Plans for emergency houses unveiled

The basic homes will provide temporary housing. Photo / Supplied

Lightweight, low-cost mass housing able to withstand aftershocks is about to rise on quake-damaged properties and in Christchurch parks.

Jennian Homes was picked by the Government as a supplier in a deal to build hundreds of temporary houses ready for this winter, and yesterday the Tauranga-based franchised builder released the first exterior pictures and floorplans of its new portable three and four-bedroom homes.

Families forced to camp out or live in garages or motorhomes will be shifting into these double-glazed places soon.

All the bedrooms flow off the main central lounge and the houses are just 83sq m, much smaller than the average-sized Kiwi house, which is around 200sq m with a double garage.

The Department of Building and Housing said parks would also be used for the temporary homes.

"Sites for villages where the portable dwellings will be placed have been chosen working with local councils and Civil Defence. Sites include Linwood Park, Rawhiti Domain and a site yet to be confirmed in Burwood.

"Discussions are underway with Waimakariri Council regarding possible sites in Kaiapoi.

"The portable dwellings will be of varying sizes and configuration. Some will be fully self-contained units with kitchen and laundry units and sleep up to six people. Others will be sleep-out, laundry or bathroom units only which could be placed on private sites so that people could stay on their property," DBH said.

Nigel Smith, Jennian Homes Mid Canterbury's managing director, said the houses were worth about $85,000 each and would be built at a Carter's pre-nail manufacturing yard at Harewood near Christchurch International Airport.

The Jennian houses have a supertub and a stove but no garages, fridges or washing machines and are designed to be shifted a number of times and fast.

They will all be fitted with smoke alarms and fire extinguishers and the first 20 will be up very soon, Jennian says.

"I envisage completing two to three houses a day," Smith said.

"It's like a big machine. We're trying to build 10 a week."