News

Ōhope residents are being asked to choose between three pedestrian crossing options for Pōhutukawa Avenue, which could be delivered alongside planned road resurfacing in February next year.

Work is underway to improve the alternative route used when State Highway 2 is closed at the Waiotahe Bluffs.

A rāhui is in place following the recovery of a woman whose body was found near Moutohorā Island yesterday.

A 36-year-old woman who entered the water near Ōpōtiki on Sunday has been located near Moutohorā Island, north of Whakatāne.

Kawerau’s Mountain View Rest Home is set for a major heating and emergency preparedness upgrade, after securing more than $150,000 from Trust Horizon.

Born under a Whakatāne house and now sporting an All Blacks and Black Ferns-themed set of names, Ruby and her 11 puppies have had an unusual start to life.

A $110,320 grant is helping unlock the next stage of a major Māori-owned development at Te Whaiti, where plans are taking shape for new homes, food production and employment on the Tawhitiwhiti Block.

Ōhope residents are being asked to choose between three pedestrian crossing options for Pōhutukawa Avenue, which could be delivered alongside planned road resurfacing in February next year.

Work is underway to improve the alternative route used when State Highway 2 is closed at the Waiotahe Bluffs.

Whakatāne District Council has postponed public consultation on how drinking water, stormwater and wastewater services will be delivered, after two neighbouring councils paused consideration of a proposed shared water services organisation.

The future shape of local government in the Eastern Bay of Plenty remains uncertain after Cabinet decided not to make decisions on individual Head Start proposals at this stage, with the proposals now expected to return to Cabinet for consideration in early 2027.

After years of public demand, Whakatāne District Council has approved a one-stage approach for renewal of the Whakatāne War Memorial Hall that is expected to save as much as $2 million more than the original two-stage proposal.

Police are continuing an urgent search for a woman who remains missing after two people entered the water at the Ōtara River mouth and Waioweka River mouth connection in Ōpōtiki on Sunday.

Police are urgently renewing their appeal for information to help confirm the safety and whereabouts of two people who entered the Ōtara River in Ōpōtiki early Sunday morning and have not yet been located.