The community can still have a say on the draft management plan for the Queenstown gardens.

Queenstown Lakes District Council parks manager Gordon Bailey said while there hadn’t been many submissions to date, what had been received was of very high quality.

“We’re pleased with the response so far but we’d like to remind other people not to leave it till the last minute,” he said. “There’s still time to have their say.”

The Gardens were established in 1867 by members of the town’s first Borough Council and the new draft management plan took into account the intentions of the Gardens’ founders as well as those of the existing plan, put in place by the Department of Conservation in 1989.

The site had grown to 12.5 hectares from the original 10 hectares and was now home to facilities like the ice rink, bowling green and skate park.

“The Queenstown Gardens is a much loved recreational area and it’s important that we preserve its heritage while at the same time making improvements,” said Mr Bailey. “The number of submissions could be taken as an indication that people are generally happy with the plan but we’re still encouraging people to read it and tell us what they think.”

The draft plan was available on the Council’s website or from the Council office on Gorge Road.

Submissions will close at 4pm on Friday 26 November, 2010 with a hearing to be held at a later date.

ENDS

For further information, please contact Gordon Bailey 03 441 0499

By: Andrea Bunting