1 June 2018
Media: Rotorua Daily Post
Topic: Lakefront Advisory Board
Enquiry
The reporter asked if the advisory board had been named yet so they could include it in an upcoming story.
Response
The reporter was advised that discussions about the board's representatives were still ongoing.
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Media: Rotorua Daily Post
Topic: Infometrics report
Enquiry
The reporter asked the following questions in relation to the latest quarterly economic monitor report released by Infometrics. See report HERE
In reference to this section below:
Non-residential building consents to the value of $50 million were issued in Rotorua District during the year to March 2018. The value of consents decreased by -19% over the year to March 2018. By comparison the value of consents in New Zealand increased by 2.6% over the same period.
Over the last 10 years, consents in Rotorua District reached a peak of $122 million in the year to December 2009.
- Why does the Rotorua Lakes Council think non-residential building consent values are reducing in Rotorua? Is this a good sign, or bad, or both?
And in reference to these sections below:
Traffic flows in Rotorua District increased by 3.8% over the year to March 2018. This compares with an increase of 2.0% in New Zealand.
The number of cars registered in Rotorua District increased by 18% in the year to March 2018 compared with the previous 12 months. Growth was higher than in New Zealand, where car sales increased by 4.4%.
A total of 3,083 cars were registered in Rotorua District in the year to March 2018. This compares with the ten year average of 2,045.
- Why does the Rotorua Lakes Council think traffic flows are increasing in Rotorua?
- What implications are expected for the district from this extra traffic?
- Why does the Rotorua Lakes Council think car registrations are increasing in the district?
- Does the council want to see the number of car registrations start to decrease?
Response
In response to the first questions regarding non-residential building consents the reporter was given the following explanation:.
Commercial consents often fluctuate substantially because larger projects obviously bump the work value up. Here are the two comparisons for the top value commercial consents for March last year and this year.
Last year you can see consents for both Kmart and the old RSA building were approved which is a large chunk of the work value.
It really just depends on the timing of approval for large consents within the year.
March 2017
Date Issued | Owner Name | Work Description | Work Value |
31/03/2017 | PUKEROA PROPERTIES (NO.2) LIMITED | K-MART RETAIL BUILDING | $6,000,000 |
28/03/2017 | PUKEROA ORUAWHATA HOLDINGS LIMITED | RENOVATE AND UPGRADE EX RSA BUILDING FOR NEW OFFICES | $2,000,000 |
7/03/2017 | ROTORUA DISTRICT COUNCIL | SEISMIC STRENGTHENING, REPLACE TOILETS, AND CREATE OFFICE SPACE | $1,200,000 |
23/03/2017 | FELL HOLDINGS LIMITED | TRUCK DEPOT FOR CHILLED GOODS | $600,000 |
6/03/2017 | PNB HOLDINGS LIMITED | FRESH CHOICE SUPERMARKET FIT OUT | $600,000 |
March 2018
Owner Name | Work Description | Work Value |
MCDOWELL PROPERTY LIMITED | NEW BUILDING | $362,250 |
TE AWA FARMS LIMITED | NEW COWSHED | $338,000 |
BUNNINGS LIMITED | ALTERATIONS TO INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL RACKING | $300,000 |
ADORERS OF THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS OF MONTMARTRE | ADDITIONS AND ALTERATIONS TO CORRIDOR AND KITCHEN | $284,000 |
Response to questions relating to traffic flow and car registrations from Deputy Mayor and Sustainable Economic Development portfolio lead Dave Donaldson -
As we can see from this report, the Rotorua economy continues to trend upwards. It is encouraging to see our GDP growth is higher than the national average. Rotorua is an exceptional place full of innovation and growing businesses. Rotorua is experiencing an increase in population as well as huge visitor growth and these factors can contribute to increased traffic flow. Given this, it is not surprising that Rotorua is higher than the national average. Although increased traffic can provide challenges in communities, this is continually being monitored and measures are being taken to address these pressure points. Council's Safe and Sustainable Journeys team have spent the past three years focussing on providing facilities that encourage the use of other modes of transport as a way to reduce the impact on infrastructure. The urban cycling network is taking shape and with the help of Bay of Plenty Regional Council bus routes have been revamped. The influence of growth in tourism on our infrastructure is also evident. Tourism in Rotorua is an $823.3 million per annum industry and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Environment forecasts that nationally the industry will continue to grow by 4.6% per annum until 2024 and growth of this scale requires a lot of investment in transportation. An increase in car registrations could also be linked to a range of factors outside of those above but it is difficult to pinpoint exact reasons without further research.
