Whilst agreeing that a university campus will be a benefit to the inner city I wonder whether or not the implications of basically donating, rent free, a $4.5 million site towards this proposal is really the best use of what is a ratepayer owned property.
In the same week that the councillors turned down a $600,000 advertising campaign to assist in promoting the Bay following the Rena event, along with the announcement of a bailout of $5 million for Baypark the councillors also decided to donate a valuable inner city property to what is basically a Government department.
Is this really the best use of a ratepayer owned property when in effect serious consideration should have been given towards either selling it (would it not be a good site for a hotel which seems to currently be in the too hard parcel for Council?) or renting it at a commercial rate?
A 33 year lease, with no recompense to ratepayers, is without doubt a very generous offer and is a very expensive option for the ratepayers of Tauranga who are facing increasing pressures on rates and also debt levels.
At the stated value of $4.5 million, for this site, even at a return of just 5%, the cost to ratepayers, over the 33 years rent free term of the lease, is at least $7.5 million ($225,000 times 33 years) along with loss of parking rental income of a stated $3.6 million ($110,000 pa times 33 years) resulting in a cost of at least $11.1 million to ratepayers.
On top of this is the stated loss of development contributions of $500,000 resulting in a total of around $11.6 million which seems to me to be an overly generous contribution to what is really a Government department.
Worse still there is the stated need to replace the lost parking and this will cost ratepayers dearly as either central city land will need to be purchased or a further car parking building built.
I can only assume that the councillors had considerably more information, available to them to reach this decision, than that was available to the general public as the decision from them was unanimous which somewhat surprised me.
Please don't get me wrong a university campus in the heart of the city will certainly stimulate this area but have we really received the best deal that we could, as it is also important to remember that Central Government receives GST paid on all our rates.

Mike Baker, Bethlehem.