Recent reports highlight some flood prone areas around Tauranga including: - Matua, Downtown/industrial/residential areas in Mount, Arataki, Birch Ave etc. These are all long term serious drainage issues that are being generally ignored from the inception of the developments to now.
The biggest factor in these failures results from insufficient ratepayer's money being spent regularly on repairs and improvements so multiplying the inadequacies, small issues become much bigger.
Meanwhile Councillors apparently went on a tour bus 'tiki-tour” of the local flooded Everglades for some drive-by reconnaissance of affect areas but what will change anything?
Meanwhile back at TCC HQ the drainage money seems to have been diverted towards footpaths, boardwalks and pavements, all being paved a new everywhere? Add to that the 'handouts-a-plenty” are also in full-swing now, all requests (the usual suspect serial public trough feeders) for money from ratepayers being approved in lightening quick time …
Tomorrow the floods will have long since drained away and gone, folks will still have the toys to play with I guess.
The Government passed the Local Government Amendment Act 2012 that requires Councils of NZ to focus on infrastructure and other essentials and most importantly 'efficiently”, I don't think TCC has taken this on board yet? No way Jose'.

I Stevenson, Tauranga.