The only person to build on a plush Taupo lakeshore development bordering a Maori burial site says he will never move and has a legitimate title to the section, according to Mike Watson in today's Dominion Post.

Auckland property developer Symphony Group leased the site near Acacia Bay from its Maori landowners - Hiruharama Ponui Trust - in 2004 for 80 years.

The $80 million Parawera development has since had roads, kerbs and drains completed, along with a heated swimming pool, tennis court and community hall.

The 19-hectare site has been under a cloud since Maori protesters occupied the site last year and claimed it was a sacred burial ground, or wahi tapu.

A Taupo District Court judge later dismissed the claim and issued trespass notices to the protesters.

However, a Taupo businessman is the only one of 21 purchasers to have built a house at the $80 million Parawera development, near Acacia Bay, since development started four years ago.

Moreover, a group of 10 buyers has since decided to sue Symphony Group, and its directors, for not disclosing that the land was a burial ground.

The businessman said he knew the site included wahi tapu areas when he bought his section, but that these had been kept separate from residential areas.

The wahi tapu was separated by a reserve around the lakefront and was not part of the lease, he said.

He was living at his house and had no intention of moving.

The man said no human remains had been found when heavy excavations were made to build. He dismissed claims he might be "cursed" for building on the site.

The spokesman for the 10 aggrieved owners, Richard Blakeney-Williams, said they had been "misrepresented".

They believed Symphony Group knew the site was sacred when it marketed the sections but did not tell prospective buyers.

"We're determined to pursue the claim ... We will go to the ends of the earth to win this battle."

Symphony Group project manager Dan Hakaria said the claim was not expected to be heard in the High Court till February 2010.

"We hope common sense will prevail before then, of course."

Protester group spokeswoman Moira Bramley said the land should revert to a public reserve.