Tauranga CBD Blueprint reveals $1.5b in development investments to 'transform' city

Tauranga CBD from the air. Photo / NZME

Developments will pump an investment of at least $1.5 billion into Tauranga's CBD by 2030, a document released today reveals.

And there are likely more to come, with a property expert saying Tauranga could have one of New Zealand's most transformed CBDs this decade.

Western Bay of Plenty economic development agency Priority One launched the Tauranga CBD Blueprint at Thirty Eight Elizabeth last night and publicly today.

Priority One chief executive Nigel Tutt. Photo / Supplied

It lists 20 catalyst developments planned for the city by 2030, translating to $1.5b worth of confirmed investment.

Among these are residential apartment builds, commercial developments and public projects such as the $150m new Tauranga District Court and Tauranga City Council's new civic precinct Te Manawataki o Te Papa — the scale of which is not yet confirmed.

Priority One chief executive Nigel Tutt said the blueprint represented a pivotal turning point for New Zealand's fastest-growing city.

"Never before have we been able to bring together this level of certainty for the community."

He said it showcased the "depth of investment from these groups of people" working to build a thriving city that meets the future needs of its people.

The document stated 2000 higher-density homes were expected to be built in and around the CBD within 10 years, and 40,000 more jobs were expected by 2050.

More developments were expected to be added as work on rejuvenating the CBD progressed, he said.

On Durham St yesterday, Food Circle dairy owner Dalbir Singh said the CBD had changed for the worse in recent years.

"The big shopping centres pull all the people away. You can feel the emptiness," he said.

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Developments confirmed for the northern part of Tauranga's CBD. Image / Supplied

Developments confirmed for Tauranga's central CBD. Image / Supplied

Developments confirmed for Tauranga's southern CBD. Image / Supplied

Singh said he would like to see the council and Government invest more to better develop the CBD, create more parking and help attract the "big brand" stores.

"They all left Devonport Rd because no one was going there. Parking is the big issue, and the big shopping centres which people prefer at the moment. That's impacting on the city."

Singh said he came to Tauranga for shopping about 15 years ago "and it was really busy". He looked to buy a shop for three years but could not find one.

He said a CBD should be "the heart of a city". "Why would you call it a city centre if there's no centre?"

Others approached in the street shared his sentiment.

Tauranga woman Sadidas Haira said the CBD was "empty" and "it's not the same, how it used to be".

Sadidas Haira says Tauranga's CBD is important but needs more love. Photo / Kiri Gillespie

She said looking after the CBD was important because "Tauranga is a beautiful place" and she hoped roadworks would soon stop.

Trevor Peden said, in his view, the CBD had "already died".

"People are going to Tauriko, people are going to Bayfair, people are going anywhere that's not the CBD these days. There's not a hell of a lot of businesses there and a lot of empty shops."

Ezra Johnson, 35, said the CBD had the "potential to grow into a city like Auckland".

He would particularly like to see the Tauranga and Wharepai domains transformed into a stadium "like Baypark" so people could walk from the CBD to watch a Chiefs game.

Carlene Murray said it was as if the heart of the city had been removed. While there were nice places to eat, there weren't many shops because a lot of retail had moved to other shopping centres.

University of Waikato assistant professor in environmental planning Silvia Serrao-Neumann told the Bay of Plenty Times investment in CBDs could create more jobs, opportunities and "economic activity".

Serrao-Neumann said traditionally people lived and worked in the central city but over time, urban sprawl changed this and CBDs became economic hubs instead.

"So what happens is in the evening no one really is using that space. It becomes a bit of a void space. Then we see satellite centres where retailers tend to move out to and the city centre starts to die out. It makes it difficult for businesses."

Serrao-Neumann said cities that had already invested in their CBDs during the past 20 years managed to bring people back to live, work and play in the city centre.

The development that houses Farmers, on the corner of Elizabeth St and Devonport Rd, pictured in February. Photo / Alan Gibson

"When you have enough people living and working in that space, you don't need lots of new infrastructure in suburbs," she said.

"Also because CBDs don't have a lot of restrictions regarding density, you can go higher ... you can create a lot of housing opportunities because the infrastructure is already there."

Bayleys head of insights, data and consulting Chris Farhi said the developments in the blueprint showed Tauranga's CBD would be among the most transformed city centres in New Zealand during the next decade.

"The existing low-rise development across most of Tauranga CBD creates a widespread canvas that is not available in places like Auckland CBD or Wellington CBD."

The council was working towards creating eight precincts in the CBD area, including a civic precinct, justice precinct and education precinct.

University of Waikato senior deputy vice-chancellor Professor Alister Jones said the blueprint supported its momentum "as we continue to invest in the city to future-proof a connected and vibrant university city campus precinct" in Durham St.

Priority One will be hosting walking tours to showcase the developments, which people can register for via its website.

The blueprint was developed in partnership with Tauranga City Council, developers, investors and the Government.