There are fears for some of Rotorua's most vulnerable people after Love Soup founders Gina and Elmer Peiffer came to the "agonising" decision they could not continue helping homeless people into homes.
In an exclusive interview with the Rotorua Daily Post the couple - last year's Rotorua Daily Post Peopleof the Year - have revealed they will no longer provide their wrap-around services that have seen more than 100 local families housed in the last two years.
Love Soup will continue to help the 45 people already on its books until the end of this month , but will not be taking any more families on, citing lack of funding and support as the major drivers behind the decision.
The couple are not completely bowing out, continuing to feed the homeless seven nights a week, as well as provide daily community food parcels at 3pm on Mataatua St.
Since Love Soup started housing services, the average Rotorua rental price has risen from $255 a week in February 2015 to $320 in February this year.
According to the Ministry of Social Development housing register for December 2016, 78 people are on the waiting list for a Housing New Zealand home. September last year saw a three-year high with 80 people on the list.
Rotorua had 21 vacant Housing New Zealand properties as at December 31 last year, with four under repair and prepared to be placed back into the letting pool and a further 16 requiring meth decontamination. The remaining vacant property had been prepared for sale.
Gina and Elmer Peiffer, founders of Love Soup Rotorua, have made the hard decision to stop housing homeless. Photo/Stephen Parker.
There is a total of 648 state-owned properties in Rotorua.
Mrs Peiffer said stopping the wrap-around services was the hardest decision she and her husband had had to make.
"You don't make a snap decision and all of a sudden you don't care about the people. We've agonised over this. I'm so afraid of what's going to happen but it has got to a point where we can't go on.
"We work 365 days a year. Our home is our office and we are always accessible," Mr Peiffer added. "We've had families show up on our doorstep at 10.30pm because they have nowhere to live."
Mr Peiffer said there was no such thing as having a "Gina and Elmer day", with them working on average 14 hours a day.
You don't make a snap decision and all of a sudden you don't care about the people. We've agonised over this.
"Families call at 1am needing to go to the hospital so I'll go pick them up, wait at the hospital then take them home, hoping to get in a couple of hours' sleep before we get up to start the next day."
Mrs Peiffer said they had already broken the news to some people who had "freaked out".
"People are scared - I'm scared - about what this will mean for our homeless. In the last few months the families on my books went from 20 to 40 to 50 last week. The situation is getting worse and we can't handle it anymore.
"If we had the support and the funding we would be able to get an office and some staff but working from home with just Elmer and I providing everything for these families has become overwhelming.
"We're property managers, advocates, agents, we teach families how to cook, budget and do grocery shopping. For the last two years we have made sure every family that came to us would have all their needs provided for."
Mrs Peiffer said Love Soup had a success rate in the last two years "second to none" so the pair were not ruling out picking up the housing ball in the future.
"We're not saying we'll never do it again, we just can't do it now. Hopefully now we can look at applying for proper funding when we have the time to go through the huge process.
"We're incredibly proud of what we've done for our families. I'm just anxious about what will happen moving forward."
Gina and Elmer Peiffer, founders of Love Soup Rotorua, have made the hard decision to stop housing homeless. Photo/Stephen Parker.
Lifewise Rotorua service manager Haehaetu Barrett said it was more important than ever for existing services to work together closely.
"We acknowledge the work Gina and Elmer have done out of heart and community spirit but they did not have the infrastructure or funding mechanisms to continue long term."
Te Arawa Whanau Ora chief executive Mala Grant said Love Soup had done good work with the homeless.
"It's a shame because we need all the help we can get in that area.
"I expect that the rest of the services that are attempting to house whanau will see an increase in the current workload. The problem hasn't gone away and things will get worse with the winter coming on."
Rotorua mayor Steve Chadwick said she was saddened but not shocked by the news.
"I have seen when community groups try to deliver the whole package and it is just not sustainable. Unfortunately it came to crisis point for Gina and Elmer and they had to step back.
"There is an increasing demand and we are all aware of the growing concern around housing - I am putting those concerns squarely in front of our MPs.
"It's not a good feeling knowing there are people in our city sleeping in their cars or on the street, it doesn't rest easily on our shoulders, but the council cannot use ratepayer money to buy or build houses . . . Now is the time for a well co-ordinated government response."
