Cabins built for Ilchi Lee's "Earth Village" in 2017 await an earthworks consent so they can be moved onto location at Pungaere Rd, west of Kerikeri. Photo / Peter de Graaf
Cabins built for Ilchi Lee's "Earth Village" in 2017 await an earthworks consent so they can be moved onto location at Pungaere Rd, west of Kerikeri. Photo / Peter de Graaf
A Korean spiritual leader's dream of building a global headquarters near Kerikeri seem to be over after the Overseas Investment Office refused a retrospective consent to buy seven Northland properties.
In 2014-16 Seung Heun Lee, known to his followers as Ilchi Lee, and his companies Double Pine Investment and Meditation Tour bought three residential properties in Kerikeri, a 25ha block of land next to Whangaroa Harbour, and a 156ha rural property on the edge of Puketi Forest, west of Kerikeri.
He also bought what was then Marty's Golf Range and Cafe, on State Highway 10 north of Waipapa, and Haruru Falls Panorama Resort near Paihia.
One of his aims was to bring South Korean tour groups to the Bay of Islands for spiritual retreats. He also started building an ''Earth Village'' on his Pungaere Rd property, which he intended to be the global headquarters of his Earth Citizen Organisation. Young people were to have stayed there learning leadership skills and sustainable living.
In a presentation to a Far North District Council meeting in 2018 Lee's staff said he planned to spend $35 million developing the Earth Village.
Seung Heun Lee, better known as Ilchi Lee, planned to build a global headquarters for his Earth Citizen Organisation on a rural property west of Kerikeri. Photo / file
In 2017 the Overseas Investment Office (OIO), which regulates the sale of sensitive land to foreigners, told the Northern Advocate it was investigating Lee's land purchases but would not elaborate further.
The then manager of Meditation Tour, ManGyu Choi, said Lee did not require OIO permission because he was a permanent resident of New Zealand.
Permanent residents are exempt from OIO restrictions as long as they live in New Zealand more than half the year.
It is not clear why the OIO has now retrospectively declined Lee's consent to buy the seven properties, which cost a total of $10,382,420.
It is also unclear what will happen now. In the past, when the OIO has refused a retrospective consent the buyer has been forced to sell the property, though in some cases a compromise was struck where some land could be retained.
Spokeswoman Yewon Hwang said Double Pine Investment and Meditation Tour remained committed to developing tourism and creating jobs in the Far North and contributing to the local community.
''We are disappointed by the decision but really believe in the Far North and New Zealand. We will continue to invest in the Far North and help bring jobs and visitors to this region,'' she said.
Hwang said Lee's companies had brought more than 9000 visitors to New Zealand and employed 40 local people.
His contribution to the community included donating 11 defibrillators to St John earlier this year and giving food packages to 33 households during the Covid-19 crisis, she said.
Ilchi Lee's firm Meditation Tours has built a boardwalk bush trail and meditation platforms at its Pungaere Rd property. Photo / Peter de Graaf
The OIO report stated that Land Information Minister Eugenie Sage and former Associate Finance Minister David Clark ''needed to be satisfied that the applicant meets the investor test and the benefit test that requires the investment to result in substantial and identifiable benefit to New Zealand''.
The investor test requires the buyer to have relevant business experience and acumen, demonstrate financial commitment and be of good character. ''Both Minister Clark and Minister Sage were not satisfied that the investor test had been met and declined the application on that basis,'' the report stated.
Lee has been unable to make much progress on his Earth Village because of consenting issues but has already spent a significant sum on the property. Work completed so far includes building cabins and a boardwalk trail with meditation platforms.
He has also converted the Haruru Falls property into a retreat for Meditation Tour clients and opened a yoga centre in central Kerikeri.
Lee abandoned plans for a martial arts school on the former Marty's Cafe site, now called Tee Tree Cafe and Golf Range, due to opposition from local residents.
Lee is best known as the founder of Dahn Yoga and of Brain Education, which promotes a mix of exercise and meditation to achieve the brain's full potential.
One of his books, The Call of Sedona, is a New York Times best-seller; his most recent book, I've Decided to Live 120 Years, is based in part on his experiences in Northland.
Lee has been embraced by some Northland iwi with his mind-body training techniques taught at some marae. He has a keen interest in traditional medicine and had planned to grow trees used in Korean remedies at the Pungaere Rd property.
One of his more unusual inventions is a ''belly button healing wand'', which he claims enhances gut health while reducing stress and providing pain relief.
In 2018 Immigration NZ investigated his companies for alleged breaches to employment and immigration rules.
At the time Hwang put the breaches down to mistakes by an immigration adviser and said the companies had since sought accountancy advice and bought better software systems to address holiday pay and record keeping.
Lee has also faced controversy in the US with various lawsuits from former employees.
He has retreats in various countries with Sedona Mago Retreat in Arizona, USA, the best known.
Lee has said he was convinced to set up a base in Northland after being amazed by its ''purity and peacefulness''.
