- Hon Dr Megan Woods
A new public housing development planned for Whangārei will provide 95 warm and dry, modern homes for people in need, Housing Minister Megan Woods says.
The Kauika Road development will replace a motel complex in the Avenues with 89 three-level walk up apartments, alongside six homes.
"Whangārei has a rapidly growing population and limited housing supply, so this development helps address an urgent need for more public housing," Megan Woods said.
"So far this Government has delivered over 11,500 more public homes around New Zealand; one in 7 of the public homes in today's stock have been added since we took office. That's a great testament to the commitment we have to building and supporting public housing."
The Kauika Road project is part of a wider neighbourhood planning approach, which aims to increase standalone public housing delivery in areas of high demand, like Tikipunga, Vinegar Hill and the Avenues.
"Kauika Road's central location makes it ideal for apartments. It will enable more people to live within close proximity of schools, jobs, facilities, parks and reserves.
"Kauika Road will be the largest public housing development in Te Tai Tokerau to date. The announcement follows civil works getting underway at the 55-home redevelopment of a former pub on Wanaka St in Tikipunga, as well as the 37-home development on Puriri Park Road in Maunu nearing completion.
"In addition to Kāinga Ora's work to replace older public houses with new homes on existing public housing sites, there are also significant upgrades taking place at a number of existing Kāinga Ora properties," Megan Woods said.
The Kauika Road development will be delivered by Phoenix Property Advisory Group. The development will predominantly consist of smaller homes to meet current demand. The apartments are a mix of one-to-two bedrooms, while the standalone homes of three to four bedrooms will cater for larger families.
It will also include shared green space, bicycle and off-street car parking spaces, native plantings and a multi-purpose community room.
Fourteen ground floor apartments will contain accessibility features to cater for people with mobility needs. This includes such things as level access and wider hallways.
The removal of the existing motel buildings is expected to take place over the coming months, with civil works to get underway shortly after. House construction is anticipated to start in the second half of 2024.
The Kāinga Ora team has plans to hold community drop in sessions about the Kauika Road development. The sessions will take place on 4 April and 11 April between 5:30pm and 7pm at Ngāti Hine Health Trust, 5 Walton Street, the Avenues, Whangārei.
