Variety spices up old Gate Pa

Seven international and national retailers ranging from fast food to electronics and a women-only gym operator are heading to Tauranga for the first time.
The $30 million Gate Pa Shopping Centre, to be opened by June, is now 90 per cent leased.
The tenants include a colourful variety of new names - Wendy's Old Fashioned Burgers, Red Rooster Chicken, Zero's Subs, Columbus Coffee, Michel's Patisserie, Total Food Equipment, Jaycar Electronics and Configure gym.
Development manager Peter Williams, of Boffo Property, told the Bay of Plenty Times: "We are delighted with the tenancy mix. The objective was to get exclusive local, national and international brands where possible and create a retail niche.
"We are adding to the retail offering in the city; not stealing it.
We also wanted to mix convenience shopping with speciality stores so people can use the centre every week and buy their essentials as well as browse."
Gate Pa developer Dean Waddell said he was rapt with the tenancy response.
"We knew there was a hole in the Tauranga market. You see these new brand names operating in Auckland and eventually they will come down here.
"It's a matter of getting the timing right and it just shows the growth in Tauranga. The big positive for me is seeing an older part of the city being regenerated."
Several months ago the site between Mitre 10 Mega and 22nd Ave and fronting Cameron Rd contained rundown owner-operated shops and houses.
Now, a modern shopping centre being built by Arrow International is well advanced.
he first stores are expected to open in April and the official opening is set for mid-June.
When finished, Gate Pa Shopping Centre will create up to 500 new jobs, giving the local economy another boost.
Nearly half those people will be employed in the 3200 sq m New World Supermarket, the anchor tenant located alongside 22nd Ave.
The supermarket, the third for the chain in Tauranga, will be run by former All Black Robin Brooke and is due to open in late May.
Another tenant, the 12-pump BP Service Station next to Mitre 10 Mega, has been operating for two months.
The shopping centre features two drive-through family restaurants at the front of the site - Red Rooster and Wendy's - which are opening their first outlets in Tauranga.
Red Rooster, an international chain in competition with KFC, will be first off the ranks in the second week of May. The foundation work for that restaurant has already started.
At the back of the site is an L-shaped block containing 19 stores and the gym, tavern, liquor outlet and Columbus Coffee, which kickstarted the cafe culture in Auckland in the mid-1990s. It has seven cafes in Auckland and one in Hamilton and Christchurch.
The western end of the shopping block has been colloquially called Fresh Corner - consisting of fruit and vegetable retailer The Fresh Market, which already operates in Chapel St and at Te Puke; Mount Maunganui seafood specialist King Prawn; Bakers Delight; and Aussie Butcher, a competitor to Mad Butcher.
The biggest specialty store is the 585 sq m Total Food Equipment, which sells top-end kitchen and household items. The store - the third to be opened in New Zealand after Dunedin and Napier - will even offer in-house cooking lessons.
Other confirmed tenants are United States-based Zero's Subs, which competes with Subway, Blockbuster Videos, Hell Pizza, Health 2000 opening its third store in Tauranga, and Australian retailer Jaycar Electronics.
Mr Williams said he had more than enough interest for the four remaining tenancies and he was being careful about adding to the retail mix and character of the shopping centre.
He was in negotiation with two other national retailers.
The Gate Pa developer was looking to finish the centre with either a hair saloon, pharmacy, travel agency, music stores, stationery or telecommunications.