Editorial: Change proves divisive

Mount Maunganui has plenty of wow factor and is a great drawcard for the region, writes Moran. Photo / George Novak

One of the things I love about living here is Mount Maunganui.

Mauao and the beach are beautiful and the place has a great atmosphere. It is somewhere you can go for a great weekend brunch, or for an enjoyable night out.

It seems though that local residents are keen to develop the high-rise northern end of Mount Maunganui into a special precinct to make it a more vibrant tourist destination.

Max Lewis' vision includes setting up a committee of Mount business interests and other "competent" people to manage and expand tourist and visitor growth.

His idea to establish a visitor and tourism precinct from Rata St to Adams Ave was outlined at a recent city council community development committee meeting.

Mr Lewis says the council should capitalise on the Mount's already world-famous reputation and maximise its tourist potential.

He says there is no wow factor.

I agree that more could be done to attract people to the wider area, but Mount Maunganui has plenty of wow factor and is a great drawcard for the region.

A street view conducted by this paper showed mixed reactions from members of the public. One said the Mount should be left as a natural asset while another said it needed to be revitalised.

I'm in two minds about what needs to be done, you only need to go to the Mount, during any day during summer to see how busy the place is. Traffic slows to a crawl and people are everywhere, on the beach, at Pilot Bay or in the main street.

It is awesome that people come here, but to sustain those visitors we need to keep evolving.

Some of the ideas to improve the experience for visitors include increasing the size of Pilot Bay's grassed area by using harbour dredgings, closing the Pilot Bay boat ramp and convert the trailer park for seasonal use of roadside vendors and introduce a one-way system from Salisbury St along The Mall, Adams Ave and Marine Parade with a 15km/h speed limit.

I don't know how much this would improve the Mount for the hordes of visitors, but at least people are thinking of ways to progress.