Pukehangi resident Rebecca Brake inspects the damage in her garage the day after it flooded. Photo / Ben Fraser
June 9:
A brand new $2 million backpackers lodge was being planned for central Rotorua.
The Rotorua Lakes Council issued a building consent valued at $1.5m in April for the new backpackers lodge at 27 Toko St.
Local tourism leaders said a ready supply of high-quality backpacker accommodation was important as borders reopened and it was great to see new investment in the sector.
Roger Willard, speaking on behalf of the owners Rivers Property Management Ltd, said the $1.5m consent was for a two-storey backpackers lodge with 28 rooms and the project was expected to cost $2m total.
Artist impression of what the new backpackers lodge on Toko St could look like. Photo / Spectrum Architects Ltd
June 12:
Construction work on a new $2 million clubhouse at Rotorua’s Lakeview Golf Club was about to tee off - two years after a fire destroyed its old clubrooms.
The Rotorua Lakes Council issued a building consent for new clubrooms at the Lakeview Golf Club on State Highway 5 in Hamurana.
Its old clubhouse was destroyed by fire in February 2020, taking 50 years of history with it.
Lakeview Golf Club president Alan Deverson after the fire that destroyed the clubhouse. Photo / Stephen Parker
June 14:
Then-mayoral candidate Fletcher Tabuteau launched a petition to Parliament demanding action to fix Rotorua’s Fenton St “ghetto”.
The petition called on the House of Representatives to direct the Government to stop motels being used as emergency housing to host non-Rotorua residents, as well as for it to invest in more police for the city and find “real alternatives” for emergency housing.
The petition also called for the local council to enforce “the original intent of the district plan, which does not allow Fenton St to be used as long-term accommodation” and to take action on crime prevention and enabling long-term housing development.
Tabuteau told the Rotorua Daily Post emergency housing was one of the biggest issues impacting Rotorua residents.
Fletcher Tabuteau started the petition. Photo / Andrew Warner
June 16:
A month ago, 42-year-old father Shane Edwards “vanished” from his Tokoroa home “without a trace”.
There had been no confirmed sightings of the Māori performing artist since the afternoon of May 14 - no phone, bank or social media activity, no contact with friends or family.
His wallet and phone were missing, presumed taken with him, and the pushbike he usually used to get around the South Waikato forestry town was left at home.
Detective Sergeant David Whitecliffe-Davies said today there had been two potential sightings of Edwards in Whakatāne and Rotorua but nothing was “firm”.
Shane Edwards went missing from his Tokoroa home on May 14. Photo / Supplied
June 17:
In its last meeting before dissolution, a Lakes District Health Board member took a final swing at the Government over MIQ, saying it was “imposed” on the city.
The Government has previously said the primary objective of MIQ was to keep Covid-19 out of the community and keep returnees and staff safe, and it took local matters into consideration.
Lakes DHB – along with all DHBs – will be disestablished on July 1 when they merge into the national Health NZ and Māori Health Authority. The board’s meeting on June 17 was its last.
Board member Merepeka Raukawa-Tait made the comments after chief executive Nick Saville-Wood’s report to the board, which contained a list of achievements since Lakes DHB’s creation.
But at the age of 71, the familiar face at the Amohau St restaurant decided she had cooked her last quarter pack and was looking forward to a quieter life.
It was Ogilvie’s last day at KFC and she admitted she was leaving with some sadness.
Healthy Families Rotorua system innovators Stevee Wikiriwhi (right) and Pirihira Whata said using the maramataka improved their work-life balance. Photo / Andrew Warner
June 25:
The cost of renovating the Rotorua Museum could swell to as much as $83 million, creating a $30m funding shortfall, a document obtained by Local Democracy Reporting revealed.
At a minimum, the cost could rise by $15m, according to the document.
The document is a confidential report to elected members from the Rotorua Lakes Council’s Strategy, Policy and Finance Committee meeting on April 14.
The council would not reveal how the committee – and later, the council – decided in the meeting, saying those details would be released once funding discussions had finished.
