The Minister for the Environment has accepted this application for referral. The Minister considered the application against the criteria in the COVID-19 Recovery (Fast-track Consenting) Act 2020 (the Act) and the Act’s purpose, and sought and considered written comments from the relevant Ministers, the Queenstown Lakes District Council, and the Otago Regional Council. The Minister has accepted this application for the following reasons:

• the project will help to achieve the purpose of the Act:

• the project will have positive effects on social well-being by providing employment opportunities and flow-on economic benefits, additional residential and commercial premises, and public open space in central Queenstown:

• the project will generate employment by providing, over a two and a half-year period, approximately—

  • 19 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs in planning and design; and

  • 170 FTE jobs in construction; and

  • 54 FTE jobs in financing, sales, leasing, and marketing:

• once the retail and commercial activities are operational, the project will generate approximately 180 permanent FTE jobs:

• the project will increase housing supply through the construction of approximately 370 residential units, 137 of which are intended for co-living:

• the project will contribute to a well-functioning urban environment through the provision of a variety of housing types in a location that has good access to work places, community services, and natural and open spaces:

• the project is likely to progress faster than would otherwise be the case under the Resource Management Act 1991 standard processes:

• any actual and potential effects on the environment, and proposed measures to mitigate adverse effects can be appropriately tested by an expert consenting panel against Part 2 of the Resource Management Act 1991 and the purpose of the Act.