A new destination spa could sit within the Te Aroha Domain, after a council decision to develop the $18.9m complex as part of its long-term plan. After two days of public submissions and passionate deliberations, Matamata-Piako District councillors agreed with the 34 per cent of submitters who wanted to move ahead with the biggest proposal in its 2021-31 long-term plan. While the majority of submitters (41 per cent) preferred to only spend $5.3m on the complex, and 25 per cent didn’t want it to go ahead at all, councillors agreed that if it was to be done, it needed to be done properly.
So he visits another town and its designated off-lead dog exercise area instead. Every second day Smith drives 80 minutes to and from Cambridge so Tula and Hudson get the exercise they need.
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Hudson and Tula cuddle up to their owner Jonathan Smith. “When I go there I stop for lunch, so Cambridge is getting my money, not Matamata,” Smith said. “It’s vital. They [dogs] need a safe place so they can run around within the town. “Dog owners take it very seriously.” Despite how serious he is, it didn’t stop him from snapping up a property in the bustling rural town.