Some of the first seven new homes opened at the Tihitihi Pa development in Wairoa, blessed on Tuesday. Photo / Toni Lexmond
The first seven new Wairoa state homes in “many years” were opened with a blessing this week.
They are part of a 30-whare Kāinga Ora development on Black St, named Tihitihi Pā by community leaders.
Kāinga Ora will purchase the homes for social housing once they are completed.
Kaikarakia Richard Niania conducted the blessing at a ceremony on Tuesday morning this week.
Graeme Broderick, Kāinga Ora regional director for East North Island, described the development as a “significant milestone” as they were the first new state homes in Wairoa for “many years”.
“The shortage of warm, dry homes in Wairoa is well documented, and the situation became critical following the two major floods in 2023,” Broderick said.
“The completion of the first stage means that families currently living in transitional or unsuitable housing will soon move into safe, long-term homes – a very positive development for our community.”
He said the homes also provided a unique opportunity for local rangatahi to get training and experience working on an extensive building site.
PCS Projects is the contractor for the development and Fred van der Sande, with 50 years of building industry experience, is the project manager.
“It’s easy to work here, even though I have never had so many apprentices working on a job. We all feel like we are achieving something, and this group of guys are really good,” van der Sande said.
“They are the best crew of young people I have had working for me in my life, and I have worked with lots of young crews before.”
He said the build had given those in the crew an opportunity for work and apprenticeships locally they wouldn’t otherwise have.
“For the guys doing their building apprenticeship, they can’t complete it if [they] are just doing small jobs. It doesn’t provide enough scope. To complete their apprenticeship they need to do a set number of hours, spent on all aspects of building a house. We are providing that opportunity, times 30.”
Waiora Crofts said he started his building apprenticeship six years ago, but hadn’t been able to complete it because there wasn’t the scope of work needed to complete all the modules locally.
“I started travelling out of town each week to work on projects that would help me complete my apprenticeship. Once I started working on this project, I finished my apprenticeship in eight months. I am now fully qualified and helping some of my workmates to do the same,” Crofts said.
“The work is really rewarding. Now I am being mentored on other skills like pricing work and managing staff, so I can eventually start running my own business.”
Born-and-bred local, Rogan Baty, has been working with van der Sande for the last two and a half years.
“I am two years through my apprenticeship and have about a year and a half left. I probably wouldn’t be doing my building apprenticeship if these homes weren’t being built,” Baty said.
“We are doing every part of the build project from framing to concreting. Anything you can think of, we are doing it. It’s wicked working on a whole brand-new house, and even better that Wairoa whānau who have nowhere decent to live will be moving in.
“I love living in Wairoa and don’t want to leave. I am into hunting and fishing, and I’ve got countless whānau around here. I am even working alongside my cousin.”
Wairoa man Stance Hiko did health and safety and first aid courses with the Wairoa Young Achievers Trust, which helped him get work on the project.
“Now I am 10 months into my building apprenticeship. Without this opportunity, I would have had to leave town. That would be a shame as I have heaps of family here and have just had my first baby,” Hiko said.
The 30 homes are a mix of single- and double-storey homes. Some are built as duplexes and others as standalone homes.
When complete, there will be 12 two-bedroom houses, 11 three-bedroom houses, six four-bedroom houses and one six-bedroom house.
The site has been elevated in consideration of the flooding in Wairoa over the last couple of years during Cyclone Gabrielle and the June 2024 floods, to mitigate future risks.
Chairman of project partner Whakamanamana, Marsden Hulme, said he had been told it was the first social housing development in Wairoa since the 1980s.
“I think [Kāinga Ora] really does deserve a huge pat on the back for this, because when you look at those houses, they don’t look like your typical social housing,” Hulme said.
“You can take that small subdivision at Tihitihi Pā and place it anywhere in a major metropolitan area in this country and be proud of it.”
He said there were six stages. This handover of the first seven homes to Kāinga Ora was stage one. The following five stages are scheduled to be completed by the end of March 2026.
The project has been supported by the Wairoa Community Partnership Group.