Construction of the Rotorua Lakefront Redevelopment has been delayed by up to two months due to the Covid-19 pandemic - as well as by the discovery of a hot spring on the site.

The Rotorua Lakes Council met today where councillors were given a full update on progress for the $40 million redevelopment by council staff.

The project, funded by the Rotorua Lakes Council ($20.1 million) and the government's Provincial Growth Fund ($19.9 million), got underway in October last year with the completion of the entire five-stage project expected by August 2022.

The first four stages should be finished by mid to late 2021 and include a new boardwalk, jetties, playground, paths, toilet blocks and car parking.

There is also provision for commercial opportunities such as cafes and restaurants.

An artist's impression of the playground area of the new Lakefront.

Operations Group manager Rob Pitkethley told councillors stage one was well underway and the pre-loading of the site for stage two of the project began in December and would remain in place for at least six months.

He said while the Covid-19 pandemic was the main cause for delays there had been other interesting finds on the site including the discovery of a 70C hot water spring.

Rob says the spring was found underneath a sewerage connection running from Rotorua Hospital and caused some technical challenges for contractors.

Also found on the site was pipework dating back to the 1890s and "archaeological" finds such as old beer bottles, but nothing of major significance.

Rob says about 40 people are employed on the site with about 15 to 20 more expected to join the workforce when boardwalk construction gets underway.

When questioned by councillors about provision for parking and disability access Rob says there "...will be no less car parking than there was before, possibly more".

Rob says new toilet facilities would be high-spec, all-access facilities with lifts for wheelchair users.

After Rob's presentation, councillors moved into the confidential section of the meeting to discuss tenders for the next stages of the project. The outcome of those discussions will be revealed at a later date.

Full details of the redevelopment plan can be found at visiontoaction.nz/projects-home/lakefront-development/.