Tauranga courthouse: $208m redvelopment green light pleases lawyers

The present Tauranga Court House will be superseded by a new courthouse built on the corner of McLean, Willow, and Monmouth Sts.

News a $208 million redevelopment to Tauranga’s courthouse has been confirmed “could not come soon enough”, those in the local justice sector say.

The Government has confirmed the funding to build a new courthouse on the corner of McLean, Willow and Monmouth Sts. Construction was expected to start next year.

The Ministry of Justice said, in a statement, the current courthouse comprises two linked buildings. The Cameron Rd building is leaky and “too expensive to fix” while the other, McLean House, is outdated.

As part of the estimated $208m redevelopment, the Cameron Rd building would be decommissioned, and a new courthouse built on the corner of McLean, Willow and Monmouth Sts.

The number of courtrooms would increase from 10 to 13, including provision for High Court criminal trials to return to Tauranga, rather than being heard in Rotorua or Hamilton. This would minimise the extra travel burden placed on victims, whānau and lawyers resident in Tauranga.

Just over $150m was budgeted for the Tauranga Moana Innovative Courthouse project in October 2021, covering land acquisition, design, construction and fit-out costs. In February this year, the courthouse development project went “under review” due to inflation.

Speaking to the Bay of Plenty Times, senior Tauranga defence lawyer Bill Nabney said he welcomed the Government’s announcement after delays.

“The rebuild cannot come soon enough as the current courthouse is no longer fit for purpose and has lots of issues, including mould and damp in some parts.”

Nabney said he and his criminal bar colleagues all “looked forward” to the day the city finally got a new courthouse they had waited years for.

“I only hope I’m still practising and get to enjoy the new court facilities.”

Tauranga defence barrister Peter Attwood said confirmation the new Tauranga courthouse redevelopment was going ahead was “pleasing”.

Attwood said the current courthouse conditions were “dire” for all stakeholders and clients and ultimately it must be a “good thing” for everyone to know the project is going ahead.

However, he said it was important that the new courthouse was “future-proofed” to ensure it met the needs of the city’s growing population.

Ministry of Justice corporate and digital services deputy secretary Tina Wakefield said, in a statement, the new courtrooms would be bigger and allow for trials with large numbers of defendants to take place.

There would be dedicated spaces for victims, participants, and their whānau. The buildings would provide a safe and healthy environment for all court users.

“This is welcome news. We are pleased to be able to confirm the future direction of the project. We want to thank the local community and our partners for their continued support.”

The press release said it was in the final phases of designing the courthouse. The design would will reflect te ao Māori values and concepts including Hohou te Rongo, which was about resolution and restoration of balance.

It would also include whānau-centric spaces, where people could work with participants and their whānau to support, restore and facilitate.

“We would like to acknowledge the contribution of Te Kāhui Hapū o Te Papa - representatives of Ngāi Tamarāwaho, Ngāti Tapu, Ngāi Tūkairangi, Ngāti Hē, Ngāi Te Ahi and Ngāti Ruahine - we have worked together to help ensure the new courthouse will meet the needs of the Tauranga community.”

Work to prepare the site on the corner of McLean, Willow and Monmouth Sts was “well under way”.