The Eastern Bay of Plenty is experiencing consistent annual population and economic growth and requires an integrated spatial plan to support and guide future planning and investment decisions.
This means we are creating a plan to set a future vision for the Whakatāne, Kawerau, and Ōpōtiki districts within the rohe of the iwi and hapū of the Eastern Bay of Plenty.
We call this 'Our Places - Eastern Bay Spatial Plan'. It outlines where the Eastern Bay of Plenty wants to head and provides a roadmap, or spatial plan, for how to get there.
Decision makers (councils, iwi partners, government agencies) use spatial plans to come up with options for the future of spaces and places - for example, how towns might spread out (or up), where to build papakāinga, where to build on the coast (and where not to), and what infrastructure (such as pipes and roads) might be needed to support growing communities.
Our Places is to ensure we provide for future needs - those of our future generations - safely and in a way that protects the taonga of the Eastern Bay, such as our bush, productive land, rivers and beaches.
What's happening now?
All four councils have formally adopted the Our Places - Eastern Bay Spatial Plan. The focus now shifts to implementation. Each council will lead the next phase of work by developing local growth plans that reflect the priorities of their district. This work will continue to involve iwi, hapū, stakeholders, and the wider public.
Stay up to date as each council begins implementing its local growth plan.
- Whakatāne District Council - we will be updating this page.
- Ōpōtiki District Council - Hukutaia Growth Area
- Kawerau District Council
View the final spatial plan documents on the Spatial Plan - Our Places - Ō tātau wāhi website »