The green light has been given for a new Taupo District Council building to replace the Lake Tce office but the council has stopped short of selecting a site, instead opting to undertake further investigations.
It will also seek expressions of interest from parties who may be interested in leasing a building to the council, selling land for the council to buy, or a combination of both.
The decisions were made today during deliberations on submissions to the 2017/18 Annual Plan. Almost 260 submissions were received on the 2017/18 Annual Plan during consultation, with 74 per cent supporting a new building. Many submitters voiced a preference to move away from the current Lake Tce site.
More than 120 staff at Taupo District Council will move out of the current building next month because of concerns about asbestos in the structure.
Mayor David Trewavas said with a number of submissions suggesting the need for more information about other potential sites, three council-owned sites in the Taupo town centre would be investigated to determine their suitability for a new council administration building as well as the existing site.
"The community have asked us to evaluate the costs and benefits before we make a decision on exactly where a future building should be. We will investigate potential sites around the Taupo CBD, namely the Heuheu St carpark, Tuwharetoa St carpark near McDonald's, and land where the Great Lake Centre and Taupo Library site. We will also investigate the site of the current council building at 72 Lake Tce."
Mr Trewavas said a new council building would play an important part in the community's future so it was imperative a number of options were explored before a final decision was made on where the building would be sited and how it would be funded.
"We'll also look into options for using private land for a civic administration building in Taupo's CBD, whether it be through leasing or purchase. An open and transparent public procurement process would then take place if privately-owned land was to be used."
Mr Trewavas said he was pleased at the level of feedback received from the community as part of the consultation process.
"It's great that our decision reflects the majority of the community's views shared with us during submissions," he said. "We'll keep the community informed about our findings once we have investigated all potential sites. Thank you to everyone who took the time to make a submission".
