Tauranga Council Signs $91m, 15-year Lease For New Office Building

Thursday, 17 April 2025, 7:22 pm
Article: Alisha Evans - Local Democracy Reporter

Tauranga City Council will spend $91.9 million on the lease for its new offices over the next 15 years.

The council has also budgeted about $33.5m for the interior fit-out of the new build at 90 Devonport Rd, in central Tauranga.

The eight-story building will house about 1000 council administration staff under the same roof for the first time since 2014, when black mould was discovered in its now-demolished Willow St civic administration building.

Staff will begin moving from other leased locations into the new $45m building — New Zealand’s largest mass timber office — at the end of this month.

The initial lease was for 15 years, with an annual rent of $6,129,511, including GST. Annual rent for 65 carparks was an extra $313,352.

The council will lease the building from Willis Bond, having sold the property developers the land for the project in 2021 for $8.5m.

This was reduced from the initially agreed sale price of $10.75m largely because the site’s in-ground conditions were considerably worse than anticipated, council city development and partnerships general manager Gareth Wallis told Local Democracy Reporting.

He said the $33.5m interior fit-out included construction of walls, meeting rooms, offices, flooring finishes, electrical, digital and IT.

The base delivered by developers Willis Bond was a “cold shell” with only basic structural elements and core utilities, Wallis said.

Furniture and fittings from the current offices would be reused where possible.

Between 600 and 700 people would work in the building on any given day, Wallis said. The council would use a system to manage desk utilisation efficiently, tried and tested in its other leased office spaces.

The council’s lease for 1 Spring St will end on April 30. Leases for 306 Cameron Rd and 46 Spring St end on May 31.

Council chief executive Marty Grenfell said the move would consolidate offices, boost efficiency and support the city centre’s revitalisation.

The long-term lease meant “no upfront construction costs”, and the new office would strengthen the council’s values of whanaungatanga and collaboration by bringing teams closer together, he said in a statement.

He said it would add to “recent positive momentum” from other CBD projects such as the waterfront playground and ongoing $306m civic precinct Te Manawataki o Te Papa development.

Bay of Plenty Regional Council chambers had been used for Tauranga council meetings, but these would be held in the new building until 2028, when they would shift to Te Manawatako o Te Papa’s Civic Whare.

Percolated perks

Perks staff will enjoy in the Devonport Rd building will include coffee on tap.

The council has accepted a tender of $470,000 to supply and service four coffee machines, including coffee beans, for five years from May 1. Instant coffee will also be available.

The estimated cost to council per cup from the machines was 70c and 40c for instant.

The council has 1299 full-time equivalent staff and associated employee costs of $128m a year.

Its 2023/24 Annual Report said 40 people earned between $180,000 and $259,999 a year. Seven staff earned $300,000 or more.

Grenfell’s total pay, including non-financial benefits, was $606,755. His remuneration package was based on advice from an independent consultant, the report said.

Council staff also had access to benefits such as up to $100,000 life insurance cover for permanent staff for death or terminal illness, a subsidised Bee Card for work bus commutes, an extra week of annual leave and up to $5000 for staff returning from parental leave.

New building blessed

A pōwhiri was held on April 2 to bless the Devonport Rd building.

Built by LT McGuinness, it has a 6 Green Star Design rating and features rainwater harvesting and electric vehicle charging.

By replacing most traditional concrete and steel elements with engineered timber, the building’s all-of-life carbon emissions were around 60% less than a typical commercial building.

Council Te Pou Ahurea cultural advisor Josh Te Kani said they worked with mana whenua to ensure mātauranga Māori principles were incorporated into the design.

LT McGuinness Tauranga manager Jack McGuinness said the project was an opportunity to create something significant for the city.

“It’s special to see the first mass timber building of this scale become part of Tauranga city centre.

“The delivery of 90 Devonport shows what is possible with mass timber — bringing sustainability, engineering, and resilience together to create a space fit for today’s modern workforce,” McGuinness said in the council statement.

Willis Bond managing director Wayne Silver said he hoped it was the first of many mass timber developments for the company.

The project was delivered on time and under its original budget, he said.

Willis Bond would not provide the building’s final cost or initial budget.

Local Democracy Reporting reported in January that two building consents totalling $45.5m had been issued by the council for 90 Devonport.

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

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