A failed Tauranga parking building sold to a developer for $1 will soon become a “landmark” $60 million, 14-storey building in the CBD.
Construction has started on Panorama Towers, also known as 35 Hamilton St, which will host office and commercial spaces plus 330 car parks.
The site between Harington and Hamilton Sts was once intended for a multi-storey public transport hub with 550 parks plus showers and lockers.
Construction stalled in 2018 when serious structural issues were found. The Tauranga City Council abandoned construction in 2020, having already spent $19m.
Rather than demolishing the half-built hub, in 2021 the council sold the site and structure for $1 to developers Waibop (Harrington), a subsidiary of the lead project contractor and builder, Watts & Hughes Construction Group Holdings.
Panorama Towers is a joint venture between Watts & Hughes property developer Carrus and Quayside - the Bay of Plenty Regional Council’s investment arm.
It offers seven storeys of car parking, including some underground, and seven storeys of office space with views across Tauranga Harbour and Waikareao Estuary. It will also neighbour the council’s $306m future civic precinct Te Manawataki o Te Papa.
Craig Watts, managing director of Watts Group Investments and co-owner of Watts & Hughes Construction, said Panorama Towers would become a “landmark” and “one of the prime commercial buildings in the city centre”.
Watts said the team “had a good look at the existing structure”, when asked to cost its potential demolition, and considered how to redesign it “to incorporate other elements that could save what had already been constructed”.
“We came up with the idea of building a concrete-reinforced central core structure up through the middle of the building,” Watts said.
Remedial works involve the deconstruction of part of the existing concrete and steel structure to enable new foundations and core walls.
The building would have a 100 per cent New Building Standard seismic rating.
Three building consents for the construction have already been issued. Two applications – for architectural and services work and additional levels – were still being processed.
Watts said physical construction of the project began “some months ago”, with the first major concrete pour happening about October 27.
A condition of the $1 sale required developers to provide at least 200 public car parks. Of the 330 being built, 200 will be for the public. These were expected to be completed by July next year, followed by the tower block around mid-2025.
Carrus managing director Scott Adams said the company had a “big interest in seeing the CBD revitalised and thriving”.
“This requires a big collaborative effort … Carrus has always held the view that the car park structure did not have to be demolished and that a remedial engineering solution could be found to avoid demolition. We would also like to see office tenants return to the CBD.”
The Bay of Plenty Times has previously reported some CBD businesses moved to satellite sites such as Tauriko in recent years, or were put off relocating downtown by the perceived lack of parking. CBD parking continues to be hotly debated, including the recent closure of The Strand’s 147-space waterfront carpark and paid parking zones expanding.
Adams said confidential discussions with prospective tenants for Panorama Towers were already happening. The project had moved away, however, from the idea of establishing a four-star hotel onsite.
Adams said Panorama Towers would become a “landmark building”, prominent in the skyline.
Total development costs were $60m, he said.
“More people working in town will contribute towards [the] local economy, supporting office and retail businesses. [It is] another piece of the jigsaw along with other great new developments around town to put our CBD back together.”
Council general manager of city development and partnerships Gareth Wallis said the building’s location across the road from the future civic precinct would help restore the heart of the city.
“We look forward to the features this development will bring to make our city centre an even greater place for people to live, work, learn and play in the coming years,” Wallis said.
Quayside Holdings senior investment manager Sam Newbury said in a statement: “This investment capitalises on [economic development agency] Priority One’s Blueprint and concurrent Tauranga City Council works, which all pursue the goal of a revitalised thriving city centre.”
The Blueprint is a 2022 plan of developments expected in the CBD to 2030.
Kiri Gillespie is an assistant news director and a senior journalist for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post, specialising in local politics and city issues. She was a finalist for the Voyager Media Awards Regional Journalist of the Year in 2021.
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