Environment Bay of Plenty councillors formalise decision

For immediate release: Thursday June 21

Environment Bay of Plenty councillors have today formally decided to relocate its headquarters from Whakatane to Tauranga.

The decision confirms a June 1 council recommendation to amend its Ten Year Plan to enable the headquarters relocation to proceed. Council formally adopted the proposed amendment to the plan, which will transfer approximately 100 positions from Whakatane to Tauranga rather than the 130 positions originally proposed.

Remaining in Whakatane will be staff from rivers and drainage, sustainable land management, hydrology and hydraulics services, and other field based services. A change to the original proposal means that information services, information computer technology and laboratory staff will also remain in Whakatane. It will also mean Maori policy staff will be located at all Environment Bay of Plenty offices. Approximately 70 staff will be based at the Whakatane office.

Council chairman John Cronin says the decision will allow the regional council to serve all of its ratepayers well.

“We are an environmentally-focused regional council but we’re not well positioned to fulfil our wider role under the Local Government Act.

“Moving the head office to Tauranga, the leading urban centre in the Bay of Plenty, will help us deal with issues faced by the region now and in the future.”

“We appreciate the effort people put into expressing their point of view and it was very humbling to receive submissions from throughout the region.

“But now we must move forward and begin planning for the future.”

Council will now begin working towards being based in Tauranga by 2010.

ENDS

© Scoop Media