Four new visitor units and a barn are planned on rural land that is visible from the ferry at Matiatia on Waiheke Island.

 Andrew and Sarah Smith have applied for resource consent to build four one-bedroom units and a two-storey barn, which would offer visitor accommodation at the Ocean View Road property.

 The new buildings would go alongside an existing five-bedroom house with two visitor units on a 1.54 hectare site.

 Auckland Council has put the application on hold, until further information is supplied.

 Changes could be made to the application, which currently includes plans for 800 square metres of earthworks on a site where only 50 square metres of earthworks is typically allowed.

 The property is mostly pasture, but the plans involve cutting down a seven-metre tall pohutukawa tree and planting a new tree to replace it.

 Neighbour Gary Thomason is opposed to the development, which he said would be visually intrusive for people catching the ferry and on walking tracks.

 He has also raised concerns about stormwater runoff from the impervious surfaces of the development.

 "It would be a scar on the landscape.

 "Already when it rains, the amount of silt that goes into the bay is dramatic.

 "I'm opposed to any development at Matiatia that's going to impact on the environment, which this would do," Thomason said.

 However, Andrew Smith said Thomason also has visitor accommodation units that create stormwater runoff.

 "I'm planting 1500 native trees around the buildings and putting a lot of effort into making this look great.

 "I'm mad passionate about this island and none of the developments I've done have ever been criticised," Smith said.

 The application describes the four proposed units as modest in size.

 They would be 43 square metres and one-storey, while the two-storey barn would be 85 square metres.

 "The single level design means that the proposed landscaping will provide excellent visual buffering of the forms as viewed from the ferry terminal and wider coastal environment," the application states.

 Up to three cubic metres of wastewater would be discharged at the site each day, exceeding the two cubic metres normally allowed.

 A driveway and a car park for four cars are also planned.

 The council has not yet decided whether it will notify the public about the application, allowing people to formally object to the plans.