December marks a year since the Hastings Place Based Plan pilot to tackle the housing challenges in the district was launched, and it looks like progress has been made.
The holistic programme was launched by the government in 2019 to help families into safe, dry, warm, affordable homes. The project is not limited to only building new affordable houses; it is also addressing homelessness and conducting repairs on existing Māori-owned homes to make them healthier and more liveable, making a huge difference to those who live in them.
In October, nine new homes were blessed at Kainga Ora’s 44-home housing development at Raureka – a mix of one to five-bedroom family homes. Also, as part of the place-based approach, Kāinga Ora is aiming to have delivered an extra 160 warm, dry quality homes in Hastings by the end of 2021.
As well as providing infrastructure support for the developments, Hastings District Council is also freeing up land to develop for affordable housing, particularly in Flaxmere where development has started on 17 first homes and 18 public houses in Tarbet St, and other council land in the area is actively under consideration for housing.
Te Taiwhenua o Heretaunga has been working on a development in Flaxmere West, called Waingākau Village, the aim of which is to build up to 120 high-quality, well designed, healthy and environmentally sustainable houses and infrastructure.
A collaborative project between HBDHB’s Child Healthy Housing Programme, Te Puni Kōkiri and Wharariki Trust has seen 20 assessments completed of critical repair work needed on 20 Māori-owned homes in Hastings to make them safe, warm and healthy. So far six homes have had their repairs carried out.
The agencies involved in the Hastings Place Based Plan are Hastings District Council, Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, Ngāti Kahungunu, Te Taiwhenua o Heretaunga, Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities, Te Puni Kōkiri, Ministry of Social Development, Hawke’s Bay District Health Board and the Department of Corrections.