MBIE launches further inquiries into Rangiuru Woolshed Accommodation

A Government department will be making "initial inquiries" into a company accused of providing poor accommodation - including stained and mouldy mattresses, no insulation and a leaky roof.

It was ordered to stop operating last week after a Western Bay of Plenty District Council investigation into the facility's conditions.

Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment tenancy compliance investigations team national manager Steve Watson confirmed he would make inquiries.

This would determine whether the accommodation provided by Rangiuru Woolshed in Te Puke was covered by the Residential Tenancies Act 1986.

The Tenancy Compliance Investigations Team (TCIT) ensured landlords complied with their responsibilities and obligations under the act, Watson said, but some arrangements were excluded from the scope of act.

He said if the woolshed was found to be covered by the act and breaches were found, TCIT would take enforcement action.

The Bay of Plenty Times Weekend revealed earlier this month the poor state of the accommodation and spoke to former orchard workers who had stayed there.

Former guests previously told the Bay of Plenty Times the site had stained and mouldy mattresses, an uninsulated, leaky building, toilets that sometimes didn't flush and showers that often ran cold.

The cost of the accommodation was $130 a week per person. There was an option for people to sleep in one of the vans provided by the operator for the same price. They could pay $110 a week if they slept in their own vans.

Last Thursday, the district council ordered the Woolshed, which has been operating for more than a year and sleeps up to 16 people, to cease operating after an investigation into the facility's conditions.

, and the company had not applied for and obtained building consent under the Building Act 2004, or resource consent under the Resource Management Act 1991.

Western Bay of Plenty Council's policy, planning and regulatory services group manager, Rachael Davie, said the site allegedly failed to comply with the requirements of the building code in relation to stability, protection from fire, access, moisture, services and facilities.

Woolshed company co-director Michael Molan told the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend last week the council findings had been received and actions had been taken to comply with their orders.

"The process of dismantling and removing the modifications to the Woolshed is well under way and it will be returned to a compliant state promptly with no future intended use beyond storage," he said.

Rangiuru Woolshed Accommodation is on a kiwifruit orchard and only available to people who have applied for seasonal kiwifruit work in the area through recruitment agency KiwiHQ, which Molan has been the director of since 2016.