Infrastructure & Environment Committee meeting 4 Oct 2024
Stormwater management projects
Rotorua Lakes Council’s Infrastructure and Environment Committee received a progress report this week on a major programme of works for stormwater management.
In July 2022, Rotorua Lakes Council obtained access to $84.6m from the Government’s Infrastructure Acceleration Fund (IAF) for stormwater projects to enable housing in the district.
The fund is administered by Kāinga Ora and the funding agreement requires the council to carry out infrastructure projects to help unlock 3,086 dwellings in the Central and Western areas of Rotorua city between 2023 and 2031.
A project overview report to the Infrastructure and Environment Committee provided updates on the status of the projects that come under this programme.
Group Manager Infrastructure and Environment Stavros Michael told the committee that a lot of work was being done to prepare the central and western catchments in order to implement stormwater systems that would allow the additional housing to be built.
He said good progress was being made but some aspects were challenging.
As part of the work, staff had identified that the lower Utuhina catchment was performing under its stated level of capacity to address a one-in-100-year weather event. The council was carrying out work to explore options to enhance this capacity.
Go to p31 of the meeting agenda to view the report on this matter
See this link to view this part of the meeting recording: https://youtu.be/XkmsFof06LE?t=6745
Parawai Rising Main
The Committee approved a request to accelerate work to replace a major wastewater pipeline in the city.
The Parawai Rising Main is a 3.8km long wastewater pressure pipeline carrying sewage from the Parawai Rd pump station, which collects and pumps all the wastewater from the Hamurana and Ngongotahā areas. It is the third-largest pressure sewer main in the city’s wastewater network.
A report to the Committee said a detailed condition assessment and replacement study carried out in 2022 indicated a heightened risk of failure from 2024 onwards. Allowance for a full replacement, in stages, was made in the 2024-2034 Long-term Plan.
Further analysis highlighted risks associated with managing a sudden break or burst and recommended installing a full parallel pipeline rather than replacing it in stages, which would carry a high risk.
Under the current budget allocation, the work would not be carried out until at least mid-2027, during which time the risk of a failure in the system would increase.
Staff recommended accelerating the work, given the critical nature of pipeline and the fact proposed housing developments might be delayed if the work is not advanced.
Mr Michael told the committee if the pressure pipeline failed suddenly the reliability of the service connecting Hamurana and Ngongotahā would be severely disrupted. There was also a number of development proposals which, in the absence of a reliable pipeline to connect to, the council would be unable to consent.
The committee voted in favour of bringing forward $2.5m from the 2026/27 financial year to 2024/25 and bringing forward $2.5m from 2027/28 to 2025/26.
The committee report noted there would be some financial impact by accelerating borrowing costs, but this would be offset by reduction in later years, and by avoiding inflationary impacts that would increase the construction cost over the next several years.
Go to p24 of the meeting agenda to view the full report on this matter.
To go this link to view this part of the meeting recording: https://youtu.be/XkmsFof06LE?t=2846
Also on the agenda….
Progress report for museum project: Construction is progressing well with a focus on basement strengthening. Scaffolding that has been erected is allowing work on the museum’s roof to proceed.
Mechanical and electrical works have begun with the sub-contractors starting demolition and testing of existing equipment. Other project milestones achieved include excavation of the lift shaft and removal of turrets.
Stewart Brown, Museum and Heritage manager, told the committee that the project was progressing well, on time and on budget.
Go to p39 of the meeting agenda to view the full report on this matter.
Go to this link to view this part of the meeting recording: https://youtu.be/XkmsFof06LE?t=8972
NZTA presentation: A presentation by the New Zealand Transport Agency was received. The presentation outlined Government priorities and provided an overview of the 2024-27 Land Transport Programme for the Bay of Plenty as well as Rotorua. It also covered the agency’s maintenance and resurfacing programmes.
You can view the presentation here
Go to this link to view this part of the meeting recording: https://youtu.be/XkmsFof06LE
Appointment of Alternate Local Controller: The committee endorsed the appointment of Paul Warbrick as Alternate Local Controller Civil Defence and Emergency Management. The appointment was made to strengthen the capacity of the council’s Emergency Response Incident Management Team. Prior to taking up his current role as Manahautu Te Arawa Partnerships at Rotorua Lakes Council, Mr Warbrick was an Alternate Controller for the Whakatane District Council.
Go to p24 of the meeting agenda to view the full report on this matter.
Go to this link to view this part of the meeting recording: https://youtu.be/XkmsFof06LE?t=2486
The full recording of this week’s meeting, which was livestreamed, can be found here on Council’s YouTube channel
