Former Taupō mayor David Trewavas has died suddenly at the age of 63.

Taupō Funeral Services posted on social media that David James passed away on 28 July 2026, aged 63. The Taupō District Council confirmed the death in a statement, and tributes have come from the current mayor and the council's chief executive (RNZ).

Trewavas served on the Taupō District Council for 24 years, 13 of those as mayor. He held the mayoralty from 2013 to 2025 (Taupō News), having first been elected to the council in the early 2000s. He stood for re-election as mayor in 2025 but lost to John Funnell.

Current mayor John Funnell paid tribute to Trewavas, describing him as a people person with a genuine interest in others. Taupō District Council chief executive Julie Gardyne praised his self-deprecating humour and outgoing personality. The council extended condolences to Trewavas's whānau and former colleagues (RNZ).

During Trewavas's time as mayor, several major infrastructure projects were completed in the Taupō district. Achievements cited by RNZ include a new airport terminal, a CBD redevelopment, and a $3.5 million sports facility (RNZ).

The 2025 local election result that unseated Trewavas was a notable shift for a district where he had held the mayoralty for over a decade. Funnell's victory ended a long period of continuity in Taupō's civic leadership.

The broader context here is that Trewavas's death less than a year later means the district has lost a figure who shaped much of its recent physical and institutional landscape. Long-serving mayors build up relationships across central government agencies, iwi, community organisations and infrastructure providers. Those connections do not automatically transfer to a successor, so when a long-serving mayor departs, the council loses more than just a person — it loses a network of working relationships built over years.

The infrastructure projects associated with Trewavas's time in office, particularly the airport terminal and CBD works, are the kind of large capital investments that shape a district's economic direction for decades. They are also the kind of projects that generate debate about ratepayer debt, how contracts are awarded, and whether the community was properly consulted — debates that outlast any single mayor's term. What is clear from the tributes is that Trewavas's personal style, outgoing and self-deprecating, was central to how he operated in the role, and it is that dimension rather than any single policy achievement that Funnell and Gardyne chose to emphasise.

RNZ reported the death by combining the council statement, the funeral services social-media post, and tributes from the current mayor and council CEO, bringing together the available public record (RNZ).

Trewavas is survived by his whānau. Funeral arrangements have not been publicly detailed beyond the funeral services notice.