Tihitihi Pā housing project ‘momentous’

TIMELY: After more than two years, Wairoa’s new subdivision Tihitihi Pā will start to become a reality on Monday when earthworks begin. Representing the organisations involved in getting the project off the ground are, from left, Lawrence Tangaere (Kāinga Ora), Dedrie Hemingway (Kāinga Ora), Mark Oberman (Enabled chair and joint owner of Whakamanamana Limited), Darden King (Te Hononga o Ngā Awa kahui representative), Nigel How (Wairoa Taiwhenua chairman), Denise Eaglesome-Karekare (Te Wairoa Tapokorau Whānui Trust chair), Wairoa Mayor Craig Little and Shelley Smith (Enabled chief executive). Picture supplied

EARTHWORKs on the Tihitihi Pā subdivision start on Monday marking the transformation of Wairoa’s housing stocks. 
The two-hectare, 38-lot development between Kitchener and McLean streets will provide a range of much-needed new housing.
The residential project is a partnership between Whakamanamana Limited, local provider Enabled and kahui Te Wairoa Tapokorau Whānui Trust and Te Hononga o Ngā Awa.
Work on the housing development began more than two years ago. 
It will comprise 10 transitional houses, 20 public houses and seven private market houses. 
The 30 transitional and public homes and two-hectare subdivision will be bought by crown entity Kāinga Ora.
There will be a mix of two-, three-, four- and six-bedroom homes.
It is hoped the first homes will be ready for tenants by September. 
Tihitihi Pā will be rolled out in three stages and will include a community park and playground, barbecue area and maara kai (garden). The playground and roads will be vested to Wairoa District Council.
Wairoa Young Achievers Trust will provide workforce liaison to ensure local rangatahi have the chance to work towards a qualification and local trades are offered work on the project.
Enabled chairman Mark Oberman said Wairoa’s critical housing demand drove the project forward.
“As of the end of January, 64 whānau were on the Social Housing Register, with most having been on it for over two years; 15 whānau, comprising 19 adults and 23 children, were living in emergency housing; and five whānau — seven adults and 15 children — were living in transitional housing. 
“Tihitihi Pā will go some way towards meeting the needs of these whānau.”
Mr Oberman particularly acknowledged Kāinga Ora which he said had worked hard to get the project over the line, even though Wairoa doesn’t meet all of the fundamentals of the national requirements.
Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities acting regional director East North Island Roxanne Cribb said the urgent need for more housing in Wairoa was well known. 
“To see site works beginning on a project that will deliver more than 30 new homes in a community the size of Wairoa is momentous. This is timely, particularly considering what Wairoa has been through over the last month, and consequently the need for even more accommodation for people who have lost their homes.”
Mrs Cribb said it was a pleasure to see Wairoa organisations working together to find solutions for Wairoa whānau and Kāinga Ora was happy to be a partner to this development. 
Kāinga Ora will match the public homes to whānau on the Ministry of Social Development’s Housing Register with the highest priority for a home of that size and in that location. For the transitional homes, Tūapapa Kura Kāinga, Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, have contracted Enabled Wairoa, who will lease the homes from Kāinga Ora. They will provide whānau in these homes with wraparound support.       
Mr Oberman also praised the Enabled team led by chief executive Shelley Smith. 
Enabled is a local charitable trust with a focus on improving health, housing and social outcomes for Wairoa whānau. The provider is also a partner in the Wairoa Housing Coalition — a working group of the Wairoa Community Partnership Group — which supports the development of Tihitihi Pā.
The development will include an Enabled on-site office for the housing teams from Enabled Social Housing and Enabled Toitu He Kāinga – Wairoa Community Housing Hub. There will also be the opportunity to provide office space for Kāinga Ora, Te Whatu Ora – Te Matau a Maui Child Healthy Homes and Wairoa Young Achievers Trust, to provide a one-stop housing products shop for whānau.
Mr Oberman said Tihitihi Pā was a reflection on the past, with the name a tribute to the site’s history as part of the larger Te Rauwa forest recognising the “rustle” of people who worked in the forest when harvesting kiekie fruit, but also firmly focused on the future and meeting Wairoa’s housing needs with a modern purpose-built approach. 
Wairoa Mayor Craig Little thanked Enabled and Whakamanamana Limited for spearheading the development and also praised the many other partners who have made the project possible. 
“It has been decades since the Wairoa township has had a rollout of new homes. This is an exciting venture for our community, and I am really looking forward to seeing the finished product and know this will be transformational for many whānau. This work demonstrates how people who are willing to work together can achieve so much.”