Kawarau Riverside Reserve Management Plan

Have your say on a plan to manage the Kawarau Riverside Reserves

Queenstown Lakes District Council has developed a draft Reserve Management Plan (RMP) for a collection of land parcels located alongside the Kawarau River in Frankton, jointly referred to as the Kawarau Riverside Reserves.

We want to know if we have got it right and if you support a shared vision for how these open spaces can be enjoyed by all.

What you can expect to see in the plan:

• The vision for the reserves: This reflects the communities' long-term aspirations for the site.

• The objectives for the reserves: These represent the key goals of the RMP and provide the framework for managing the reserves.

• The policies that help to achieve the objectives: These guide all actions, decisions and behaviours within the reserves and are grouped under nine topics: community, recreation, infrastructure, access, ecology, community events, services, encroachment, and smoke and vape free.

>>Read the draft Kawarau Riverside Reserve Management Plan

Background

The Parks team have developed a Reserve Management Plan (RMP) for a collection of land parcels located alongside the Kawarau River (east of the bridges in Frankton) called the Kawarau Riverside Reserves.

This area is popular with locals and visitors walking and biking the Twin Rivers Trail, part of the Queenstown Trail ‘Great Ride’ network, which connects the reserves while hugging one of New Zealand’s most iconic and picturesque rivers. Also included in the scope of the plan is the Ivan Young Zoological Reserve, which used to house the Zoological Gardens.

In February-March 2024 we engaged with the community to gather early insights and aspirations for how they’d like to use and enjoy these reserves to inform the draft plan.

Feedback from early engagement showed strong support for biodiversity and ecological enhancement, retaining the informal and natural character of the reserves, and improved access to the river. The resulting draft plan is guided by this feedback and aims to provide a shared vision for these reserves that supports the community and those that visit.

>>View the feedback gathered from the early insights engagement (120 comments pinned to ideas map from 54 submitters)

Map of the Kawarau Riverside Reserves

How to have your say

The formal submission period will be for two months from 26 January 2026. This is a chance for the community to tell us what we got right and what you'd like to change in the draft RMP. All submissions will then be considered by the Parks team to form the final RMP.

>>Read the draft Kawarau Riverside Reserve Management Plan

Submissions on the draft Kawarau Riverside Reserve RMP can be provided from Monday 26 January to Sunday 29 March 2026 on the submission for at the bottom of the page.

Submitters also have the option to speak to their submission at a public hearing in April.

Click here for guidance on how to write a submission and more FAQs to support consultation and engagement

Opportunities to find out more

We’re hosting community drop-in sessions for anyone interested in learning more about the draft plan. All are welcome to come along and chat to the Parks team when you are out and about enjoying the Kawarau Riverside reserves.

Join an onsite drop-in session:

When: Saturday 14 February 10.00am-12.00pm and Thursday 19 February 4.00pm-6.00pm

Where: On the Twin Rivers Trail at the end of Riverside Road in Frankton

What is a Reserve Management Plan?

A Reserve Management Plan sets out how Council intends to provide for and ensure the use, enjoyment, maintenance, protection, and preservation of a reserve. It details all the rules and regulations to act as a guide for Council officers in making both day-to-day and long-term decisions about how reserves and open spaces under its control are to be used, managed, or developed.

Next steps

Once public consultation has closed and public hearings have been heard, all submissions will be considered by the hearing panel and used to make final changes to the Reserve Management Plan for Kawarau Riverside Reserve. This plan will then be presented to Community &Environment Committee in June for recommendation and to Full Council to consider adopting the plan in August 2026.

Got a question?

If you have a question, please submit it on the tool below and we'll get it answered as soon as possible. All questions and answers will be published for everyone to see.