On Wharf Street the vehicles, furniture and planters made of wooden pallets are long gone and in their place is shiny new furniture and an air of satisfaction.

What was once ‘cheap and cheerful' tactical urbanism is now a fully formed dining precinct.

'That was more a taste of what you could get, this is the full menu,” says Tauranga City Council urban spaces development manager Doug Spittle.

Doug is clearly proud of the project, as he occasionally pauses his conversation with The Weekend Sun to admire how all the elements of the street have come together.

It has transformed from a one-way street to a full pedestrian area with gardens and extra space for the restaurants and bars to fill with patrons.

The design is a nod to the street's history. Coronation Pier used to run off the end of it and the concrete has been bush hammered to resemble the wooden planks of a wharf.

The white ball lights strung above the street are bunched together to represent clouds forming at the coast.

With a budget of $5.56 million and a deadline to be open by summer, the Wharf Street upgrade has delivered on both fronts, despite a six-week shutdown during lockdown and supply chain delays.

'What a year to deliver a project.”

Doug says it was important for the community to see that council can deliver a project on time and in this case under budget.

Businesses have been using the space for the past week and The Barrel Room owner Stewart Gebbie says they were packed out over the weekend and trade has been fantastic.

He says the six months of construction were tough for everyone on the street but it will be worth the pain in the long run.

'For the CBD it gives the city heart. The whole street is a venue.”

They plan on having a Latin dance night in the street and live music from time to time. The hope is the Jazz Festival will extend there next year as well, says Stewart.

Despite some criticism that the focus of rejuvenating the CBD has been on the hospitality sector, Doug says it is an investment to draw people into the city centre not just the street.

'If this is a destination that brings more people into the city, than would have come in before that's a win for everybody.

'It's of great strategic importance to the city that the CBD does return to being a place people treat as a destination to live, learn, work, and play.”