NEW ZEALAND McArthur Ridge, Alexandra

Sometime in 2011, Melview Developments hopes to break ground on a resort community in the Central Otago region of New Zealand’s South Island.

McArthur Ridge will take shape on 2,115 acres in Alexandra, a town of about 5,000 that’s 35 miles southeast of Queenstown. Alexandra is in the heart of Central Otago, a wine-growing region that’s fast becoming one of New Zealand’s top tourist destinations.

At build-out, McArthur Ridge is expected to consist of 1,000 or more single-family and vacation houses, a retail/commercial area, a 150-room hotel with a conference center, a 590-acre vineyard, a spa, and an 18-hole golf course.

Melview, one of New Zealand’s biggest hotel developers, has hired Queenstown-based Turner MacPherson Golf Design to design the golf course. The firm is led by Greg Turner, a professional golfer from New Zealand. Turner and his design partner, Scott MacPherson, are also drawing up plans for the golf course at Gibbston Valley Station in Queenstown.

The Central Otago District Council has rezoned the McArthur Ridge property, but Melview has held off the project’s groundbreaking.

“It’s just a question of waiting for the economic conditions,” a company spokesman told the Southland Times last year. “The climate is a bit tough at the moment.”