The lodge that gives back more than it takes

Friday, 2 June 2023

Stuff’s NIKKI MACDONALD has written about regenerative tourism for The Post. As part of that reporting she has looked at a house that gives back more than it takes.

The Brainerds were happily retired when Debbi heard destiny calling from the for sale sign outside the Glenorchy camp ground and general store.

Had they had any idea what they were getting into, they probably wouldn’t have done it, Paul jokes.

The couple had built a home at the head of Queenstown’s Lake Wakatipu, as a haven from Seattle’s harsh winters.

And now they’ve built the Headwaters Eco Lodge – the only accommodation worldwide certified by the Living Building Challenge.

The couple donated the property to a charitable trust, which will reinvest any profit into local projects. It’s the ultimate regenerative setup, with every dollar raised going straight back to the people and place.

“It’s really our commitment to the community,” Paul says. “To provide employment, economic development, the sustainable story, and the financial return.”

The 14-chalet, highly-insulated accommodation produces more energy and water than it uses, with rooftop solar water heaters and a solar garden of 589 photovoltaic panels feeding power to storage batteries. In winter, groundsource heatpumps draw warmth from 23 underground wells.

Rainwater runs off roofs into 60,000 litres of underground cisterns, and they’re trialling a whole-community composting system.

The high tech fitout is softened with recycled wood from old stockyards, rust-burnished corrugated iron and local art.

“No-one in their right mind would have done this as a commercial project,” Paul concedes. But some elements are commercially viable.

They might cost 15% more upfront, but solar water pays for itself in two to three years, and photovoltaic panels in about five years.

But there’s also an ethos that comes with the eco tag – an alternative to busloads disgorging hordes for 20 minutes, then packing them off again.

“We don’t feel like that kind of tourism feeds the soul,” Debbi says.

She designed Adventures in Paradise – small-group, all-inclusive, multi-day itineraries working with local tourism businesses.

You can paddle to Pigeon Island, visit local farms or have a BBQ and bevvie with Glenorchy brewmaster Steve Hewland. In their travels around the world, the couple’s most memorable experiences have been meeting local people, Paul says.

“It’s that kind of experience that we really want to provide. Because they’re things that people remember for the rest of their lives.”

You can read Nikki’s full report on The Post – Part 1 and Part 2.