'Ghetto' home mover thought he had consent

Stuart and Jenny Sowersby are concerned after an old state house was moved on to a neighbouring section without resource consent. Photo / Paul Taylor

A Hawke's Bay man accused of helping "build a ghetto" in Havelock North says he has been punished for moving a house on a section without resource consent.

Relocate Homes NZ owner Shannon Tawhiti sparked an outcry from Joll Rd residents this month after he moved an ex-state house on to a section owned by an Auckland businessman without permission from Hastings District Council.

Neighbouring residents said the "ghetto" house was relocated in the middle of the night without forewarning, and they're concerned its derelict appearance would impact surrounding property values.

Mr Tawhiti, who relocates up to 100 houses throughout the North Island per year, said he had moved the house under the false assumption consent had been granted.

He said it took an average of 12 days for the council to approve his resource consent applications. When he moved the home on to the Joll Rd section, 12 days had lapsed and four other applications he'd lodged on the same day had been approved.

"The mistake I made was I assumed the consent would have been out. I've been punished for that, not only financially but in my reputation with the council," said Mr Tawhiti.

His infringement notice for moving the house prematurely had included a $300 fine.

He said he didn't agree with concerns expressed by residents the houses would negatively affect property values on the street.

"They're purely speculations. The houses have only just landed there - this is the very start of the project. From my experience I've actually improved the value of the areas in the majority of my projects when landscaping is complete."

A condition of council's granting resource consent for house relocations is that the house's appearance be made compatible with the amenity of the surrounding area, within a timeframe of about six months.

He said he met the section's immediate neighbours prior to the relocation and run through "all their queries".

The resource consent application for the house, and two other houses waiting to be moved on to the section, still hadn't been approved and the council had requested further information about the project.

Mr Tawhiti said he would be lodging about 20 consents for other projects within the next four weeks.

Asked if he believed consent would be granted for the Joll Rd project, Mr Tawhiti said: "Yes, absolutely. It's a standard consent, the houses fit with the district plan. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter if it's me or someone else - as long as it fits within the district plan, there's going to be houses on there eventually."

The owner of the Joll Rd section, Auckland financial adviser Sanjeev Toora had previously told Hawke's Bay Today he planned to renovate the relocated houses, and move to the property with his family in future.