The good news is that our Tauranga City elected officers are definitely in the mood to rein in expenditure. The triennial talkfest (Monday November 10 to Thursday November 13) preceding the review of the Long Term Council Community Plan kicked off this week.

The first stage on Monday and Tuesday took the form of an informal forum at which reams of facts, figures and predictions where presented by City Hall managers and staff. The general idea was that these presentations gave the mayor and councillors the opportunity to ask lots of questions - and on occasion, allowed a few councillors to make long-winded speeches demonstrating how up with the play they were. Or weren't.

In view of the fact I struggled to keep up with the play myself, I desist from naming names as it may turn out the long-winded ones were right on the button.

Discussed at length were millions of dollars worth of 'infrastructure spending,' the likes of transport, open spaces (parks and reserves, existing and planned land purchases), wastewater, swimming pools, water supply and stormwater. Nearly all councillors sounded a note of caution, indicating they would be voting to push further forward into the future many projects, or stop some altogether.

A stand out party pooper was Cr Murray Guy who repeatedly questioned the concept of extremely hard times ahead, likening the predictions to the empty bird flu threat and the way off the mark warning of the world ending as computers went crazy or ground to halt at the changing of the century. He claimed Tauranga was quite unique in its ability to hold the line and stand tall as the rest of planet's economy collapsed.

By the end of the week, councillors will have revealed their preferences to spend or save our money. Even Cr Guy may by then have caught up with the rest of us. At least it starting to look the majority will be aiming for a cautious three-year start to this new 10-year plan.

The bad news is . . . at the time of writing councillors hadn't got around to talking about planned City Hall Iconic Tower status symbol projects like turning the Mount Hot Pools into a world renowned Health Spa predicted to attracting zillions of the world's rich and sick. Risky stuff that. But never mind, cheque-writing ratepayers are on hand to underwrite it. Or more accurately, council will force us to underwrite it.

Then there's the $41,000,000 Sport and Exhibition Centre council plans to build on the City's recently reclaimed land at Te Munga - namely the Baypark Stadium with its spacious car park and ready-made and gift-wrapped $2,000,000 building consent for a great big luxury indoor playground and business advertising facility.

This year's Annual Plan (agreed budget) notes this facility will set back homeowners by about $50 extra per year on their rates. Or, put another way, City Hall predicts that after lots of sports people and lots of business exhibitors have paid to use the place, it will cost us ratepayers about $2,500,000 each year - for ever! That, by the way, represents a 3.5 percent addition that will become a permanent money-munching fixture in the annual rate collection.

If you think that the $2.5 million permanent addition to the budget will be the full extent of a scandalous imposition on ratepayers, particularly as we head into real hard times, then think again.

Caution has not been one of City Hall's most endearing features when it comes to making predictions on how many people are going to pay up to use brand new facilities.

It's a touch disturbing that our CEO recently told a gathering of mostly business people that in respect of the present economic storm clouds, Tauranga was in better shape than most to take the battering and rise above it in just a year or two. Added to this, our mayor has of late been telling councillors that council just cannot bow to cyclical trends and bring the city to a halt, or even down a gear or two. In his view - at least his view a few weeks ago - we must keep moving forward and plan for the long term.

I say it's best in times like the present to plan for the worst, but work for the best.

I'm predicting that for many years to come our Sports and Exhibition centre, if it goes ahead, is going to end up alongside the same lemon tree as the Baypark Stadium is turning out to be.