$85m for Queenstown infrastructure

Queenstown will get $85 million to spend on shovel-ready projects, including a town centre upgrade and new arterial routes.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced the package in Queenstown yesterday and said it would unlock about $300m of projects in the town and create about 320 direct jobs.

The money will be split between the Queenstown Town Centre ($35m) project and stage one of the Queenstown arterials roading project ($50m). ‘‘This stunning town is an internationally renowned tourism attraction and unfortunately the local economy is experiencing a major downturn as a result of Covid-19,’’ Ardern said. The district’s GDP was about $3 billion and the local economy was growing at more than twice the rate of the national economy before Covid-19, she said.

The projects would ensure the construction sector did not suffer the same negative consequences as the tourism sector.

The construction sector was the second largest contributor to Queenstown Lakes’ economic growth, employing about 4300 people, accounting for about 14 per cent of all jobs.

‘‘These projects came to our attention as being shovel-ready and able to redeploy affected workers,’’ she said.

They were submitted through the Infrastructure Reference Group (IRG) process and were identified as front-runners to support the district’s economic and social recovery.

Prime Minister

The arterials project was a strong candidate to be fast-tracked under the Covid-19 Recovery (Fast Track Consenting) Bill which would see it able to get underway within 12 months.

The town centre streetscape project would be worth $57m in total, with the Queenstown Lakes District Council contributing $22m. It included street-scaping works, cycle and walkways, and was expected to create about 130 jobs.

Construction would be under way within three months and take about a year to complete.

The projects would also mean the council could proceed with a new town centre public transport hub, costing $25m and creating about 100 further jobs.

Both projects would support Project Manawa, a joint investment from the council and Nga¯ i Tahu Property, with new civil buildings, amenities and commercial development at the edge of the arterial road at a cost of approximately $120m.

The funding was the first to be announced under the $3 billion set aside in Budget 2020 to support infrastructure projects.

‘‘. . . Unfortunately the local economy is experiencing a major downturn as a result of Covid-19.’’

Jacinda Ardern