Long-term Plan 2027-37

Introduction

Every three years Taupō District Council develops a Long-term Plan that sets the direction and budget over the next 10 years.

The Long-term Plan process supports the community and council to make decisions about where best to put council’s time and the community’s money. It details the projects Council intends to deliver and the services it will provide, and how it plans to pay for them.

Affordability and cost pressures

The Long-term Plan must balance affordability with the need to provide essential services and deliver the projects the community has asked for.

Looking after Council’s assets is vitally important to ensure they remain in good shape into the future. We must consider how to operate services and facilities such as swimming pools and community halls in a way that balances accessibility for the community with the cost to the ratepayer.

External pressures, including the ever-increasing cost of providing infrastructure such as roads and pipe networks, have put council and ratepayers under financial pressure in recent years. In addition, councils are grappling with the effects of climate change, additional responsibilities from central government and significant changes to key legislation including Local Water Done Well, planning and building changes and Resource Management Act reforms.

Water services strategy

In 2025 Council worked through the Local Water Done Well reform process. The decision was made to retain water services in-house and not join any of the proposed water organisations that other Councils were forming.

As a result of the reform, Council is now also required to deliver a Water Services Strategy, essentially this is the Long-term Plan for waters activities.

Work to develop the Water Services Strategy will run alongside the Long-term Plan development, with both documents to be finalised and adopted in mid-2027.

Timeline

With the Long-term Plan to be adopted in mid-2027, work gets under way in March 2026 to start to shape strategic direction and priorities.

The plan will be shaped by input from the community throughout that period of time.

Stay informed and get involved

There are lots of ways you can stay informed and have your say as we work through the 16-month process to adopting our Long-term Plan in mid-2027.

There will be a full consultation process in early 2027 where everyone will have the opportunity to provide their views before the final plan is adopted in the middle of 2027.

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Workshops

Throughout 2026 there will be a series of workshops for councillors to work through all aspects of the plan, set strategic direction, confirm priorities and discuss levels of service for council activities.

Most workshops are open to the public to attend, livestreamed and recorded and available to watch on our YouTube channel. Workshops take place in the Council Chambers at He Whare Hono ō Tūwharetoa - Level 1, 67 Horomātangi Street, Taupō.

Find out more about council workshops and see dates and topics