Details of a new billion-dollar town centre planned for in Pāpāmoa East that will be four times the size of Bayfair Shopping Centre and surrounded by 11,000 new homes have been revealed.

The Sands Town Centre will be mixed-use, with stage one including a $100 million aquatic centre with a 50m Olympic-sized pool, a large health hub and retirement village.

A large supermarket and retail outlet was also planned for the centre, around which 11,000 new homes are planned to be built.

Nathan York, chief executive of town centre developers Bluehaven Group, gave his submission to the Tauranga City Council’s Long-term Plan 2021-2031 on Wednesday (June 16, 2021).

Both economic development agency Priority One chief executive Nigel Tutt and Tauranga Chamber of Commerce chief executive Matt Cowley said the interchange was needed.

Cowley said Pāpāmoa East had an exciting future but was constrained by its lack of access to the TEL.

“Papamoa East has needed another connection onto the TEL for a number of years as the growing population is currently dependent on just two routes being available.

“Papamoa residents are forced to become a self-reliant community as they have to face significant transport bottlenecks if they want to get across the city (e.g. Domain Road and Bayfair 2 Baypark).

“This is why Papamoa has a growing number of professional services businesses starting up locally. Local customers want to avoid with the major traffic frustrations on the way to see their accountants and lawyers.”

You can read the article in full on the Bay of Plenty Times here. 

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