Tauranga City Council is hosting a Mauao recovery community update this Thursday evening at Mount Club.

The community will hear from elected members and the project team, who will give an overview of findings from the recently completed Quantitative Landslide Risk Assessment (QLRA) on Mauao.

There will also be an update on progress towards reopening areas affected by the January landslides.

Mayor Mahé Drysdale, Deputy Mayor Jen Scoular and recovery manager Charlie Rahiri will attend.

Six holidaymakers were killed by a landslide from Mauao into the Mount Maunganui Beachside Holiday Park on January 22.

The council-owned campground was severely damaged, along with the Mount Hot Pools next door. Both remain closed.

The Pilot Bay boat ramp is also closed because of slip risks but Rahiri told Local Democracy Reporting it was hoped it would reopen soon.

He said permanent fencing was installed at the boat ramp and carpark entrance last week, and temporary fencing was removed further along Adams Ave after extra ballasting of the shipping containers used as a slip barrier.

Rahiri said this would allow the boat ramp to be closed if necessary – potentially at short notice – but Adams Ave was no longer expected to face periodic closures.

Landslide damage to Mauao's base and summit track as seen on June 11. Photo / Alyse Wright

In a joint statement, Drysdale and Scoular said Thursday’s meeting would be an update on completed and ongoing work, “including remediation on the maunga itself”.

That included what was coming next, goals for track remediation and work towards reopening the mountain.

The statement said the council would cover how the QLRA was helping guide decisions about the next stages of the recovery programme for Mauao and surrounding facilities.

“We know people care about Mauao and there is a lot of interest in its reopening.”

They said progress had not been straight forward and acknowledged the length of time being taken was frustrating for some.

“We feel that too.”

Drone footage would be shown to give people a better idea of the work and monitoring being done by the council and Mauao Trust.

Attendees would also be able to ask questions.

Risk assessment findings

The QLRA found Mauao remained an active landslide environment and landslide and rockfall hazards would continue.

Risk reduction measures would likely be required before affected areas and facilities can be reused.

At a council meeting on September 2, councillors adopted a risk tolerance benchmark of a one-in-10,000-year risk of individual death for landslide and rockfall safety.

A council report authorised by Rahiri said this aligned with the Bay of Plenty Regional Policy Statement, a previous council landslide risk tolerance decision and international geotechnical guidance.

The threshold was described as “a balanced and proportionate approach to risk management”.

Council general counsel Phil Kai Fong in front of recovery manager Charlie Rahiri in the September 2 meeting.

The QLRA said the risk to numerous areas exceeded the benchmark – including the campground, hot pools, boat ramp and nearby pedestrian area, and the Mauao base track.

These would likely need safety measures.

The campground and hot pools were identified as the highest-risk locations because of their proximity to the slopes, high visitor numbers and the vulnerability of people staying for long periods.

The QLRA provided conceptual scenarios estimating the cost of stabilising the slope enough to restore full or partial access and use across the holiday park and/or surrounding facilities.

At the meeting, Drysdale told the councillors there was an opportunity to ask the public for alternative ideas for the area.

He suggested asking the public: “If we didn’t use this as a campground, what are some of the alternatives, knowing that there are some restricted areas here?”

The council has asked people to register on its website for Thursday’s meeting, which runs from 6pm to 8pm.

Ayla Yeoman is a Local Democracy Reporting journalist based in Tauranga. She holds a Bachelor of Arts majoring in communications, politics and international relations from the University of Auckland, and has been a journalist since 2023.