For a decade, Project Tauranga partner Cooney Lees Morgan has helped Tauranga residents get out and about and stay active by supporting Sport Bay of Plenty’s recreation programmes. The Tauranga law firm has helped fund Play in the Bay, Live2Play, City on its Feet and, most recently, the Explore Some More Corporate Challenge, which this year included nearly 200 participants from 25 workplaces. Cooney Lees Morgan partner Paul Tustin said the organisation was proud to support programmes that encourage a healthy, active lifestyle.

Bridges project

Project Tauranga partner TECT granted $175,000 to the Kopurererua Valley Rotary Centennial Trust to build two bridges to complete the north-south link, increasing accessibility from the Lakes right through to Birch and 17th Avenues. The bridges add to the extensive restoration work already done, including the 15 kilometres of boardwalks and walkways already in the valley.

Kopurererua Valley

The project will cost several million dollars over a twenty year period. It is proposed that part of the project will be funded 50% by rates and the rest by the Project Partners. These partners are being Tauranga Rotary, Comvita, Naturally Native, Opus, and Downer.

Tauranga Rotary

The four combined Rotary Clubs of Tauranga (Tauranga, Tauranga Te Papa, Tauranga Sunrise and Otumoetai) are delighted to be able to contribute to the development of a major city asset. Rotary has a long history of contributing to the community and the Kopurererua Valley project is their most ambitious project yet.

The combined Clubs established a Centennial Trust in partnership with Council and are undertaking a staged project over 10 years which will see the equivalent of $150,000 per annum committed to the project by Rotary. Rotary have a vision of bringing life into the valley, with a network of walking and cycling tracks and native plantings which will return the valley to nearer its native state. Rotary have strong links with schools and have mobilised an existing Rotary project called "Trees for Survival" where schools plant and grow seedlings for revegetation, to assist in the extensive planting programme.

Opus Consultants

Opus have been providing planning advice and assistance to the Kopurererua Valley redevelopment project since it began. Opus are strong supporters of the revegetation project and provide enthusiastic staff support for annual planting days. They are also advocates for sustainable transport and take a keen interest in the valley’s development into a key part of the city’s walking and cycling network.

Comvita

Comvita are foundation supporters of the Kopurererua Valley redevelopment project. Comvita supports the "Birds, Bees, Kids and Trees" programme in the valley as a way of introducing children to environmental issues while helping to restore the valley to a more natural state. Planting days are held annually for bus loads of school children who are encouraged to return in future years to see how their trees are doing.

Naturally Native

Naturally Native provides plants and technical expertise to assist with the development of Kopurererua Valley.

Naturally Native is a Tauranga based company which is a significant supplier of native plants for large environmental and landscaping projects, including many Tauranga City Council environmental restoration projects. These include the replanting of Mauao after the devastating fires in previous years, and the Matua Saltmarsh restoration, recognised on the Ramsar World register of wetland environments.

Countless kids – and a fair few grown-ups – have eagerly clambered up the stairs to take their turn on the rocket’s two thrilling slides. The new rocket was built with input from Project Tauranga partner Placemakers, who provided materials and helped with the construction.

HEB Construction reshaped the Karewa Parade car park to enable people with mobility challenges to be able to sit down, bring their fish and chips and enjoy the view with their families.

This first of its kind street art festival Paradox exhibited artwork from acclaimed street artist Banksy, along with specially created works of art by six international and national artists. The festival transformed Tauranga into an outdoor art gallery with works showcased across city walls, at the same time bringing street art into the Tauranga Art Gallery.

Cooney Lees Morgan have supported at least eight exhibitions at Tauranga Art Gallery, including Yvonne Todd and Euan Macleod.

Project Tauranga partner Simpson Grierson is helping keep our city’s creative juices flowing by sponsoring Creative Bay of Plenty’s community gallery. The gallery hosts more than 30 exhibitions annually, supporting local artists by showcasing their work in a professional space that is open to the wider community.

Lellman Wearne Ltd and Craigs Investment Partners have supported The Acorn Foundation for a number of years. The Acorn Foundation distributes a significant amount of money every year to the local community, 250 donor funds have been established and $16 million invested since it started in 2003. Acorn’s aim is to help the Bay of Plenty’s not-for-profit community organisations to be financially sustainable, so that they can get on with doing their good work.

A gift to the city from Project Tauranga partner Trustpower, the dance floor with coin-operated lighting and sounds is sure to get Tauranga’s toes a-tapping. You simply pop $2 in the slot of the modified laundromat machine, plug in your iPod or phone, put it on play, and dance to your own music for half an hour. All funds go to more Project Tauranga projects.

Each year one thousand local pre-schoolers learn how to stay safe in the water thanks to Project Tauranga partner McLeods. The company teamed up with Bay Venues to give kids free swimming lessons at Baywave and Greerton pool and help create the next generation of safe swimmers.

Project Tauranga partner Powerco is helping nurture the next generation of coders while saving parents’ sanity during the school holidays. The company has supported multiple instalments of Codebrite, a holiday programme designed for kids that develops coding skills through creative, fun and collective learning.

The bronze sculptures, created by Brigitte Wuest, are of Hairy Maclary and eight of his friends – Scarface Claw, Slinky Malinki, Hercules Morse, Muffin McLay, Bottomley Potts, Schnitzel von Krumm, Bitzer Maloney and Zachary Quack – are located on the waterfront next to the playground on The Strand.

The first solar powered electric vehicle charging station in New Zealand based at The Strand.

Sponsored by Eves, this week-long festival was a hit with around 8000 people watching the 16 street art murals being created around Mount Maunganui by top local and international artists.

The Travel Safe programme is all about equipping our communities with the skills they need to stay safe on the road, by teaching kids how to cycle safely by qualified cycle skills instructors.

A safe place for children to learn to navigate the road, Downer recently repainted the road markings at the Travel Safe practice course on 17th Avenue near the Historic Village. The course has give-way signs, right-turn lanes and pedestrian crossings – everything younger learners need to gain skills on wheels.

GrainCorp provides free advertising space to not-for-profit community organisations including Sport Bay of Plenty, the Acorn Foundation, the Child Cancer Foundation and Tauranga Arts Festival, to name just a few. Fuel Agency manages the banner space including bookings.

Letting the community know the good works of the Project Tauranga partners. The talented team at Marathon Visual Media have been helping us to showcase the great work our partners do each and every day to make our city even better. What good would a newsletter be without publishing it? The team at the Bay of Plenty Times publishes Project Tauranga News in the Bay of Plenty Times and Bay News each month. With a combined readership of 90,000 the great work our Project Tauranga partners are doing is reaching a massive audience across the Bay.