Cambridge water tower to survive, but $2.5m cost causes division

Tuesday, 26 May 2026

The decision to revitalise the Cambridge water tower has the community split.

Important piece of the past or pricey historic hangover?

Passionate remarks have been publicly made both ways following the planned restoration to Cambridge’s water tower.

It come after the Waipā District Council last week announced that the 124-year-old heritage building would be restored and made earthquake-resistant for a $2.5 million dollar price tag. Council staff have been asked find external funding to offset the cost.

The decision has created division within the community however, with many taking to social media to express their opinion.

“Is there nothing more important the money could be used for? Like paying down some of the debt council has accumulated?” a user wrote on the council’s Facebook post.

“I understand the concerns of ratepayers, but some things are priceless. I'm thrilled to see the tower being restored - it's a piece of our town's history,” another said.

Both the $2.5 million and the roughly $800,000 demolition cost were labelled as “ridiculous” and “way too high” by Cambridge resident and Hamilton City councillor Andrew Bydder.

Cnr Andrew Bydder said councils need to change the way they operate.

While Bydder agreed the water tower is historically important and should be kept, he questioned what the pricing was based on to generate the cost. He added it highlights the underlying issue with councils, referring to how procedures are 'too expensive' and the value for money is simply not there.

'It erodes my confidence in the council,“ he said.

'If we could have it restored for under a million dollars I'm sure everyone would be happy… I'm sure the private sector would do it better.'

As a Waipā ratepayer himself, he said the decision makes him question the recent rate rise in the district, adding changes in council's project operations can lead to a much lower rate rise.

He added overinflated budgets that 'pay for everything that might possibly go wrong whether it goes wrong or not' is the wider issue the water tower unfolds.

Bydder says that council should 'price the risk' instead of leaving it to contractors.

Resident safety is Waipā’s number one priority, mayor Mike Pettit says.

'We could save on staff and use the consultants or save on consultants and use the staff… it's about actually empowering the staff to do that rather than spending enormous sums of money on consultants to cover their butts.“

When presented these claims, Waipā District Council mayor Mike Pettit said Bydder is entitled to his own opinion, but expressed council’s key role is to “ensure public safety” and is not a “cowboy outfit”.

He added while there was always going to be strong, emotional feedback on the decision, he believes council made the right decision.

“Others will think no matter how much we spend on it, it shouldn’t be there and we should just get rid of it. The council made the best decision with the information it received.”

New Zealand should hold onto what heritage it has, John Kenel says.

Pettit stressed the original restoration price of $6 million was labelled as “ridiculous” by council, hence leading to the decision to demolish, especially when community consultation was 65%-35% in favour.

After costs came down and the cost to gain consent for demolishing appeared, “things changed”, the mayor said, leading to council favouring restoration.

The decision was applauded by Waikato residential developer John Kenel, who applauded council for finding a way to slash the cost rather than demolishing.

“It’s been part of the town’s character for over a hundred years, and the fact a community group has been fighting to save it tells you what it means for people,” he added.

Work is expected to take place over the 2026/27 summer, subject to resource consent approval.