The Northland Aquatics Facilities Plan (2023) identified that the Kaipara East area has the most limited level of pool provision in Te Tai Tokerau, where the Mangawhai area is the key growth area. The shortage of pool space is projected to grow significantly if no further aquatic space is provided.  

The Northland Aquatics Plan identified a shortage of available water space in Kaipara Central. Sport Northland therefore commissioned this pre-feasibility report to investigate options to increase access to water space in the Otamatea area. 

Whangārei District Council (WDC) identified the need to develop a strategy for the future provision of indoor and outdoor sports courts. RSL Consultancy worked with a project steering group consisting of representatives from both WDC and Sport Northland.

The purpose of this Strategy was to identify the current and future aquatic facility needs for Te Tai Tokerau. The development of this Strategy was a key recommendation from Kōkiri ai Te Waka Hourua; the regional play, active recreation and sport strategy which was developed in 2021. The Strategy included aquatic facilities that have community access or school pools.  

In the development of this Regional Strategy, an expanded version of a standard strategic planning approach was used. This methodology provided a robust planning approach, in line with industry good practice. It also ensured alignment across the multiple plans being developed. This resulted in reliable, highly usable documents.