Kāinga Ora homes: Eight new houses on Rotorua’s Roger St to open to the public tomorrow

The new homes on Roger St. Photo / Andrew Warner

Eight new houses will this week officially become part of Rotorua’s public housing offerings after a building programme on Roger St has been finished.

The new homes, which have two, three or four bedrooms, are part of 60 new houses under construction in the Pukehangi area by Government housing arm Kāinga Ora.

The homes will be blessed at 9am tomorrow at a celebration that is open for neighbours and anyone interested. Those attending can then have a chance to look at the new homes until 10am.

Kāinga Ora regional director Darren Toy said the organisation was pleased the homes were now finished and ready for whānau to move into.

An artist's impression of the new homes on Roger St.

Six of the eight homes are considered accessible for those with disabilities or the elderly and have been built by Kāinga Ora’s build partner, Penny Homes.

Toy said the homes made better use of existing land, as Kāinga Ora had replaced three older houses on large sections with single-storey and double-storey homes that were easy to maintain.

“We continue to work with urgency to plan and deliver more houses in Rotorua for those most in need of a warm, dry and suitable place to call home.”

New homes built by Kāinga Ora are given to people on the housing registrar who are most in need.

Kāinga Ora previously said it matched the homes with people depending on their circumstances and consideration is given to where the people work, their whānau, education and other factors.

The other new Kāinga Ora homes in the Pukehangi area will be on Quartz Ave (formerly Collie Dr), where 42 new homes were being built, and Gem St, where 10 new homes are being built, and all will be finished by the end of next year.