The Wanaka Stakeholders Group has filed for a judicial review of what it says are ”unlawful” decisions surrounding the future of the Wanaka Airport.

The judicial review proceedings were filed against the Queenstown Lakes District Council and Queenstown Airport Corporation (QAC) yesterday in the High Court.

The group wants the High Court to set aside the 100-year lease of the airport given by the council to the QAC. The decision was in breach of the Local Government Act and ”unlawful and unreasonable”, group chairman Michael Ross said.

Mr Ross said the group was not ”anti-growth, anti-tourism, anti-business or anti-development”.

But it did not want ”unmanaged growth which is driven by the agenda of an airport company simply maximising its returns by flooding the Upper Clutha and the Queenstown Lakes District with visitors. We do not want the same problems that other tourism hot spots around the world, including Queenstown, have had to endure”.

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A few moments ago, we alerted media that we had commenced the formal legal process. We'd rather not be going to court, but @QueenstownLakes and @NZQN have left us no choice, esp. given the new details which have come to light in the #WanakaAirport lease https://t.co/LIGiFshb3l

— Protect Wanaka (@ProtectWanaka) October 30, 2019