Six years since the Welcome Bay Community Centre shifted into temporary premises, it is finally moving to an expanded site today.

Centre manager Gerry Purcell is excited about the move from the shopping centre into the Welcome Bay Baptist church building, which offers four times more space.

Welcome Bay Community Centre manager Gerry Purcell takes down the sign as he prepares for the centre's shift today. Photo: Bruce Barnard.

'We have no immediate plan to change what we are already doing – the main plan is to do what we are doing better.

'We are pretty excited about it. At long last it's starting to become a reality. Six years ago it was just a dream to have a big community centre.

Gerry says the long-term plan would be to use the church and the neighbouring hall to create a community hub. Some ideas they are considering for the new centre are an expanded youth centre and an internet cafe to help more Welcome Bay residents have access to the internet.

Tauranga Council last year bought the church building for the centre to shift into after its lease expired in the Welcome Bay shops.

Gerry says there are lots of ideas for new or expanded services to make use of the building, which is four times the size of its current premises, including expanding its youth service to offer a drop in centre.

The council paid $190,000 for the church building on Waitaha Reserve, at the corner of Welcome Bay and Waitaha Rds.