Billionaire Peter Thiel refused consent for sprawling lodge in New Zealand

On Thursday, Queenstown-Lakes district council refused to grant consent for the lodge to be built.

Plans for the meditation pod were scrapped from the final proposal, but the earthworks required to build the lodge would still cover more than 73,700 sq metres (18 acres) of land. The structure was designed by the Japanese architects Kengo Kuma and Associates, who created the Tokyo Olympic stadium.

The Guardian has approached representatives of Second Star for comment.