Luxury $3m lodge may be built on Crown land at Lake Pukaki

The Overseas Investment Office in March last year approved the sale of the 3551ha Guide Hill Station to Hong Kong company Blue Lake Investment for $16.5 million.

Crown land near the shore of Lake Pukaki in the Mackenzie country could become the site of a $3 million lodge for a Hong Kong billionaire.

Hong Kong-based Blue Lake Investment (NZ) is seeking resource consent to build an 805sq m lodge, including a swimming pool and separate 294sq m gatehouse, reports newsroom.co.nz.

The lodge, near Tekapo, would be for Blue Lake director Ka Kit "Peter" Lee, the consent documents suggested.

The Overseas Investment Office in March last year approved the sale of the 3551ha Guide Hill Station to Blue Lake Investment for $16.5 million.

Meanwhile, the station owners told Mackenzie's council it has a contract to buy nearby Crown land.

Acting Commissioner of Crown Lands Craig Harris said there was no contract but Land Information New Zealand last year applied for consent to subdivide 47.8 ha of Crown land "to repatriate it to Guide Hill Station Ltd", newsroom.co.nz reported.

The OIO said Blue Lake, which bought the station from David and Marion Gould, intended to continue to run and improve the existing farm.

In addition, it planned to further develop Guide Hill Station for tourism, with new accommodation and other visitor facilities; and for academic research, with a new crop research facility operated in conjunction with Lincoln University, at a total cost of $5.6m

Blue Lake also intended to donate $410,000 to Lincoln University, the A2O cycleway and the Mackenzie Trust over three years.

The Gould family took over the hill country station in 1962.

Guide Hill Station was originally part of the Braemar Estate and was carved off in the early 1900s.

It had many owners until David Gould's father bought the property in 1962.