The project is part of a $55m Maori housing strategy across Te Tai Tokerau.
The project is part of a $55m Maori housing strategy across Te Tai Tokerau.
Generations of the Craike family are returning home to Waimamaku in the Hokianga, after the official opening of the Te Papakāinga o Te Whānau o Alice me Barry Craike.
The papakāinga will see four new affordable rental homes established across six infrastructure-enabled sites, returning whānau to their whenua in theheart of Hokianga.
The development, supported by Te Pouahi o Te Taitokerau and constructed by Advance Build, marked a major milestone for both the Craike whānau and the region’s Māori-led housing movement.
Te Pouahi o Te Taitokerau general manager Kris MacDonald said the project was driven by the Craike whānau from the beginning.
“This kaupapa is deeply meaningful for the whānau and for Te Pouahi.
“The Craike whānau really led this development from the outset. We wish to acknowledge their kuia, Alice Craike nee Naera, who was there at the beginning and passed away last year.
A new Hokianga papakāinga opened at the weekend, marking a milestone for the Craike family.
“I believe she would want to see her whānau doing it for themselves, on their own whenua. That’s the essence of papakāinga.”
The development was supported through funding from Te Pouahi o Te Taitokerau, with construction delivered by Advance Build, helping the Craike whānau turn their aspirations into reality.
“This is a great example of what can be achieved when we align technical support, funding, and whānau capability. The Craike whānau have shown true leadership, working together to design a sustainable kāinga that will benefit themselves now and future generations.”
For the Craike whānau, the project carried deep personal meaning. The land where the papakāinga now stands is where whaea Alice was raised, and where her parents and grandparents once farmed.
Family spokesman Darren Beaty said his mother-in-law, Alice, had been living on the land since the late 1990s and they are excited at the reclamation of the land.
“For us it means reclaiming our connection to the community, to our iwi and Ngāti Pōu hapū, and reconnecting with our marae and local church, St Phillips – not just for this generation, but for generations to come.”
He said the land the papakāinga was built on had been in the family for at least four generations and it was leased to a local dairy farmer.
“We are excited for the final product and to finally see it in reality.”
Te Pouahi o Te Taitokerau chair Pita Tipene said the papakāinga embodies the organisation’s wider vision for Māori housing in Te Tai Tokerau.
“Our vision is clear ‘Ko ō tātou kāinga noho, he mea hanga - with our own hands we will build durable homes and communities. The Craike papakāinga is a powerful expression of that vision. It demonstrates the strength of whānau working together, returning home, and leading their own housing solutions”.
The land now supports a new generation returning home to live collectively. The opening of the Craike papakāinga marked another milestone for Te Pouahi o Te Taitokerau, which continues to deliver and enable Māori-led housing developments across Tai Tokerau.
Te Pouahi o Te Taitokerau is the fourth Māori Housing Prototype nationally with a $55m budget funded through Maihi Ka Ora – National Māori Housing Strategy, supported by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development and Te Puni Kōkiri.
