Te Arawa and council share vision for world class lakefront development
Rotorua District Council and Te Arawa property company Pukeroa Lakefront Holdings Ltd (PLHL) have been working closely together over recent months to develop new concepts for developing the city’s under-utilised Lakefront.
PLHL wants to develop land they own in the Lakefront area as a world class recreation, lifestyle, visitor and retail destination, with strong alignment to the Rotorua CBD revitalisation programme and integration with the city’s Lakefront Development Plan proposals.
Last week Pukeroa Lakefront Holdings and their planning consultants Retail Consulting Group Ltd (RCG) presented a series of concepts to Rotorua’s mayor and councillors as part of a process to prepare a master plan for the company’s land at the Lakefront. The land includes the site occupied by QE Hospital and other adjacent buildings and vacant space to the east of the site.
PLHL chairman Malcolm Short said that the company had commissioned RCG Ltd to undertake extensive market research and to evaluate a range of site layout options.
“The results of this work were then assessed by our board and following close consultation with council management we identified a master plan vision for developing the site which would potentially see investment in a mix of upmarket retail, dining, recreation, cultural, accommodation, and health and wellbeing facilities.”
RCG director John Long said the master plan would create an accessible, active and vibrant urban edge alongside the lakeshore for the benefit of the whole community, and would provide an important economic boost.
The board of Te Arawa Lakes Trust (TALT) have expressed their full support for the development concept. TALT chairman Dr Toby Curtis said the Trust was looking forward to working closely with Pukeroa Lakefront Holdings and Rotorua District Council on the development. He described the proposals as "very exciting" and said they had the potential to substantially improve the wellbeing of the Rotorua community and to add new vitality to the local economy.
Rotorua mayor Kevin Winters said the council shared PLHL’s vision for the lakefront as it was a perfect fit with the council’s own plans for the Lakefront public area and CBD, and the district’s new sustainable economic growth strategy.
“Pukeroa Lakefront Holding’s vision is incredibly inspiring. It’s totally complementary to our own aspirations to revitalise the CBD and to optimise the links with the Lakefront, Tutanekai Street, Government Gardens and Kuirau Park, through to Rotorua Central mall.
“The development would put in place a final piece in the CBD development jigsaw and help anchor the northern end of the CBD and connect existing city blocks to the lake.
“We anticipate that it will be of such a scale and quality that it will play a big part in Rotorua being able to recapture the status of New Zealand’s pre-eminent visitor and lifestyle destination.
“We’re particularly pleased to see another bold investment by Te Arawa in our city following their very successful development of Rotorua Central at the other end of town.”
Mr Winters said PLHL and RDC would be continuing to work together to incorporate the master plan vision into the council's current District Plan review.
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