In 10 years' time, Tauranga will have double the population of Rotorua. Also in 10 years' time, Auckland is expected to have grown to more 2 million residents, and Hamilton is likely to have reached 200,000 Hamiltonians.
The recently released Golden Triangle Logistics report from Bayleys shows the economic output of the "golden triangle" (Auckland, Waikato and Bay of Plenty regions) is similar to the economic performance of the rest of NZ.
That means half of NZ's economic activity happens within the golden triangle.
The Bay of Plenty's relationship with Waikato and Auckland over the next decade will either be an incredible success story or a huge missed opportunity.
For example, if the Port of Tauranga shifts from mainly handling bulk freight to handling Auckland's overflow of consumable goods, then our local economy will have a shot of caffeine straight into its veins.
If central government finds the Bay of Plenty and Waikato councils easier to deal with than Northland, then we'll have a greater chance of receiving the infrastructure to enable this to happen.
Councils must learn to genuinely engage, plan, and deliver services together to successfully gain government investment.
Joint decision-making is easier said than done as Tauranga's beautiful meandering harbour and peninsulas makes for an ugly city from an infrastructure point-of-view as bottlenecks are unavoidable.
A prime example of the need for better relationships between councils is the public bus network. The Bay of Plenty Regional Council needs Tauranga City Council to invest millions into bus infrastructure to design a robust bus network.
But the city council does not have the confidence to build the infrastructure if the regional council keeps re-designing the bus routes and services.
It is a bureaucratic merry-go-round.
The three councils need to focus on, and properly resource, how the Western Bay of Plenty manages its inevitable growing population over the next decade and beyond.
This means focusing on the important issues that will address our transport congestion, rising groundwater tables, and supply of land for housing and industries.
Tauranga City Council has a philosophy of growth pays for growth.
But how many people know that general ratepayers have picked up the tab where growth did not pay for growth, totalling tens of millions over the past decade?
Basically, the planned development contributions - that you pay when you buy a new section - did not happen as planned and the council transferred the enabling infrastructure costs to ratepayer-funded debt.
This is a key reason why Tauranga City Council's overall debt has escalated over the past two decades.
We need councillors who can prioritise building relationships with developers and neighbouring councils to properly plan the city's growth.
This would help save ratepayers from having to unnecessarily fund the city's inevitable future growth.
Amalgamation of local councils is nearly impossible (and expensive) without central government completing a long overdue reform of local government across New Zealand.
Neither the left or right sides of Parliament have indicated that will happen any time soon.
We need the leaders of the three local councils to step up and ensure that our slice of paradise can successfully manage our continued growth.
Matt Cowley is the chief executive of the Tauranga Chamber of Commerce
