Maintaining Mauao has cost Tauranga ratepayers $1.35 million in the past three financial years.
According to Tauranga City Council figures most of the $1.35m was operational funding, which meant it was planned spending on work such as track maintenance, pest control, monitoring ecology and historic sites, and stability work.
But one-fifth - $270,000 - was unplanned spending on repairs and investigations from slips, storm damage and fires.
Read more: Iwi propose cultural enhancements for sacred Mauao
The biggest chunk of that, $179,000, was incurred in the past year. It included $25,000 for temporary stairs on the base track and $5000 for archaeological advice and monitoring.
Compare that with the year ending 2015, when the council had less than $5000 unplanned spending associated with Mauao.
The council will also foot the $2.2m bill to permanently reroute the slip-prone section of base track taken out by a massive landslide in April. That money will come from the council's risk reserve fund.
This year's frequent slips and the associated costs have sparked conversations about the mountain's economic value.
Each year more than a million people use Mauao free of charge.
Council parks and recreation manager Mark Smith said it was hard to put a dollar figure on its economic value to the region because it was a free activity.
He pointed instead to its many tourism accolades, including being home to New Zealand's most popular short walk.
"Mauao benefits the community as well and has huge value as a recreational amenity and a historic, cultural and spiritual taonga. The maunga is a central part of our identity here in Tauranga," Mr Smith said.
Tourism Bay of Plenty marketing manager Kath Low said tourism was a billion-dollar industry in the Bay, but a dollar value could not be placed on Mauao.
"It is one of the best-known, most iconic tourism attractions in the country. It is of enormous value," she said.
She said money spent maintaining the tracks was an investment in bringing people to the region and supporting the locals working in tourism.
Julia Graham of the Western Bay Wildlife Trust said Mauao was home to an "amazing array" of native wildlife including grey-faced petrels and little blue penguins, as well as several species of rare plants and invertebrates.
"The biological and ecological values of Mauao must be protected at all cost, while remaining available for us all to appreciate."
Buddy Mikaere, a Ngati Pukena iwi representative on the Mauao Trust and regular Mauao walker, said the maunga was of "huge significance" to local iwi.
Many included it in their identity statement about where they came from, he said. It housed historical evidence of lives lived there and battles fought.
"From a historical perspective, it has some of the best-preserved building platforms and pa sites we have."
Its natural heritage was also important.
"Its a big green thumb at the end of the sandspit."
Mauao accolades
- New Zealand's most popular short walk
- More than 1 million visitors a year
- Location for Tourism NZ and Nikon cameras' global campaign shoot
- The summit walk is Trip Advisor's top-ranked Tauranga activity
- Summit view consistently in Top 10 most instagrammed places in NZ.
Source: Tauranga City Council
How your rates are spent on Mauao
- Walkway maintenance
- Plant and animal pest control
- Stock, fencing and pasture maintenance
- Maintenance of furniture and signage
- Monitoring of ecology and historic sites
- Scaling and stability work
- Some planting costs (a lot of planting is done by volunteers on Mauao)
- General maintenance as required.
Source: Tauranga City Council
Is $1.35 million a reasonable amount to spend?
"I think the Mount needs to be well maintained because it's a tourist drawcard. If you had just the beach, without the Mount, it wouldn't be anything. So I think, try and contain the spending but it certainly needs to be kept up to a certain standard."
Jock Bellerby, 85, central Tauranga
"I feel like it doesn't seem like enough. I'm not sure how much it is environmentally, but it's had a lot of slips and there's been a lot of damage lately. Tourists love it; we get the cruise ships in all the time. It's something that needs to be maintained. I'd be happy if it was a little bit more actually."
Esther Steele, 33, Gate Pa
"It's a place that everyone walks up, so might as well keep doing it. It's a tourist attraction and that's what the Mount is really. In a way, I think it's actually not a reasonable amount because I think it's kind of less than what they should be spending. They should be spending just a bit more for the safety reason."
Daniel Kainuku, 26, Matua
"I think it's got to be kept at a certain standard because in this area, I think it's an icon and thousands of people visit there and hundreds walk it each day. So whatever it costs, I think it's got to be kept to a certain level."
Graeme McCarroll, 74, Te Puke
"I think it is a worthwhile thing because it's one of the most popular walks and it's an icon really. I think it's probably okay, it always seems a lot of money but other money's been spent on other things just as much. So I think they really have to."
Barbara Stoddart, 68, Bureta