Tauranga rally urges city council to cut rates amid proposed 12% hike

The rates rally held in Tauranga stopped outside the new council offices on Devonport Rd. Photo / Supplied

About 250 people attended a rally at Tauranga’s Memorial Park urging the city council to reduce rates.

Act list MP Cameron Luxton spoke to the crowd before they marched to The Strand in the city centre on Sunday.

Rally organiser Jan Gyenge wanted Tauranga City Council to find $40 million in savings because she said the proposed 12% rates increase was “unsustainable”.

Gyenge said the rally went well and there was great engagement from the attendees.

The crowd stopped outside the new council offices on Devonport Rd and sported signs asking council to “stop the spend” and “respect ratepayers”.

The rally was not the end but a platform for people to share their concerns, Gyenge said.

About 250 people attended a rally against proposed rates increases for Tauranga that finished at The Strand. Photo / Supplied

Last week the council heard from submitters on its Annual Plan for 2025/26.

The plan received 968 written submissions and 96 people asked to speak to the council directly.

The council would deliberate on its Annual Plan on May 26.

Mayor Mahé Drysdale previously said the plan tried to strike a balance between investing in the city and affordability for ratepayers.

The council had already found $29m in savings to get to 12%, and was working to find more to get the final number down to 10% or lower.

– LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.