[ad_1]
A New Zealand farming family has gifted the crown 900 hectares of virgin land by Lake Wakatipu, saying it is “the right thing to do.”
The stretch of land at the foot of the Remarkables Range will be open to all in 2022, after being turned over to the Queen Elizabeth II National Trust for “the benefit and enjoyment of all New Zealanders.”
Remarkables resort owners Dick and Jillian Jardine have owned and worked the land for 98 years, and they want to see it protected and loved for another century.
Jillian Jardine said she wanted to see the biodiversity and “iconic nature” of the land protected in perpetuity and said her family had spent four years discussing the decision.
“We thought about this idea and it just stuck so it feels like the right thing to do,” he said. “We want to keep it as it is forever, we don’t want buildings or homes everywhere, there are so many homes going on … we want to be part of saving something.”
Despite having numerous offers from foreign developers, the Jardines, who are well-known local philanthropists, declined.
In a statement, the trust said the gift was “enormously significant to the Wakatipu area and New Zealand in general.”
Trust Chairman Bruce Wills said: “The open landscapes in the Wakatipu Basin have come under increasing pressure from subdivision and commercial development driven by the twin pressures of population growth and growth. tourism.
“But the open landscapes of the district are the same values that have attracted both tourists and new residents to the area.”
The donated property is freehold land, currently leased as a working farm, and will continue for the foreseeable future.
The South Island’s Central Lake District is one of New Zealand’s wealthiest enclaves and home to wealthy individuals such as PayPal founder Peter Thiel, jewelry mogul Michael Hill, and Trade Me founder, Sam Morgan.
According to the 2013 census, more than half of the region’s homes are unoccupied, and the true figure is likely higher since the borders were closed in March.
“We have quite a few billionaires in the district,” Queenstown Lakes Mayor Jim Boult told The Guardian in 2018. With a NZ $ 30 million private hospital in the pipeline, an international airport, and a plethora of pampering options (there are more of 40 hair and beauty salons in the region, and dozens of vineyards), the Queenstown Lakes district has long drawn the admiration of the world’s privileged.
But a slice of paradise will now remain in the hands of the nation forever.
“This land has been in the family for almost a century and we have worked hard to improve and improve it during this time,” said Dick Jardine. “Having QEII as the caretaker for this property gives us the comfort and security of proudly passing on this gift for all of New Zealand to enjoy and appreciate.”
