Bay Of Plenty

Tauranga City Council sold the precinct for $13.987m to a developer who proposed transforming it into a "premier superyacht refit destination".

The emergency motels in Rotorua are associated with anti-social behaviour and harm local tourism, Hotel Council's James Doolan says. Audio

Insect enthusiast Norm Twigge volunteers at a Tauranga butterfly house and has never seen numbers so low. Audio

A person has been critically hurt in a crash on State Highway 30, east of Rotorua.

It comes after growing concerns from the community over pollution in the area.

Justin Jeffries has appeared in the Rotorua High Court charged with the murders of Glendon and Jessie Currin in September. He had already been charged with Michelle Schiller's murder.

The number of empty homes are on the rise despite the housing shortage.

Mahé Drysdale has voted against adding fluoride to the city's water supply, saying he has "real question marks around safety" and wants more assurances it did not pose a risk.

The Rotorua leg of the international mountain biking festival was boycotted by some - but still drew thousands of visitors and was worth millions to Rotorua's economy, its organiser says.

Rescue teams have been unable to search the scene for days due to river conditions.

A man critically injured in an assault at his Western Heights, Rotorua home in September has died.

"Rotorua seems to keep missing out," Tania Tapsell mayor says.

Tauranga police have launched a homicide investigation after a man was discovered dead in Gate Pa.

The mayor says the community wants its spas back. But major project costs are climbing.

Mahé Drysdale spent $41,409 on his successful campaign. But his rival and uncle, Doug Owens, spent the most at $56,012 on his own run at the mayoralty.

Police were notified of a crash on White Pine Bush Road at 11.40pm.

And another two people are hurt after the incident at the Waioeka River in the Bay of Plenty.

A new project is looking at creating animal feed from the greenhouse gas emissions that come from geothermal power stations.

A frightening near-miss incident has left Kathe Davey-Emms concerned for those having to use East Bank Road's intersection with Thornton Road.