Man fined $42k for building on Fernhill footpath

A Queenstown man who illegally erected a building on a public road reserve he claimed was his driveway, and has left it there for two and a half years, has been convicted and fined more than $42k.

In August, Queenstown Lakes District Council filed a charge with the courts concerning a breach of the Local Government Act 1974. 

The charges were for encroaching on a road by erecting a building on the road reserve adjacent to a property at Fernhill. The defendant acted without the Council's consent, and the encroachment was not authorised by or under any Act.

In a statement today the council said the man had now been found guilty in a judge-alone trial.

The statement said council officers made several attempts to engage with the man to achieve voluntary compliance and pursued legal action after these efforts were unsuccessful.

In a District Court decision Judge Mark Williams confirmed the building was located on the road, not the defendant’s private driveway as he claimed, and this was done without council consent.

The court found the man guilty, fining him $22,655 for the offence and ordered him to pay $20,000 towards the council’s legal costs.

The building included a clothes line, rubbish bins and gas bottles as well as a power connection.

QLDC Monitoring, Enforcement and Environmental Manager Isabelle Logez said the case highlighted the importance of seeking approval before carrying out any works on public land. 

“We hope this case serves as a reminder to check with council before starting any building or structural work on public land.” 

Under the Local Government Act 1974, any structure placed in a road reserve without authorisation is unlawful. The council is engaging with the defendant to remove the structure.

When Crux visited the site last year, it appeared to be a small house or site office. It appeared to be abandoned.

Correspondence, seen by Crux at the rime, between the QLDC and the person who owned the dwelling - or site office - showed two issues at the centre of the visit by staff and police. One was the positioning of the structure on reserve land - being the footpath. The second was the alleged unlawful occupation of it overnight.

The correspondence suggested the site owner had permission to build a driveway across the footpath, but not to put the moveable building on the reserve land/footpath or live in it overnight.

Emails seen by Crux suggest the owner was asked in 2023 to apply for  a 'licence to occupy' as well as building consent permissions.