Queenstown neighbours angry over tycoon’s fireworks display

Fitzpatrick Rd residents John Quinn and his daughter Cara, with her 10-year-old showjumping horse Dakota, are worried about the effect a planned fireworks display in their area next Saturday night will have on nearby animals. Photo / Tracey Roxburgh

Plans for an extravagant pyrotechnic display in rural Queenstown next week on a property linked to an American billionaire have outraged neighbours.

It is understood the property at the centre of the Dalefield furore is an exclusive lodge in Littles Rd, owned by a company associated with Empire State Realty Trust chairman, president and chief executive Tony Malkin, of New York.

The first his neighbours knew of the plans for the 14-minute display on New Year’s Eve was through a public notice in this week’s Mountain Scene.

John Quinn, who lives about 1.5km away, in Fitzpatrick Rd, said about 40 concerned neighbours, the majority of whom owned horses, were now scrambling to change their holiday plans to keep an eye on their animals.

On Thursday, he launched an online petition, “Neighbours with animals say Neigh to Queenstown fireworks”.

By yesterday afternoon, more than 300 people had signed it, all of whom felt fireworks, or pyrotechnics, had no place in rural settings.

Mr Quinn said the neighbouring property owners were “not being nimbys”, but were genuinely concerned for the animals’ welfare.

His family had a dog, three alpacas and four showjumping horses — the latter would now be shifted to Garston or Cromwell for the night for their safety.

His daughter, Cara (16), said when horses were exposed to fireworks it not only damaged their hearing, they also went into shock, often taking at least 15 minutes after the last explosion to start calming down.

“You’ve got no control over that animal.

“It’s horrific.”

They were concerned horses in the area could bolt and either end up on roads, creating another hazard for road users and putting the animals at risk, or injure themselves on fences in the process, both potentially leading to having them put down.

Quinn said they had experience with that before, describing it as “really ugly”.

“They’re uncontrollable once they’re in shock.

Mr Quinn said while tranquilising horses was an option, it was not something they wanted to do.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand had approved a safety plan for the private display, and neighbours had been advised to speak to MPI and the SPCA.

“But the whole thing is being totally un-neighbourly,” he said.

“I’ve been in events my whole life, and if we were organising such a thing, we would have made a plan, talked to the community, do a letterbox drop ... [provided] a spare stable area for the night.

“We would have gone to town to do it properly.

“It’s just a pretty poor show in terms of actually interacting with the community and being reasonable.”

In a statement to the ODT, the property owners said they had “deep and long-lived social and charitable connections” in the area.

“As a courtesy, beyond any requirement, mindful of house pets and livestock, we have reached out to neighbours to ensure they are appraised of our plans.

“We will happily consider any reasonable request from our immediate neighbours for financial assistance to move their livestock.

“We are sorry for any inconvenience.”

There was no requirement for the Queenstown Lakes District Council to approve fireworks displays, and council media adviser Sam White said there were no provisions available to the council for it to address potential issues regarding fireworks in the district.

A Fenz spokeswoman said the organiser applied for a compliance certificate for the outdoor pyrotechnics display, and Fenz agreed to the safety precautions set out.

At present, fires and fireworks were unrestricted in Dalefield, which was more than a kilometre away from the Queenstown red zone, where there was a total fire ban, she said.