Otamataha Trust

Otamataha Trust logo over an aerial view of Tauranga.

Otamataha Trust and Te Manawataki o Te Papa

The Otamataha Trust was established in 1998 to represent Ngāti Tapu and Ngāi Tamarāwaho, the hapū who held mana whenua over what is now the Tauranga city centre, in their dealings with the Anglican Church.

The Trust was established in relation to the return of the last piece of land acquired by the missionaries in 1838 that remained under Church control.

The authority of the Otamataha Trust was further confirmed by the New Zealand Mission Trust Board (Otamataha) Empowering Act 2014. The Act recognised Te Materāwaho as a hapū with historical links to the ancestor Tanumiangarangi. Ngāti Tapu can include people with whakapapa links to Te Materāwaho in its appointment process.

The Trust also represents these hapū in their dealings with Tauranga City Council in the city centre, including the Te Manawataki o Te Papa development.

The Otamataha Trust, on behalf of its beneficiary hapū, and Tauranga City Council, on behalf of the people of the city, have entered into long-term commitments recognising the occupation and use of what is now the Tauranga city centre by mana whenua over many generations.

These commitments are set out in an Accord dated 11 July 2022 and recognise the importance of Te Manawataki o Te Papa to the city and the two parties will work together in developing the civic precinct.

Aspirations

The Accord sets out shared aspirations for the future of Te Manawataki o Te Papa.

These include acknowledging mana whenua and the history of the Te Papa land and moving forward together in a spirit of partnership.

The aspirations also include recognising and reflecting the interests of mana whenua through the redevelopment of the civic precinct. This includes joint ownership of the civic precinct land, co-governance of the new civic precinct, and recognising the history and tikanga of mana whenua through the master planning and development of the precinct.

A further shared aspiration is that the civic precinct redevelopment provides benefit for all Tauranga communities.

Te Manawataki o Te Papa Charitable Trust

Following these shared aspirations, the Otamataha Trust and Tauranga City Council established the Te Manawataki o Te Papa Charitable Trust on 3 November 2022.

The Charitable Trust owns the land on which Te Manawataki o Te Papa sits.
The land is leased to Tauranga City Council at a peppercorn rent.
The Otamataha Trust and Tauranga City Council each appoint two trustees to the Charitable Trust.
The Trust Deed sets out the matawhānui (vision) and purposes of the Charitable Trust.

Vision

The Matawhānui, or overall vision, is to support the development of the civic precinct while ensuring, as far as reasonably possible, that the history of the Te Papa lands is acknowledged, the interests, history, and tikanga of mana whenua are recognised and reflected, and Tauranga communities benefit from the development of the precinct.

Mana whenua representative speaking about the Te Papa civic precinct vision.

Civic precinct building supporting Te Manawataki o Te Papa development.

Purposes

The purposes of the Charitable Trust are to support and encourage the development of the civic precinct.

This includes supporting public amenities and community facilities that provide mutually beneficial outcomes for the community of Tauranga Moana, including a library, community hub, theatre, museum and civic house.

The Trust's purposes also include community betterment, such as establishing or upgrading parks and reserves and beautifying surrounding areas.