Fluoride-free water could be available for Tauranga residents willing to travel outside the city to access it.

The Tauranga City Council has had conversations with the Western Bay of Plenty District Council on the potential to provide an unfluoridated water supply close to the city boundary.

Mayor Mahe Drysdale said it was important for residents to have a choice around fluoride in the water supply.

“Whilst we are legally required to fluoridate our city’s water supply, I am pleased we can discuss options for access to unfluoridated water for those residents who wish to have it,” he said.

The estimated cost of setting up the supply point was $30,000 plus a yearly ongoing cost of $5000, according to a city council report.

The Tauranga council will decide whether to continue this work at a meeting on Monday.

Tauranga’s water has been fluoridated since October 24 following an order from the Director-General of Health.

The council faced a potential $200,000 fine plus daily fines of $10,000 per day if it failed to comply with the order.

When councillors voted to fluoridate the water, they asked staff to look at costs and options for residents to access non-fluoridated water.

Only two (Katikati and Athenree) of Western Bay of Plenty’s eight water supplies are required to be fluoridated. The rest will remain non-fluoridated.

Access for Tauranga would be via a metered communal tap, with the water usage then charged back to Tauranga City Council.

Harington St became one-way in March and Liquorland owner Lisa Parker says the change has reduced her sales by a third. Photo / David Hall

Priority projects and controversial street designs

The council has set aside two days for the meeting to cover the 15 public items on the agenda.

It will consider options to return Harington St in Tauranga’s city centre to two-way traffic.

Harington St is one of five central streets that moved to a one-way system in March under a pilot aimed at reducing disruption from construction projects in the area.

Lisa Parker, who owns Liquorland on Harington St, presented a petition to council in November calling for the street to return to two-way traffic.

Parker told the council the one-way system caused sales to drop and she feared she might have to close her business.

She previously told Local Democracy Reporting that if the street returned to two-way and the public responded it might be in time to save her business.

An artist's impression of what Te Manawataki o Te Papa, Tauranga's future civic precinct, will look like.

One of the city centre construction projects is the $306m civic precinct Te Manawataki O Te Papa.

It includes a library and community hub, civic whare for meetings, an exhibition gallery and a museum.

Detailed design and initial pilings for the whare, exhibition and museum projects were almost complete and council approval was needed to move ahead with construction.

Drysdale said: “As we are now moving into a new phase of this project, we need to review the current funding arrangements and ensure all viable options have been explored to deliver the best outcomes for the community.”

The council committed $151.5 million of the project to be paid for through rates.

The remainder was to be made up from external funders, including a $21m Tect grant, Government and local grants, and selling council assets.

Construction of the library and community hub was under way, with timber framing being installed. It is due to be completed by the end of 2026.

The civic whare, exhibition centre and museum are planned for completion in 2028.

Tauranga Mayor Mahe Drysdale. Photo / Alex Cairns

The council will also consider which projects to prioritise as part of the 2025/26 draft annual plan.

Drysdale said the current economic environment meant the council faced some important choices on where to prioritise investment and spending in Tauranga.

He said ratepayers wanted value for money in everything the council does.

A council report recommended overall rates increase for industrial, commercial and residential properties be limited to 12.5%.

The report said work was required to find savings and achieve that.

Public consultation on the draft 2025-26 Annual Plan will take place from March 28 to April 28.

A business case for the future of water delivery will also be discussed on Monday, in response to the Government’s Local Water Done Well policy.

Local Water Done Well replaces the previous Government’s Three Waters Reform.

Water assets would remain in the council’s hands and the Government has asked Tauranga to plan how it would provide future water services.

The plan would ensure the council was delivering water services in a cost-effective and efficient way, while allocating enough money for future upgrades through to 2055, said Drysdale.

The details

Monday’s meeting begins at 9.30am and will be held at the Bay of Plenty Regional Council Chambers, 1 Elizabeth St.

Tuesday’s meeting starts at 9.30am and will be at the University of Waikato Tauranga Campus, Te Manawaroa Room, 101-121 Durham St.

The meetings will also be livestreamed on the council’s YouTube channel.

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