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After years of wrangling and court appeals, tourist magnet Waitomo looks set to finally get a nightclub.
Developers Allen Juno and Nick Andreef said work on a three-level complex, which will include a family restaurant, a sports bar, a function centre and retail shops, would begin soon.
The complex, which can cater for up to 500 people, will also feature an "underground" nightclub.
Visitors have been flocking to Waitomo since 1889, and each year an estimated 500,000 people sample the blackwater rafting, caving and abseiling challenges while others enjoy the area's mountain biking or bush walks.
But Mr Andreef, a local caving operator, said despite Waitomo being a beacon on the tourist trail, few people stayed for long because the nightlife was "in the doldrums".
He said there was a market to entertain the estimated 200,000 adventure travellers who spent more money than the busloads of tourists who usually stop in at Waitomo "for a couple of hours before jetting off to Rotorua".
"You've got a lot of people who are crying out for something apres-cave," he said. "These people want to have a place where they can talk about their underground experiences but, right now, they've got nowhere to go."
Mr Juno, who runs Juno Hall Backpackers in Waitomo and has lived in the area for 21 years but still doesn't consider himself "a local", said there were also plans to provide a bus service from nearby towns Te Kuiti and Otorohanga to bring in punters.
Despite its approval in the Environment Court last month, the complex has met resistance from locals concerned its 21-hour liquor licence could introduce a loutish element into the village.
"There are enough accidents during the day during the peak tourist season without adding extra drinking to the area," said Helen Fortescue, who owns the Abseil-Inn in Waitomo.
Ms Fortescue said the complex would "completely shift" the focus out of the village and feared it would take all of the area's available workers.
"To make the place financially viable they will have to suck the life out of everyone else ... there's one cafe here that can't find full-time staff," she said.
Waitomo District Council chief executive Chris Ryan said resource consents for the project were granted nearly 18 months ago.
He said the council was now looking at recouping the $50,000 costs incurred from several groups which lodged appeals against the council's decision with the Environment Court.
