Omāhu Marae to host temporary homes for cyclone-hit whānau

Omāhu Marae will host 11 relocatable homes before the end of the year. Photo: Lauren Crimp / RNZ

By Lauren Crimp of RNZ

The first temporary village for those forced out of their homes after Cyclone Gabrielle is soon to be built in Hastings.

Omāhu Marae will host 11 relocatable homes - a mix of one, two and three bedrooms - before the end of the year.

The government’s Temporary Accommodation Service (TAS) leased the land from the Ngāti Hinemanu, Ngāi Upokoiri me ōna Piranga Hapu Trust. And it struck a deal with Ngāti Kahungunu’s property arm, K3 Kahungunu Property, to build the houses.

Hapū representative Renata Hakiwai said 10 Omahu whānau were still sleeping in the wharenui of their marae, almost seven months on from the cyclone. Like many in the region, they had nowhere else to go. But their hapū was doing all it could to ensure everyone had a roof over their head.

“We were devastated through Cyclone Gabrielle, we had about 153 houses that were affected.”

Hakiwai said the stars aligned with K3 Kahungunu Property, which had some of the houses almost built for another development that did not go ahead.

“Our focus was, ‘How do we get houses up as fast as possible?’ And they had houses ready to go, so it was just an obvious choice.”

While the marae and its land were inundated by the flooding, Hakiwai was confident it was now safe with stopbanks repaired, and planned to raise the houses and construct bunding.

“We wouldn’t put any of our people, especially our elderly, in harm’s way.”

The houses were being built off-site and the consenting process was underway, with infrastructure work to follow.

Come December, the hapū and TAS should be ready to move whānau in, working together to prioritise those with the most critical need.

Hakiwai said there were already plans for the houses when they were no longer needed for the cyclone victims.

“Right from the start we said, well, once the transitional housing component is finished, we want to use these for our elderly, for our kaumātua to use.”

Their current housing was not up to healthy homes standards, he said.

Ngāti Kahungunu chair Bayden Barber said all parties - iwi, hapū, councils and the government - had moved mountains to make the village happen as fast as possible.

“You get a bit anxious when it comes to housing, especially straight after a flood - consenting, building requirements, et cetera.

“But I think all involved have been pretty pragmatic, and practical about how to find solutions rather than barriers to getting housing on the ground.”

Barber said the iwi was also working hard to get portable cabins out to flood-affected homes - which could fill a long-term need in a region that was squeezed for housing well before the cyclone.

“We’ve had a housing crisis since 2019, and having 115 cabins in the Kahungunu rohe to support accommodation, whether that’s temporary or enduring, I think that’s part of the bigger strategy.”

In a statement, TAS head of accommodation response Fadia Mudafar said they were proud to be working with the marae, iwi and hapū.

“The need for temporary housing for Māori in cyclone-ravaged Hawke’s Bay is high - about 46 percent of all households in the region who’ve asked for our help are Māori.”

But there was still plenty of work to do to help cyclone-stricken residents.

As of last week for all of Hawke’s Bay, 45 households were in TAS-supplied accommodation, 48 were still waiting and 90 had indicated they would need help soon.