The council plans to sell a block of properties centred here, 90 Devonport Rd, to a developer that would build an office building to be leased by the council. Photo / George Novak
The council plans to sell a block of properties centred here, 90 Devonport Rd, to a developer that would build an office building to be leased by the council. Photo / George Novak
A decision to demolish the central library and what remains of the council's administration building in Willow St is a sign Tauranga is "moving on" under commission rule, a CBD business representative says.
Yesterday the Tauranga City Council announced its proposal to rebuild the library on the downtown Willow Stsite as part of an estimated $47 million new "civic amenity building".
The council also detailed a proposal to sell a collection of council-owned properties on Devonport Rd to a developer, which would construct an office building the council would lease for its staff.
It was a medium-term solution to get the bulk of the council's workforce - currently split between three office buildings - under one roof.
The proposals will be put to the community for feedback before final decisions are made by the four Commissioners governing the council.
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The future of the Willow St site and where to house council staff have been debated since 2014, when toxic mould was discovered in the administration building after a staff member became sick.
As a result, most council staff were moved out and part of the administration building was eventually demolished. One floor of the remaining structure remains decommissioned.
The Tauranga City Council administration building on Willow St. Photo / File
In a council meeting last week, general manager of people and engagement Susan Jamieson told commissioners the council needed to invest in a healthy organisation.
"Our organisation is spread over three buildings in the CBD and staff are walking between those three buildings every day to talk to each other. That costs us $1m a year, and that doesn't include other costs like a wasted investment, impact on culture.
"It's hard to motivate and connect staff that are physically divided from each other. It's confusing for our community too, who might show up to Willow St and find they are meeting at Cameron Rd or Spring St.
"And that is without considering the impact of our staff being in this building, with a decommissioned floor under us, band-aid fixes and buckets to catch the water when it rains."
In a statement yesterday the council said it had a conditional sale and purchase agreement to sell 82, 84, 90, 94, 96 and 98 Devonport Rd to developer Willis Bond and Co.
The council selected the developer's proposal from a shortlist of options. The council has a separate partnership with Willis Bond for other developments including a new central library, administration building and a hotel.
Commissioners have approved negotiations of lease arrangements for a new "civic administration premises" in a building to be developed in the Devonport Rd block, subject to community consultation.
Willis Bond would construct the office building and the council would lease space in it.
A council spokesman said the sale price for the Devonport Rd block would be "disclosed when an unconditional agreement is reached".
He said leasing space, rather doing the build itself, was a medium-term solution to locate staff together and avoid the need to commit to major capital investment.
Long-term decisions on whether the council would build a new civic administration building and what to do with the rest of the civic precinct block near Willow St were yet to be made.
The council has 772 staff members but some would remain based in facilities such as treatment plants around the city.
If the deal went ahead, those currently located in Cameron Rd and Spring St, and non-library administration staff at Willow St, would move to the new building, he said.
The first public meeting of the commission installed by the Government to run Tauranga City Council. Photo / File
The Devonport Rd site is near the major development of Farmers' corner as well as the recently redeveloped Bay of Plenty Regional Council building.
The new civic amenity building in Willow St would include a new library with at least as much floor space as the old one, plus public gathering and research spaces.
Mainstreet organisation Downtown Tauranga's chairman Brian Berry welcomed the announcement and said it would be "fantastic" for the CBD in the long term.
He said it was a "clear sign that Tauranga is moving on under the stewardship of the Commissioners".
There had been years of uncertainty regarding the final utilisation of these key two CBD sites, he said, which held back decision-making by private commercial property owners and developers.
Mainstreet organisation Downtown Tauranga's chairman Brian Berry. Photo / File
"Whilst this will cause further disruption to the CBD, the end play for the city centre is fantastic in three to four years' time."
On top of the pending completion of the Farmers development and other projects, the development of these council sites meant there was "significant investment and belief in Tauranga's future".
He said a significant number of council staff were based in leased space in Cameron Rd/Third Ave and bringing them back to the CBD "can only be good" for businesses in the area.
He said it was difficult to predict the impact the changes would have on Willow St, however, the moves represented change, not a loss.
"Willow St is not missing out, just the offering will be different."
Hospitality New Zealand Bay of Plenty regional manager Alan Sciascia said these developments would be a disruption to businesses because they would create traffic and parking issues.
Hospitality New Zealand Bay of Plenty regional manager Alan Sciascia. Photo / File
"For retail and hospitality to survive and thrive in the CBD the public needs parking."
He said something needed to be done about parking especially with the transport hub in Harington St no longer going ahead and the new developments taking over parking spaces in Devonport Rd.
"If the council does not provide convenient car parking in the CBD then customers will simply choose to go elsewhere, as they currently do."
He said the development of the CBD was long overdue but the city needed to know how long it would take for this development to evolve.
Long-term, there could be benefits if it brought more people to the city, he said.
Dry Dock Cafe owner Sandra Johnson said it was a surprise that the new office venue would not be on Willow St, but said it needed to happen.
She said she did not anticipate her business would be majorly affected, not in the same way it was three years ago when staff moved to their Third Ave location.
Buddy Mikaere. Photo / File
"It's great the library is staying," Johnson said, because many of her customers came from there.
Buddy Mikaere of Ngāi Tamarāwaho said it was good to hear the library would be rebuilt on Willow St, he hoped the administration building would make its way back there too.
"Having the civic building there is a great attraction to that part of town."
Consultation on the proposals will be done as part of the draft Long-term Plan in May.
- Additional reporting Kiri Gillespie and Samantha Motion
