The draft Acquisitions and Disposals Policy is now open for submissions, allowing the community to have their say on house Tauranga City Council buys and sells property.

Council buys, sells, leases or transfers property for many reasons.

These include public works such as roads and other infrastructure, greenspace or recreational purposes, and managing land identified for future public use.

General Manager of Strategy and Growth, Christine Jones says council wants to ensure they deliver the best value to ratepayers when acquiring and disposing of property, and the new policy provides a consistent and transparent approach.

"One of the main changes we're proposing in the new draft policy is that mana whenua will be offered a right of first refusal on some properties sold by council.

"Mana whenua will have the opportunity to purchase council property at market value before being offered for sale through an open market process. However, not all properties will fit this criteria and this can only happen after any statutory obligations are met.

"The inclusions of the right of first refusal recognises the role mana whenua holds in building, protecting and celebrating Tauranga Moana, its environment and its people and acknowledges their partnership with council, while still providing a fair value for ratepayers."

The draft policy was approved for consultation by Council in December 2020.

An overview of the proposed draft policy, the draft policy and an online submission form are available at www.tauranga.govt.nz/ADP.

Paper copies are also available at the customer service centre at 91 Willow Street and in libraries. Consultation runs until 5pm on Thursday, April 15.

Council will use the community's feedback to propose a final policy for adoption by Council, likely mid to late 2021.