A review into the $92 million Cameron Rd Stage One project has been described as a “failure” and “absolute bollocks” for not addressing the financial losses businesses have suffered as a direct result of the council-led project.
Tauranga commission chairwoman Anne Tolley acknowledged the concerns were “completely understandable” and “we need to do better”. But regarding compensation, the council followed the Public Works Act 1981 which did not require it to pay.
The review was released this week following a Bay of Plenty Times Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act request. The first stage, from Harington St to 17th Ave, was due to wrap up in December.
The review, carried out by Beca and Brockway Consulting, offered 13 recommendations. It was expected these would help in the planning of five large Tauranga City Council transport projects collectively costing more than $1 billion. These included Pāpāmoa East Interchange, Tauriko West Enabling Works, 15th Ave and Turret Rd, connecting Mount Maunganui and Cameron Rd Stage Two.
Shorland Peugeot & Citroen general manager Evan Campbell said he accepted the Cameron Rd project was needed and “there’s never going to be change without pain”.
“There’s a greater good but certainly if that report doesn’t seek to address in some meaningful way the financial impacts on small, medium, and large businesses on Cameron Rd, I consider that report to be a failure.”
Among its findings, the review recommended the council set up a dedicated budget to help with consultation and mitigation but that it “shouldn’t be used for compensation for loss of business”.
“When it suited them on their own land to provide financial support to one of their own incentives [Our Place], that was fine. But when it comes to supporting and recognising an obligation to the businesses that invested in bricks and mortar, paid their rates, and [have] done all they need to do as a responsible employer, to not to have any recourse for loss of earnings … that doesn’t wash with me.”
Campbell said he knew of “heartbreaking” stories involving Cameron Rd businesses, family-run for 25 years, suffering “irreversible” damage.
“They are still there but only by the skin of their teeth.”
He wanted the council to provide greater support for businesses like this.
Campbell said he hated to think what the “unknown cost” to his business was during the past 12 to 18 months of works outside.
“For a good portion of that time, we were probably running at about 50 per cent of our traditional volume. That’s extremely difficult to absorb with any business let alone ones such as us ...” ”
A woman, who would not be named, said she didn’t know if she would still have a job next year. Her boss was no longer coming in because “he can no longer afford to pay himself too, that’s why I’m on my own”.
Road works on Cameron Rd at the intersection of 17th Ave, pictured in October. Photo / Alex Cairns
Drop-in/drop-off clientele had plummeted since works began outside, she said.
“We’ve lost all the parking again. We have Christmas coming up, that’s our busiest time. If people can’t stop, where are we going to get our foot traffic from? It’s a catch-22. You can see how quiet it is.”
During the interview, not a single person walked past.
The woman believed the review’s reference to compensation was “absolute bollocks”. The impact on businesses was clear, she said.
However, in her view any concerns “fell on deaf ears”.
Tauranga MP Sam Uffindell said he was pleased the council took “accountability for the years of disruption along Cameron Rd”.
“It is crucial that projects in Tauranga contain sound cost-benefit analysis, are delivered in a timely and cost-efficient manner and minimise hardship for businesses and commuters.”
Tolley saidprojects of this scale would inevitably cause some disruption.
“We acknowledge we have a responsibility to keep that disruption to an absolute minimum and we accept that more should have been done sooner to ease the problems being experienced.”
Tolley said lessons learned would be incorporated into the council’s approach to Cameron Rd Stage Two, between 17th Ave and Cheyne Rd, and all other major city transport projects.
“It’s clear that we need to do better in future and the business community and road users can expect to see that duty of care exercised and work-related disruptions minimised wherever possible,” she said.
While Tolley acknowledged roading upgrades impacted the whole community, improvements to Tauranga’s roads were “essential” and typically happened only once in a 20-to-30-year window.
When it came to compensation, the council followed the Public Works Act 1981.
“This means that council will not be compensating business owners along Cameron Rd as the work being carried out is considered reasonable according to the criteria set out in the PWA. The same criteria will be applied to the other major transport network projects we have planned, to ensure fairness and consistency across the city,” Tolley said.
The commissioner said the stage one works were expected to be completed before Christmas and “we’re all looking forward” to it.
Brockway Consulting principal Graham Darlow declined to comment.
A spokeswoman for Beca referred the Bay of Plenty Times to the council.
Kiri Gillespie is an assistant news director and a senior journalist for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post, specialising in local politics and city issues. She was a finalist for the Voyager Media Awards Regional Journalist of the Year in 2021.
