The historic town of Arrowtown is split down the middle by a proposal to build an olive leaf-shaped centre next to St Patrick’s church.

The Olive Leaf Centre Trust filed an application for a resource consent with the Queenstown Lakes District Council, relating to the Catholic Church property in the town. 

The trust wants to go ahead with an olive leaf-shaped building next to the historic church of St Patrick.  But the trust has been thwarted in its attempts to avoid a Council hearing and the plan will go to a public hearing, which was originally set down for May, but might have to be rescheduled, depending on the Covid-19 alert level.

The proposal has split the small town of Arrowtown, attracting 369 submissions to the Council last year, with 150 of those in opposition.

The proposed Olive Leaf Centre would serve primarily as a church hall which would also include a “Mary McKillop Space”, a “Reflections Room”, a small chapel and other facilities. At a lower level, it would contain visitor accommodation. This would primarily be for the use of visiting clergy and a possible caretaker. The application for a resource consent to the Lakes District Council also notes, “The accommodation does offer an opportunity to raise funds for the ongoing management of the entire site, which includes two historic buildings”.

Colin Bellett, chairman of the Olive Leaf Centre Trust, said the decision to lodge a resource management application came only after many months of detailed planning to ensure the proposed building is compliant with the Council’s guidelines and rules.

“The idea in this case is to make use of a piece of property beside the beautiful and historic Catholic Church in Arrowtown, to build a multi-purpose centre for the use of the whole community as well as for traditional church activities,” Mr Bellett said.

He added that the centre “will be a great asset and gift to the community, accommodating a variety of uses and needs”.

Local architect Fred van Brandenberg, who designed the centre, said in his architect’s statement filed with the Council that, from eye-level, the structure would have “minimal visual impact”, because the building would be sunk 2.2 metres below the level of the existing church. This means that, when erected, the only section above ground level would be the roof.

As for the church itself, Mr van Brandenberg said that, other than a mandatory requirement by the council to strengthen the almost 150-year-old building for earthquake compliance, there are no present plans to alter it.

The site is owned by the Catholic Bishop of Dunedin. When he was Bishop of Dunedin, Bishop Colin Campbell expressed support for the project, provided it could be self-funding. Parish priest Fr Jamie Lalaguna took the same stance.

Opponents of the project say the “modern and futuristic design” is inappropriate in proximity to heritage buildings. Opponents include the Lakes District Museum, the Queenstown and District Historical Society and the Arrowtown Village Association.

According to Queenstown Lakes District Council documents, the Olive Leaf Centre Trust last year applied to avoid a Council hearing and have the application directly referred to the Environment Court. When that was declined, the trust lodged an objection that was heard by a Council-appointed commissioner in September. At the conclusion of the hearing the objection was withdrawn.

Mr Bellett said the Olive Leaf Centre Trust members are preparing for what promises to be a highly-publicised hearing.

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Further documentation has been filed with the Queenstown District Council in connection with a proposed “Olive Leaf” centre next to the historic St Patrick’s Catholic church in Arrowtown.

A resource consent application was filed with the council in August last year, but the council would not formally accept it until preliminary requirements were met.

This has been done and further documentation has been filed, including Fred van Brandenberg’s architect’s statement.

In it he stated, “The Olive Leaf will bring youth and vitality to St Patrick’s church, a new wave of energy to the parish, attracting and welcoming a diversity of residents and visitors from all walks of life.”

The Olive Leaf Charitable Trust, which is backing the new centre, has pledged to raise the money for the building and not to start building until all that money is raised.

The trust took the unusual step of requesting that the application be publicly notified and this is likely to occur sometime within the next few months.

The trust’s board intends the facility should be used for traditional Catholic activities for a growing congregation and for the general purposes of the organisations and people of the district. The proposal and the design of the facility has been approved by the Catholic Diocese of Dunedin. The diocese owns the property and its design has also been approved by the local parish priest.

However, some of the local people in Arrowtown are opposed to the facility, mostly on the grounds that the design of the building, in their opinion, detracts from the special character of Arrowtown.

This has resulted in the formation of an incorporated society formed by local man Wayne Hulls, who lives next door to the church property. He said his group does not object to the building per se but objects to its design.

He expects there to be a significant number of objections filed opposing the application. However, Mr van Brandenberg and the charitable trust said the building, which is indeed shaped like an olive leaf, will have a low visual impact as it would be sunk two metres below ground level and only its roof of local stone would be visible.

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The first is the 19th century church, which has a category one listing from the Historic Places Trust. The church is used as part of Queenstown Catholic parish.

The other building is a restored stone cottage named after St Mary of the Cross MacKillop. The saint came to Arrowtown in 1897 with other teaching nuns.

Now, a group of parishioners is seeking to add another building on the site on the corner of Hertford and Merioneth Streets.

They are planning to have a parish centre erected, as existing facilities are too small for the growing  Catholic community.

Architect and parishioner Fred van Brandenberg, at the behest of a group of parishioners, came up with the concept of an “olive leaf’’ building.

He started planning a building that would be suitable for the relatively large parcel of unused land on the church site.

Accordingly, he designed a contemporary building which would “pay homage’’ to the neighbouring church, rather than compete with it.

In a brochure delivered to Arrowtown homes, Mr van Brandenburg said the juxtaposition between the historic church and modern building, featuring a “sailing wing-like roof shaped as a leaf’’ would represent a “different age’’.

“We are now in a different period in history and the distinction in design will heighten the difference between the ages.’’

He said there was no cost yet on the project, which would be done on a voluntary basis, and the construction and upkeep of which would be funded entirely by donations.

“The project will only happen when the funds are in place,’’ he said. It would be developed by a non-profit charitable trust accountable to St Patrick’s parish and the diocese of Dunedin.

Mr van Brandenberg said Bishop Colin Campbell had sanctioned the idea and had given it his approval.

This came after consultation with the parish, which delivered a positive endorsement of the project.

While there has been some opposition to Mr van Brandenberg’s ideas, he said a resource consent application would be lodged with the Queenstown Lakes District Council as soon as it was completed.

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