Bay braced for $200m apartment living splurge

The Western Bay's apartment scene is surging ahead as three more complexes take the total developments this year close to the $200 million mark.
The proposed buildings are worth $60 million, with two sprouting in the ever-expanding Papamoa area, and the other in downtown Tauranga.
The three latest projects come less than a month after the Bay of Plenty Times revealed that nine projects worth $130 million were being marketed in downtown Mount Maunganui, some with shops underneath.
It means another busy year for the building industry.
Phil Marra of Marra Construction said: "It's been fairly busy for the last three years and I don't think that will change."
Mainzeal Property and Construction's Bay of Plenty office has had to turn away work. Manager Terry Murphy said: "Since Christmas I've fielded three calls to see if we would like to build apartments and I had to say no. We are just starting two big jobs - the Papamoa Library and the events centre in Rotorua."
Mr Murphy said there was plenty of confidence in the market and he could not see the construction industry dropping off in the next year or two. It was just a matter of getting the material and skilled labour.
George Francis, president of the Tauranga Master Builders Association, said the self-employed house builders could become waged carpenters for developers if the land supply dried up, and people moved into apartments rather than the traditional suburban home.
The local apartment boom is now spreading along the coastal strip to Papamoa. The Pacific Palms Resort in Gravatt Rd led the way by establishing 60 managed units.
The new developments - the Navigator and The Promenade Apartments on Papamoa Beach Rd - are designed for permanent living rather than the holiday rental market.
Already nine of the 34 luxury apartments at these two complexes have been bought by local residents, and another eight are under option.
One of them - a top level, three bedroom unit with wide sea views at The Promenade - sold for nearly $1 million.
Both of the developments will have shops on the ground floor and three levels of apartments. And a national retailer has shown interest in taking the whole 200 sq m space on The Promenade site.
Construction of both is likely to start in April or May. Marketing agent Doug Morris, the owner of Papamoa Realty Professionals, said the time had come for owner/occupied apartment developments on the commercial sites dotted along the coast.
"Once the building is under way I'm sure others will pop up. The prices at the Mount for water views make these look like good pickings," he said.
The Navigator apartments, fronting the Palm Springs subdivision, range in size from 120 to 170 sq m and are selling for more than $420,000.
The Promenade, a kilometre away on the corner of Papamoa Beach Rd and Parton Rd, features units from 80 to 190 sq m and sales tags of between $380,000 and $820,000.
Meanwhile, the new owners of a Hamilton St site overlooking the Waikareao Estuary in downtown Tauranga have drawn up plans for an upmarket complex with apartments, swimming pool, spa, gymnasium and conference room for 70 people.
Consultant Graham Rodgers said the four-storeyed CitySide Apartments was a substantial and quality project.
"The site is unique. It is nested near the water's edge and is only a short walk to The Domain and central business district."
Mr Rodgers said said all apartments would be fitted with hush glass to eliminate traffic noise from the Takitimu Drive expressway. "It will be like walking into a sound studio."
Mr Rodgers developed the prominent Anchorage Apartments at downtown Mount and plans to inject similar design flair into the CitySide, which was released onto the market this week.
There are 17 types of apartments, ranging in size from 65 to 170 sq m and selling from $230,000 to more than $1 million. Mr Rodgers said this was a new style of living for Tauranga. "People want to get away from the traffic congestion and return to the central area - like they've done in Auckland and Wellington."