Snow Machine’s headed to Frankton.
This month Mountain Scene reported organisers of the music festival had been refused use of the Queenstown Rec Ground, their first-choice venue, for the event’s nightly parties.
Their second-choice venue, Queenstown Primary School (QPS), where the inaugural event was held last year, was also up in the air given opposition from neighbouring Kiwi Park, whose breeding season was disturbed, and just two days to get ‘affected party’ approvals.
Snow Machine director Quentin Nolan (pictured) tells Scene their latest consent application, to be based on a greenfields site at Remarkables Park, opposite Wakatipu High School, is currently being processed by Queenstown’s council.
‘‘It’s a good site — the site itself is actually much better than QPS, for example, it’s just the hassle of buses on Frankton Rd and moving everyone there and back, but it kind of is what it is now.’
‘‘It’s all worked out.’’
Ultimately, though, he wants the nightly gigs in town.
‘‘That just stimulates business in town and makes it a much more enjoyable event for the patrons as well.’’
Nolan says 6000 people are coming for this year’s event, running from September 5 to 10, with about 90% inbound from Australia.
