More than 200 residents attended the Tauranga City Council Mauao update meeting. Photo / Ayla Yeoman
Restoration of Mauao will begin next week, Tauranga Mayor Mahé Drysdale has told residents at a community meeting.
And the council is investigating potentially installing a bund at the foot of the mountain.
More than 200 people attended Tauranga City Council’s update session at Club Mount Maunganui on Thursday night.
The mountain has been closed since January 22, when six holidaymakers in the campground at the foot of the mountain were killed in a landslide.
Mauao’s walking tracks were damaged by dozens of slips, and several facilities at its base remain closed due to slip damage or risks.
Thursday’s meeting followed a similar one for Mount businesses last week, where the Q&A session got heated as owners called for better council communication and support.
The community meeting focused more on the positives, as residents shared memories and hopes for a future where Mauao and the surrounding facilities reopen.
The council had several speakers, also including Deputy Mayor Jen Scoular and newly appointed recovery manager Charlie Rahiri. A Mauao Trust representative and two MPs also addressed the crowd.
Community questions included when the boat ramp would open (not yet known), who was paying for the remedial work (the council via its risk reserve), if any of the base track could be opened (not enough to make it worthwhile) and whether the council’s external inquiry would hold up the opening of the summit track (no).
Mount Maunganui residents of 16 years, Sue and Merv Gyde, told Local Democracy Reporting about the memories made at the Mount Maunganui Beachside Holiday Park and why they believed it should reopen one day.
“I’ve holidayed there since I was 3 years old,” Merv said.
“It needs to reopen as a respect thing to the people who died.”
He said he met his three closest friends camping there, and hated the idea of it potentially not reopening.
He said there was too much focus on assigning blame.
“I think not to open the camping ground would be the wrong message to the people.”
Sue said their friend was staying at the campsite when the landslide happened and lost two good friends from Rotorua. She said he was extremely shaken.
“It took me a good month before I could even go anywhere near it.”
She said the campground was a happy place where her family made many memories and “lifelong friends”.
She said she missed walking around the Mount, staying at the campground and looking at the stars and the outline of the mountain at night.
Mount resident of five years, Phil McEwen, said he used to climb Mauao three times a week, but lately had to resort to cycling.
“I’ve really missed it. You get sick of biking.”
Jan Gyenge moved to Tauranga in 1998 but said she had been visiting the Mount since she was young.
She said Mauao was part of everyday life.
“Not being able to go up it or around it is a significant thing.”
Drysdale said the council shared the people’s vision for things to “open as quickly as they can”.
He hoped the meeting allowed the community to catch up on where the council was at, acknowledging there was an “information deficit”.
He said the community wanted more involvement and updates, and the council would work on allowing them to have meaningful input into the recovery.
“There are no secrets, we’ll share what we know.”
He explained the council did not have all the details and was still working things out for the remedial works.
He said the council was looking at alternatives to the shipping containers placed at the foot of Mauao as a protective measure against slips.
“We’re also looking at the bunding option,” he said.
Scoular, who is also the Mount Maunganui ward councillor, said her focus was on supporting businesses and events to bring vibrancy back to the city.
“I have acknowledged our communication could have been better, but I’ve also acknowledged that this is not a situation you could ever learn how to manage.”
She said the council had spoken to leaders in Auckland and Christchurch for advice on natural disaster recovery, including how to involve the community.
Bay of Plenty MP Tom Rutherford said almost everyone across New Zealand had a link to Mount Maunganui, and the Mount was a drawcard.
“This isn’t just significant for us as a community, it’s significant for us as a country.
“I am rattling the cage to say, central government needs to come to the party to support.”
He asked the council how they planned to remember those lost in the landslide.
Scoular said there was no plan yet, but she wanted input from the families, community and Mauao Trust.
The trust represents the three iwi of Tauranga Moana that own Mauao.
Mauao trustee Jack Thatcher said soil taken from Mauao during the operation to recover the deceased would be returned and may be used in the bunding.
He said there was a policy that no memorials were allowed on Mauao but the campground was not trust-owned so the memorial would likely be located there.
Act Party MP Cameron Luxton said the narrative that Mount Maunganui was closed needed to change for the benefit of tourism.
“The way we do that is with clear communication, providing certainty to businesses, but also communicating to the country, to the world, that Mount Maunganui is actually open for business.”
City development programme lead Emily McLean said the council planned to focus on events to bring back visitor confidence, foot traffic and local spending.
“Alongside events and recovery planning, council is continuing to invest in the Mount as a place, improving everyday spaces that people use and value.”
She said the council was planning playground upgrades, public art and toilet facility upgrades to make the space more welcoming and enjoyable.
She said everyone could be involved in the recovery by supporting local businesses and events.
Recovery manager Charlie Rahiri said he had been involved in the project for three weeks.
The three key areas he wanted to work on were communication, consultation and returning the city to some level of normality.
He said Mauao meant different things to different people.
For some, it was an economic driver that brought visitors into the Mount. For others it was the mauri and life force, while some saw it as a pinnacle for lifestyle choices.
“We have an opportunity to do things differently, and to reshape how we care for, how we protect and how we utilise our mountain.”
– LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
Ayla Yeoman is a Local Democracy Reporting journalist based in Tauranga. She holds a Bachelor of Arts majoring in communications, politics and international relations from the University of Auckland, and has been a journalist since 2022.