Tauranga City Mayor Stuart Crosby says the continuing the seawall strengthening along Dive Crescent is going to shut down the Cargo Shed for the entire 2016/17 cruise ship season.

The work will go out for tender shortly, with a view to work starting in October and being completed in June 2017.

The Cargo Shed Arts Market venue will be closed for eight months. Photo: Andrew Campbell.

'Some elected members have been asking if the work was delayed what would the costs be,” says Stuart. That information is not yet available.

'We have to fix the seawall, because it's putting the whole thing at risk from corrosion.”

There's going to be significant reconstruction of the sea wall from where it's just been completed, right round to Bobby's fish market on Dive Crescent.

Council staff have been negotiating with stallholders through their representatives Des Ferrow and Gabrielle Johnson.

'Those conversations have been going on since April this year,” says Stuart.

'The staff have been advised that both Des and Gabrielle have shared all discussions with the stall holders. We sent them a formal notice on July 1 to let them know that we have the sea wall works to be done.”

Arts Market@The Cargo Shed has been on a year to year lease since 2013, with the latest expiring June 30, 2016.

Stall holders have to vacate by August 30. After that the shed will not be available at all from August 30 until September 17.

From September 17, tenants will be able to use the Cargo Shed on weekends, but they will not be able to store their goods in the shed.

'To date, no other bookings have been received and they would be assessed case by case. Current stall holders do have ongoing short term access if they wish to choose it,” says Stuart.

'At the moment no one else been granted permission to go in there except the arts market on short term basis and we understand that may not be practical for some of them to take their goods in and out.”

A letter to the stallholders from the council property portfolio manager Sarah Alexander states the Otamataha Trust members may also be permitted to use the premises during the time that construction works are being undertaken to stabilize the seawall.

'There are no other bookings that we are aware of. We are always getting inquiries for the space anyway,” says Stuart.

Otamataha Trust is with the city council seeking title to the land from the government. The Cargo Shed is on reclaimed land created when the East coast Main Trunk railway line was built in the 1920s.

The land was then owned by the former Tauranga, then Bay of Plenty Harbour Board with ownership supposedly transferring to Tauranga City in the 1989 local government reorganisation.

'When we inherited it after re-org it had no title which was a clerical error,” says Stuart. 'But that clerical error which I understand happened in the 1950s has caused significant problems.”

Some years ago the council partnered up with the Otamataha Trust to get the title off the government.

'Initially as I understand it, they (the government) wanted some horrendous amount of money, so there's been a lot tooing and froing between ourselves and the government in Wellington.

'My view is the title should simply be transferred to Tauranga City Council, and then we can all get on, and have some clarity around that area.”

He says the council would certainly entertain another proposal from the arts collective once the sea wall work is completed.