanted their communities to look in 50 years’ time included the retention of a strong sense of community, more involvement in decision making and the building of diverse, strong economies that would provide work and reasons for young people to stay. People wanted hamlet style developments rather than urban sprawl and an eco-friendly tourism plan for the entire district that protected community cultures and the environment.

Mr Kennedy is encouraging people in the bigger towns of Queenstown and Wanaka to listen to the smaller communities.

“How often do we think about the fact that Cardrona relies on the Queenstown/Wanaka road and wants to see itself to Wanaka as Arrowtown is to Queenstown? Do we consider that Arrowtown wants to be very different from Queenstown and Wanaka, but wants strong connections by gondola and monorail to other towns? How about the fact that Luggate too wants to encourage tourism and knows a bigger airport at Wanaka will help? It’s time for us to consider what these communities want so when we get along to the meetings this week we can contribute our ideals informed by the learnings from our smaller towns.”

The final meetings, which are open to everybody, take place at the Queenstown Events Centre

4-6pm and 7-9pm on Wednesday 28 September and at the Lake Wanaka Centre 4-6pm and 7-9pm on Thursday 29 September. There is also an online survey at www.shapingourfuture.org.nz.