Rangiuru industrial park reaches milestone
Business park’s connection to highway begins
Commuters near Te Puke now have a very visual reminder of what is to come at the huge Rangiuru Business Park. A major part of the project was completed two weeks ago, with massive beams installed across the Tauranga Eastern Link Toll Road as part of a $60 million project to connect the business park to the roading network.
The highway was closed overnight for three days while eight 33.1m beams, weighing 65 tonnes each, were installed.
The interchange was expected to be open in late 2024 and was a key piece of infra- structure that would link the park to the motorway and the wider region.
The industrial park comprises 148 hectares of consented industrial land that would be developed over four stages.
An $18m contribution from the Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) in 2020 provided the seed capital to start the business park and motorway
interchange, while lead developer Quayside is managing and funding the rest of the project and is the largest investor, owning 40 per cent of the available land in the park — 60ha, mostly in the first stage of the project.
The remaining space in the park is owned by other landowners.
Quayside is the investment arm of the Waikato Regional Council and has over $3.2 billion in assets, including a 54 per cent stake in Ports of Tauranga.
The interchange would connect
future residential development in the east with the business park in the
west, and would be vested to Waka Kotahi New Zealand Transport
Agency once completed.
Quayside Holdings property general manager Michael Jefferies said the development would meet the shortfall in high-quality industrial land close to the Port of Tauranga.
Rangiuru Business Park is 30km from the Port of Tauranga and within three hours’ drive of half of New Zealand’s population, and is also adjacent to the rail network.
Jefferies said the proximity to established transport links provided wider regional accessibility between Tauranga, Whakata¯ne, Te Puke, Kawerau and Rotorua, and offered “huge opportunities”.
Priority One chief executive Nigel Tutt said the Western Bay of Plenty was a popular place for businesses to locate to.
“We have seen strong growth in our local business community in recent years. Industrial land is sought after to meet future demand and to provide additional choices for developers and businesses. The location of Rangiuru means it is well served to cater to demand on the eastern side of our city.”
Quayside CEO Lyndon Settle said they were responsible for growing a diversified fund that generated longterm returns and supported the prosperity of the Bay of Plenty.
“The Rangiuru Business Park plays an important role in enabling economic growth across this region,” Settle said.
The park was being developed with an eye on regional growth strategies like Smartgrowth, the Future Development Strategy, the Tauranga Transport Plan, the Tauranga Urban Strategy, the Bay of Connections Growth Strategy and others.