When a major steel reinforcing firm decided to move to Tauranga and employ local workers, it faced a simple but major problem - finding a suitable building.
Fletcher Reinforcing central region manager Murray Galloway made three visits from Hamilton - but the buildings he was shown were either too small or
not high enough to fit an overhead gantry crane.
"It was totally frustrating," he said. "There just wasn't much available in the city."
So when he heard of new business land opening up in the strong growth area of Papamoa, he leaped at the opportunity.
Fletcher Reinforcing opened its seventh branch - the first in the Bay - in January by leasing purpose-built premises at the new Papamoa Junction commercial/retail centre.
Papamoa Junction, off Parton Rd, is developing 30 commercial sites over the next two years and is one of several large areas being set aside for businesses.
Fletcher Reinforcing, which bends steel for the building sector, was the first business to get underway, followed by a garden centre and then a furniture manufacturer.
"We are pleased to be here - and it's got to be good for the area," said Mr Galloway. "The rent was cheaper and it was easier to transport product south, as we do a lot of business in Rotorua and Taupo."
During the past five years Fletcher Reinforcing had only a sales rep on the road in the Bay.
He would send orders to Hamilton where the steel was cut and bent and freighted over the Kaimai Range.
"We found the tonnage we were sending to the Bay was growing rapidly and we had been thinking of opening a new branch there for nearly three years," said Mr Galloway.
The company employed a staff of seven, including the manager, to man the workshop and the office - and six of them were locals.
Mr Galloway said the branch reached budget in the second month and the company would hire an extra office person within the next few months and at least two more in the workshop by the end of the year.
Papamoa Junction developer Maurice Weaver was blown away by the interest in the commercial sites. "We have sold all but two prior to the construction period and that's unheard of - it's boom times.
"Normally sites can sit there for up to two years before people move in. There is a strong demand for industrial land in Tauranga - absolutely."
Two years ago the commercial sector was fretting about a shortage of land in the established industrial areas.
Thanks to new developments like Papamoa Junction, and Marshall Rd Katikati, there will be a quick turnaround in supply.
Tauranga council's latest survey found only 17 per cent of industrial zoned land in the city was vacant and a SmartGrowth report said the current industrial land supply of nearly 600ha would be depleted within eight years.
But another 600ha of business land is expected to be made available, in stages, over the next 10 to 30 years.
Much of this land will be in the new satellite city of Papamoa East, including Papamoa Junction, and the proposed business parks at Rangiuru and Tauriko, which will be developed on farmland.
The business park developers will be lodging designs and plan change applications later this year.
This new supply will dampen rising land values and rents, create larger lots and attract more businesses like Fletcher Reinforcing to the region, thus increasing employment opportunities as the population continues to climb.
The business park near Te Puke, called Metroplex Rangiuru, is expected to create up to 7000 jobs.
Ross Stanway, chief executive of economic development agency Priority One, said the business land developments were incredibly exciting.
"We were facing a real shortage - and the good thing is the landowners, developers, councils and ourselves have worked closely together to create the best outcome for the region."
The developments also strengthen Priority One's case in attracting new businesses and investment to the region and encouraging local firms to expand.
Mr Stanway said Priority One would concentrate on key sectors that could provide a competitive advantage - such as food processing, manufacturing, horticulture, forestry and the marine industry.
Export-oriented companies would be well placed because of the port and the established distribution and transportation system surrounding it, said Mr Stanway. Tauranga's professional services - lawyers and accountants - were also experienced in dealing with exporting inquiries.
He said it was important to attract solid businesses that required skilled people and they were paid accordingly.
"Some businesses operating at a certain level of profitability are already paying more wages - the people who are vulnerable are those who move here first and then decide to find a job."
Priority One is establishing a database of New Zealand and overseas companies and investors interested in getting a slice of the action in the Bay.