Ziptrek Ecotours

Flying fox allowed to set up next to gondola

Date: November 11, 2009

Tourism heavyweight Skyline has failed to keep newcomer Ziptrek off its turf, with the High Court upholding Ziptrek's resource consent.

The companies have been fighting over Ziptrek Ecotours' right to run a flying fox business on Bob's Peak above Queenstown, which Skyline says would place unfair strain on its gondola business.

Skyline tried to have Ziptrek's consent overturned, claiming it was incorrectly processed as non-notified and would impact Skyline's infrastructure, including its toilets.

But Justice Christine French said while the consent should have been notified it would be unjust to cancel Ziptrek's consent now.

"A referral back would be an exercise in futility, because the outcome would still be the same," she said.

"All that would be achieved would be to cause further delay and put all parties to quite an unnecessary expense."

Justice French also questioned Skyline's motivation and said its real objection was based on "competing interest" in the land.

Skyline has previously said it wanted to build another luge track on Bob's Peak but Ziptrek's flying fox would be in the way.

Queenstown Lakes District Council regulatory manager Roger Taylor said problems identified with the notification process identified by Justice French had already been fixed.

Meanwhile, Ziptrek faces delays on another front, after Skyline felled a tree that was to support the bottom landing platform of Ziptrek's flying fox.

Lakes Property Services manager Jo Conroy told Queenstown Lakes District Council councillors yesterday she had mistakenly allowed Skyline to fell the tree.

After the meeting, Ms Conroy told The Southland Times Skyline said the tree needed to be felled because there was a risk it could fall on the gondola line.

But later inspection proved the tree was not within Skyline's lease area at all, meaning they had no right to fell it.

Ms Conroy would not comment on whether safety was the real reason the tree was felled.

"That was what they said."

Councillor John R Wilson said Ziptrek had been treated poorly while trying to establish its business.

"Ziptrek have been messed about considerably and it keeps going from bad to worse," he said.

Ziptrek will have to reassess the bottom section of the flying fox but councillors have given permission for it to build a track, allowing use of the top section of the flying fox until a long-term solution can be found.

The flying fox is scheduled to open next month.

Neither Ziptrek nor Skyline would comment yesterday.