Wānaka soon to be home to $180m alpine resort

Work on a $180 million hotel and resort development in Wānaka is expected to begin next year.The Mount Iron Wānaka development would include a 136-room Sudima hotel, 72 townhouses and apartments, shared swimming pools, landscaped gardens, dining and conference spaces.It would be built on 1.8 hectares of land at the foot of Mount Iron and was expected to take four years to build.Sudima Hotels and Hind Management founder and chief executive Sudesh Jhunjhnuwala said the hotel would bring much-needed amenities to the town."Wānaka has grown significantly but its hotel offering hasn't kept pace and we see a real gap in the market for a high-quality, full-service hotel," he said.The development includes 39 three to four bedroom townhouses and 33 apartments priced from $1.4 million.Supplied / Mt Iron Developments LtdDespite its rapid growth, Wānaka has not had a new hotel of any significance since the 106-room Edgewater opened in 1986.That growth has not been without teething issues with concerns about a shortage of housing and the cost of living as well as pressure on existing services including healthcare and wastewater.The development was originally proposed in 2022 but was put on ice due to the economic downturn and changes in planning requirements.The existing resource consent allowed construction to start but an amendment to the consent was also needed as the masterplan had been revised with more focus on creating an alpine resort.KR Capital, which was part of engineering and design consultancy Kirk Roberts, came up with the project.An aerial view of the planned $180 million Mount Iron Wānaka development, which includes a 136-room Sudima hotel and 72 residential properties.Supplied / Mt Iron Developments LtdKirk Roberts chief executive Jade Kirk said a development of this scale created jobs, supported local businesses and added opportunities for hospitality, tourism and retail."We wanted to rethink the traditional resort model and create something genuinely different - bringing together residential living, tourism, hospitality, recreation, and health and well-being within one integrated destination," she said."As the region continues to grow, we see an opportunity to introduce something that complements its natural environment while contributing positively to its long-term economic future."Queenstown Lakes deputy mayor Quentin Smith said the new development was "the right thing in the right place"."It'll probably represent the tallest building we have in Wānaka at this point in time, so it is a major thing, but it's also an area called Three Parks and it's not close to existing residents," he told Morning Report.He said Wānaka was in need of a new hotel."We're in the tourist circuit and we get a lot of visitors here, and there hasn't been a lot of large scale accommodation," he said."One of the downsides of that is it means a lot of houses are rented out for accommodation. We want houses for residents and for locals."Hind Management, which operated Sudima Hotels, would manage the hotel and residences.Local Sotheby's International Realty agent Sheryl Alty said the development would bring a completely fresh offering to Wānaka."We see it appealing to buyers at different stages of life, from those seeking a holiday base to those making Wānaka their permanent home or planning their next chapter in retirement," she said."For buyers who divide their time between Wānaka and elsewhere, the option of managed rental arrangements adds another layer of appeal. It allows them to explore how personal use and rental accommodation could fit their ownership plans."The planned hotel and plaza at Mount Iron Wānaka.Supplied / Mt Iron Developments LtdEarthworks were expected to start early next year with work on residential properties occurring later in the year, but timing would depend on the amended consent being granted.The $300m privately-owned Wānaka Health Precinct was also under development about 700 metres away from the Mount Iron Wānaka resort.A separate 250 home development, also near Mt Iron, was recently granted fast-track approval.