An artist's impression of what the major manufacturing and distribution facility will look like. Photo / Supplied
The Bay of Plenty Times is looking back at the stories of 2021. Here's what made headlines in February.
A petition to hold a public referendum on the introduction of Māori wards just reached the numbers it needed but could now be meaningless if a new law is rushed in.
On February 1, Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta announced a law that allows local referendum to veto decisions by councils to establish Māori wards would be abolished.
The announcement came just days after a petition aimed at overturning a decision to establish a Māori ward in Tauranga gained the numbers it needed.
The mother of slain toddler Nevaeh Ager confronted the man who murdered her "little princess" at a heart-wrenching sentencing hearing in Tauranga.
Nevaeh's father, Aaron George Izett, 39, was sentenced to at least 17 years in jail after he was found guilty by a jury in November of his daughter's murder and two other assault charges.
Izett was also found guilty of assaulting Nevaeh's great-grandfather John Sturgess and Senior Constable Andrew McDonald during his arrest on March 21, 2019.
"I love you to the moon and back."
That's the last text message Lisa Graves will ever receive from her son, Clayton Graves.
His words are engraved on the wooden wakahuia (treasure box) that contains the 29-year-old's ashes and sits surrounded by family photographs on her mantel.
Lisa, 60, read those words back to her son as she addressed the High Court at Tauranga where Guy Appleton was jailed for Clayton's manslaughter.
The sound of a breathing machine is the first sign a docile Archie is lying in the room.
Propped up with cushions and blankets galore on the couch, the little man looks the picture of comfort.
But I wonder if Archie thinks the same.
The 3-year-old has Aicardi-Goutieres syndrome, a rare genetic condition leaving him physically and intellectually disabled.
The first construction phase of Tauranga's $400 million plasterboard facility began in the Tauriko Business Estate - this initial phase costing almost $40m.
But with all developable land in the estate sold out, some say another project is now "desperately needed": a new highway connection to unlock land for housing, business and industry.
Winstone Wallboards reached a milestone in January when it was granted its first consent worth just over $39m to start the build of the manufacturing and distribution plant.
The Bay of Plenty Times revealed some of the first images of the facility, which was expected to create 100 permanent jobs when it opened in 2023.
Tauranga ratepayers have paid more than $6 million to help cover the city council's prosecution and operational costs following the Bella Vista Homes fallout.
And ratepayer representatives say people are "fed up" with the continued ongoing costs related to the saga.
In March 2018, 21 homes and building sites that were part of the failed Bella Vista Homes development at The Lakes were evacuated because of safety fears. Tauranga City Council later prosecuted five parties connected to the subdivision with a raft of charges relating to breaches of the Building Act.
Some students are sacrificing food and study times and working fulltime jobs just to keep up with the costs of living in the Bay of Plenty.
Educational leaders say students were struggling to find affordable accommodation in the Bay and a students' union president says students should be able to study without this "ridiculous financial burden".
The news came as the Bay of Plenty's median weekly rent hit an all-time high of $550.
The number of children in emergency housing is growing - and one expert says they're being exposed to drugs, gangs and disorder.
The situation is leaving nearly 250 children across the region feeling "unwanted", anxious, with growing trust and mental health issues and falling behind others their age, according to people familiar with the problem.
Ministry of Social Development figures released to NZME under the Official Information Act showed the number of children in emergency housing in Tauranga/Western Bay jumped from at least 157 in June to at least 169 in September.