Ayrburn, the ambitious hospitality development changing Queenstown
No expense has been spared in Central Otago, but what will it cost existing businesses? Debbie Jamieson reports.
Central Otago’s new hospitality precinct Ayrburn features sumptuous restaurants with luxurious furnishings, moody artworks and $186 steaks served in restored 160-year-old farm buildings.
About 3km from Arrowtown, it sits amongst enormous mature trees, a vineyard, imported glazed French pots, and extensive gardens, which developer Chris Meehan believes will soon be better than the Queenstown Botanical Gardens.
The development is still under construction but will ultimately feature 11 bars and restaurants, an upmarket Northbrook retirement village, a boutique hotel, wedding venues, florist and bakery.
Meehan bought the 60ha site in two land packages for $15 million eight years ago, from his friend, philanthropist Adrian Burr.
“Originally I bought it to have it as a house but I have a perfectly nice house down the road,” Meehan says. “Then I thought we could do something better for this land.”
Now it has become a development for Winton, the publicly-listed company of which Meehan is board chairperson and chief executive.
For Meehan it is a “passion project”. “You only get a property this good once in your life doing what I do, and I want to make the most of it.”
He won’t put a cost on the development, just “hundreds of millions”, but no amenity has been declined, no matter the cost.
That includes about $10m to divert and rebuild Mill Creek, which runs through the property and spills into Lake Hayes, planting 40,000 new native trees, and life-sized statues of Napoleon the Clydesdale and Ajax the Romney Ram – prize animals of original farmer William Paterson, commemorated in bronze by NZ artist Neil Laffoley. Napoleon
had to be helicoptered into place.
It is high class, but it also designed to be accessible to all. There’s an ice cream shop, The Dell – a green space for performances and markets – and a playground where a large wooden trout will soon be joined by a 4.5-metre-tall paradise duck.
Under construction is a pond for children to catch freshwater kōura that can be baked on their pizza at the soon-to-be-completed Bakehouse.
The scale of the Ayrburn precinct is such that many are viewing it as a potential disruptor to the region’s entire hospitality industry.
It has already caused waves. The Sunday Star-Times spoke to several local business people and those in the hospitality industry seeking their thoughts; none wanted to be named for fear of compromising their position, or landing on the wrong side of Meehan.
The first issue they were concerned with was the more than 200 staff needed to operate
the first restaurants, bars and ice cream store as they opened in December.
As numerous large new restaurants and hotels have done previously while setting up in Queenstown, staff have been poached from other businesses.
“There’s been a lot of people decide they’d rather work here than somewhere else,” Meehan says. “We haven’t deliberately tried to annoy anyone but we’ve certainly hired a lot of staff from around the area.”
However, Winton soon had its own “bureaucratic mess” to deal with, spending up to 16 weeks trying to get staff working visas transferred. The first few weeks of operation were a struggle, Meehan says.
Mixed online reviews followed – from “what an absolute disappointment” to “gorgeous wine and fabulous food!” – but Meehan says it was profitable from the start.
Now, many in the local hospitality industry are waiting to see what kind of impact Ayrburn will have on Arrowtown and Queenstown.
Some fear it will be the death knell of smaller, locally-owned restaurants, while others hope it will be of a scale that will draw more people into the area, and keep them there longer to explore the attractions.
A local veteran chef thinks people will eventually avoid Queenstown in favour of Ayrburn. “The service is pretty good. The food is getting there. I suspect it will flourish, but the collateral damage will be mumand-dad
businesses.”
Meehan’s ambition is that Ayrburn will become one of the top three tourist spots in Queenstown alongside the ski fields, and Skyline, and sit alongside Arrowtown as an attraction. “I don’t have any desire to take business away from Arrowtown. I think we’ve provided a reason for someone staying in town or in the wider region to come to Arrowtown and come and do both.”
Despite that, there are some “very concerned” business owners in Arrowtown, according to one industry representative.
There are also those who are sceptical Meehan will be able to reach the yields required to justify the level of investment at Ayrburn. “A lot of people have said to me that they can’t get their head around the level of investment with the type of yields you get out of hospitality,” one business representative says.
But the Ayrburn hospitality precinct was not conceived in isolation. At the centre of the development plan is Northbrook retirement village – one of five upmarket retirement villages Winton is building across New Zealand, after Meehan undertook similar developments in Australia.
“All of the other [retirement home providers] were doing a Holden Commodore version, and no-one was doing a BMW. We saw a market for those wanting a BMW,” he says.
A show home is under construction at the Ayrburn Northbrook site and is full of elegant wood panelling, high ceilings, dark colours and glass doors. Ultimately there will be five buildings, between 160 and 196 apartments, and hospital care. Each unit will likely cost between $1m and $7m.
Most of the Northbrook buyers so far have been people who thought they would never move into a retirement village, Meehan says. “We try to position it more like living in a five-star hotel with all your mates.”
However, for the retirement village to be attractive it needs amenities.
He could have built a golf course, but there were already two at neighbouring Millbrook, one across the road at Michael Hill’s place, and another being constructed at nearby Hogan’s Gully.
Instead, the focus on food and drink is designed to draw in family members, locals, cyclists (who already account for 20% of business), and visitors to town. They can arrive via free courtesy coaches from Queenstown.
Also under construction is the flagship restaurant in the original 1862 farm homestead, which is due to open in November and will reflect the exuberant marketing the company has splashed across New Zealand and Australian media.
“The decor is completely over the top think Annabel’s in London. It’s totally ridiculous but fun,” Meehan says.
At the opposite end of the site is the waterfall that runs from neighbouring Millbrook, into Mill Creek. It is a sentimental spot for many locals, including Meehan, who recalls watching puppet shows while enjoying a picnic on the banks, as a child.
Anyone will be able to enjoy the waterfall again, while a 21-room boutique hotel will provide a luxurious escape for visitors.
A select few locals are part of the exclusive Vintners club, giving them access to a private bar and dining facilities. Numbers are capped at 100 and there is a wait-list to join, Meehan says.
Each of the parts of the of the development are interconnected but stand alone, he says. “I’m entirely confident that the hospitality precinct will make really good money over time. It’s already doing well so I think when it’s finished it will do super well.”
He has invested an overwhelming amount – time, money and his own energy, involving himself in every decision he can, especially around food, decor, the garden and artworks.
It has been his hobby for five years and he accepts he is “definitely, no doubt” driving everyone mad with his quest for perfection.
“Winton has a lot of projects on the go. But this one has become my passion project, which I don’t apologise for.”
“You only get a property this good once in your life doing what I do, and I want to make the most of it.”
Chris Meehan