Treading Water: Counting the cost of storms on Thames-Coromandel

Saturday, 23 May 2026

Thames-Coromandel mayor Peter Revell says the increasing costs of repairs and maintenance of local infrastructure after storms are a burden on ratepayers.

Road repairs on the Coromandel Peninsula are costing taxpayers and ratepayers tens of millions of dollars, with local leaders warning the district cannot continue absorbing the financial burden as infrastructure costs keep rising.

Since the severe storms of early 2023, more than $70 million has been spent repairing and strengthening key state highways across the peninsula, while the Thames-Coromandel District Council is proposing service cuts and fee increases to manage mounting costs.

According to the New Zealand Transport Agency, rebuilding the Taparahi Bridge on State Highway 25A cost about $43m alone.

The closure of walking tracks to Cathedral Cove after cyclone Gabrielle had a direct economic effect on the region.

A further $30m was spent in 2023 clearing slips, replacing culverts and side drains, strengthening bridges, stabilising slopes and resealing sections of SH25 and SH25A.

The storms, including Cyclones Hale and Gabrielle and the Auckland Anniversary Weekend floods, caused widespread damage across the Coromandel, cutting off communities and closing major transport routes for weeks.

Cyclone Vaianu severely damaged access to Cooks Beach in April.

The collapse of SH25A became one of the region’s most visible infrastructure failures.

The highway is a critical east-west connection linking Thames and Hikuai and is heavily relied on by residents, freight operators and tourists travelling around the peninsula.

The Coromandel Peninsula is in the firing line for tropical storms hitting the country.

Repairing and maintaining the district’s wider roading network has also placed growing pressure on the council’s finances.

Since early 2023, the council has spent just over $26m on its local roading network alone.

Before Cyclone Gabrielle hit the Thames-Coromandel, there was a state highway through all of this dirt.

The council is now proposing a range of cost-cutting measures in its draft 2026/27 annual plan to reduce a projected rates increase from 13.4% to about 3.77%.

Council says the savings are necessary because of rising infrastructure costs, storm recovery expenses, inflation, insurance pressures and ongoing water reform obligations.

One of the largest proposed savings involves reducing mowing and garden maintenance across the district.

Under the draft plan, parks, reserves, cemeteries, berms and roadside areas would be mowed less often, while flower beds and shrub gardens would be scaled back.

Some planted areas could be replaced with grass or hard surfaces, and weed spraying programmes may also be reduced.

Council estimates the changes would save about $450,000 annually, although public spaces would appear less tidy and manicured.

The draft plan also proposes reducing operating hours at smaller refuse and recycling transfer stations, including sites at Coromandel, Matarangi and Pāuanui. The changes could involve fewer opening days or shorter hours.

Internally, the council is also looking to save about $1m through staff and administrative reductions.

Proposed measures include cutting discretionary spending, scaling back some IT improvement projects, lowering contributions to regional efficiency programmes and reducing the mayor’s discretionary fund.

At the same time, residents could face higher user charges.

The council is proposing an average 13% increase in fees and charges for services including swimming pools, halls, cemeteries, rubbish facilities and consent processing.

Mayor Peter Revell said the district’s small rating base could not continue carrying the full cost of maintaining nationally significant infrastructure.

“We simply can’t keep asking local ratepayers to carry these costs on their own,” Revell said.

The Thames-Coromandel district has a permanent population of about 32,000 people, although visitor numbers swell significantly during summer.

Road closures can have immediate economic consequences for local communities that rely heavily on tourism, freight access and seasonal visitors.

“When roads are closed, communities are isolated and businesses suffer immediately,” Revell said.

The peninsula’s geography makes maintaining roads particularly difficult and expensive. Many highways are narrow coastal routes or hillside roads vulnerable to slips, erosion and washouts during heavy rain.

Even after major recovery projects are completed, ongoing maintenance and stabilisation work is often required to keep roads safe.

Transport officials have acknowledged that maintaining the Coromandel network is becoming increasingly expensive as repeated severe weather events place additional pressure on already fragile infrastructure.

For residents, the financial strain is becoming increasingly visible not only through road repairs but also through reduced services, higher fees and pressure on council budgets.

Revell says balancing infrastructure spending while keeping rates affordable is becoming more difficult each year.

Despite the costs, authorities say continued investment in the roading network is unavoidable because the highways are critical for emergency access, freight movement and tourism across the peninsula.

But with repair bills continuing to rise, local leaders warn difficult decisions about funding and service levels are likely to continue.

Revell said the Coromandel’s roads were important not only for local residents, but for the wider country.

“The Coromandel is an important destination for New Zealanders, but our small communities cannot continue paying for nationally significant infrastructure on their own,” he said.