Eight people in need could soon occupy warm, dry and affordable homes as the Nelson Tasman Housing Trust wins a new government contract to provide social housing.
Plans for six apartments – two two-bedroom units and four one bedroom dwellings – have been underway since the trust purchased land on Orchard St, Stoke made available by the demolition of earthquake-prone Housing New Zealand properties there in 2014.
On Tuesday the trust announced it had received resource consent for the $1 million Stoke build to be completed in April.
The project’s advancement comes on the heels of a 25-year contract which offers income-related rent subsidies to any tenants the trust selects from Housing New Zealand’s waitlist.
The ministry confirmed the Nelson Tasman Housing Trust was the only community housing provider outside Auckland to secure one of the lucrative deals.
The trust previously financed its builds with Government capital grants funding but that programme’s removal in 2014 has hampered new projects.
A $200,000 grant from the Rata Foundation and the trust’s assets covered half the capital cost for the Orchard St development. The rest will be financed through traditional mortgages and rental income.
(The Nelson Mail, Thursday, October 20th, 2016)
As could be expected of a nomadic structure, The Free House yurt is on the move.
The 12-metre wide structure has played host to hundreds of gigs, movie nights, book launches, birthdays, weddings and, of course, beer tastings since it was erected at the Collingwood St pub in 2011.
Now Free House owners Mic Dover and Eelco Boswijk are preparing to sell iconic tent to the highest bidder.
They said the yurt’s wooden base would remain as a feature of the beer garden in an upcoming expansion and redesign.
The revamp would introduce more outdoor seating and a transparent roof. A food cart has also been brought in from Kaiteriteri, which will herald the return of the tavern’s beloved hot chips.
Dover said the upgrade was essential in order to cope with the Free House’s growing popularity.
(The Nelson Mail, Thursday, October 20th, 2016)
A Government-funded investor has signalled it could pump up to $25 million into the proposed Waimea dam, making the controversial project seem far more likely.
The board of Crown Irrigation Investments Ltd along with its chief executive, Murray Gribben, visited the Lee Valley site of the proposed dam yesterday and then took a tour of some horticultural properties on the Waimea Plains.
Gribben said the proposed dam was ‘‘certainly in the sweet spot’’ for investment by Crown Irrigation, which acts on behalf of the Government as a bridging investor for regional water infrastructure development.
He said he expected a $20m to $25m investment could be made.
The long-term benefits of highly productive land were part of the considerations.
Crown Irrigation had been in discussions over the past two years with other parties involved in the dam proposal including Tasman district and Nelson city councils along with irrigator group Waimea Community Dam Ltd around ‘‘what role we could potentially have’’.
Gribben said it was difficult to put a time frame on when a decision could be made. The other parties were still ‘‘getting their ducks in a row’’.
Waimea Community Dam Ltd chairman Murray King said the visit by Crown Irrigation was ‘‘really encouraging’’.
If Crown Irrigation did invest $25m in the project, that would be about $17m more than what was tipped in earlier funding models by both Waimea Community Dam Ltd and TDC. Tasman District Council has earmarked $25m in its Long Term Plan for the project.
Its funding model indicates a city council contribution of $4.4m for the dam, which TDC estimates will cost $82.5m.
(The Nelson Mail, Friday, October 21st, 2016)
The first phase of work to upgrade the underground water pipes along Queen St in Richmond is due to begin next week.
Over the next few weeks, Tasman District Council contractor Downer is scheduled to lay a small water pipeline on the library side of Queen St, between Gladstone Rd and Sundial Square, as well as install communication and power ducts.
Other work will involve moving above-ground power boxes out of Queen St wherever possible.
This initial relatively minor job is the first phase of a planned multimillion-dollar upgrade of Queen St, in which ageing and undersized stormwater, water and wastewater pipes will be replaced and the street’s surface reshaped.
The major infrastructure upgrades are scheduled to begin in February.
(The Nelson Mail, Saturday, October 22nd, 2016)
A Waimea irrigators’ group consultant is warning water users to watch out for the detail in any plan to pump Crown funding into the proposed Waimea dam.
‘‘It’s still debt that has to be paid back,’’ said Waimea Irrigators and Water Users Inc consultant Brian Halstead.
He was responding to comments this week from Crown Irrigation Investments Ltd chief executive Murray Gribben who said the proposed dam was ‘‘certainly in the sweet spot’’ for investment by Crown Irrigation, which acts on behalf of the Government as a bridging investor for regional water infrastructure development. Gribben said he expected a $20 million to $25m investment could be made in the project.
Along with the board of Crown Irrigation, Gribben visited the Lee Valley site of the proposed dam on Thursday and then took a tour of some horticultural properties on the Waimea Plains.
The visit has been welcomed by proponents of the dam including irrigator group Waimea Community Dam Ltd (WCDL), whose chairman, Murray King, called it ‘‘really encouraging’’.
TDC chief executive Lindsay McKenzie said the council’s ‘‘ducks are lined up’’ with funding already provided in its budgets. TDC has $25m earmarked in its Long Term Plan for the project.
One of the next stages in the process would be the establishment of an interim agreement between Waimea irrigators and TDC on procuring a contractor and obtaining a price for the construction of the proposed dam, McKenzie said.
(The Nelson Mail, Saturday, October 22nd, 2016)
“I want to live my life,
not record it.”
Jackie Kennedy