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Sidetrack Cafe owner Mike Waghorn said the council should \u201cfront up\u201d and offer some rates relief.<\/p>\n
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Drysdale said the council had considered rates relief but was not offering it.<\/p>\n
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He said the landslide was a natural disaster and the council could not be held responsible for\u00a0business losses<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe do not have the financial resources to replace the losses to businesses.\u201d<\/p>\n
Beach Hut Caf\u00e9 owner Michelle Craig compared the situation to the Rena oil spill, when affected businesses received wage subsidies.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis [January closure] was through no fault of our own. This is not because our businesses have failed or because we\u2019ve failed to take special measures against any risk.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have been neglected by the council repeatedly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Craig said\u00a0poor communication<\/a>\u00a0compounded the situation from \u201cthe very beginning\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou didn\u2019t contact us for five-and-a-half days.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were all struggling with the emotional turmoil of what had happened. The business owners were wondering, \u2018Do I order milk tonight?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Drift Clothing owner Jacob Visser said spending in the area was down about 30% following the slip.<\/p>\n
He told\u00a0Local Democracy Reporting\u00a0that March was \u201ccomparable to our slowest month in winter\u201d.<\/p>\n
Because the store was outside the cordoned area, Visser said it was ineligible for\u00a0support from the Mayoral Relief Fund<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re just supposed to cop it without any help.\u201d<\/p>\n
During the Q&A, Visser asked the mayor whether the council had foot traffic data. Drysdale was unable to provide figures.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour income stays, ours doesn\u2019t,\u201d Visser told Drysdale.<\/p>\n
Turkish To Go owner Kemal Seyhan said most of his customers had been campground or hot pools guests.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you don\u2019t do something as soon as possible, I\u2019m going to have to close my shop.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe city is lost. Why would you come to Tauranga, the city centre is dead. If you don\u2019t have the Mount, no one is coming.\u201d<\/p>\n
Accommodation provider Mathew Manninen, who operates an Airbnb near the slip site, said uncertainty around Mauao\u2019s reopening had led to a \u201cmassive drop-off\u201d in bookings.<\/p>\n
Manninen said people were choosing other destinations such as Queenstown and the Coromandel, and that uncertainty around the mountain\u2019s reopening was likely to make summer quieter than last year.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe aren\u2019t able to offer what we used to.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said there was a \u201cbig ripple effect\u201d for businesses from having fewer visitors.<\/p>\n
He said this would increase competition among accommodation providers.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a race to the bottom. You just have to do it to survive.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pavilion Apartments owner Gail Fagan said the situation was the worst she had ever experienced.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s time to get this place going again.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have guests ringing from overseas and all over New Zealand saying, \u2018Should I come and stay, the Mount might fall on top of me\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mount Business Association chairwoman Jo Veale told\u00a0Local Democracy Reporting\u00a0that Monday\u2019s meeting was the first time she had heard the council acknowledge communication had been slow.<\/p>\n
She wished the meeting had been better promoted to improve attendance.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is what we needed. I think people will feel that they are valued members of the community when the council front up and said \u2018Hey, we\u2019re here, we hear you\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
Veale said she was concerned about how recovery would be handled, especially considering the response to downtown Tauranga\u2019s years of\u00a0construction disruption<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the message was quite clear: Don\u2019t do what you did to downtown Tauranga.\u201d<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\nTauranga Mayor Mah\u00e9 Drysdale speaks at an information session for businesses about the Mauao recovery at Classic Flyers. Photo \/ Ayla Yeoman<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\nDrift Clothing owner Jacob Visser. Photo \/ Ayla Yeoman<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\nSome of the Adams Ave businesses significantly impacted after the January 22, 2026 deadly Mauao landslide. Photo \/ Sandra Conchie<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\nMount Mainstreet chairwoman Jo Veale. Photo \/ Ayla Yeoman<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\nCommercial and retail premises up for lease in Tauranga CBD in 2023. Photo \/ Alex Cairns<\/p>\n
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