House moved to wrong section in Northland

The misplaced house on the move from 10 to 14A Seascape Lane, at Coopers Beach in Northland. PHOTO/Peter Jackson

A couple with a section in Doubtless Bay accidentally acquired a house after it was relocated to the wrong address.

Amanda and Andrew Wisniewski were perplexed when the mystery house first appeared on their Coopers Beach section.

Yesterday, however, after seven weeks of trying in vain to dislodge the stray house, they were just as bemused when the removal firm returned without warning to shift it across the road to the proper address.

The North Shore couple bought the section 10 years ago with the intention of eventually adding a bach.

The first they knew of the house was when the local person hired to mow the grass mentioned it. Mrs Wisniewski rang a neighbour, who confirmed there was indeed a house on their section.

"Our first reaction was shock. How on earth could this happen? Then we were bemused, and then a little bit annoyed."

After some inquiries around the neighbourhood, Mrs Wisniewski discovered the weatherboard cottage was supposed to be moved to 14A Seascape Lane but was somehow delivered to 10 Seascape Lane instead.

The house was then signed off by the Far North District Council's building department, even though the consents applied to No14A.

When the error was pointed out, the council ordered the owner and removal firm to shift the house and reinstate the section to its original condition by November 29. When that was not met, a new deadline of December 20 was set.

O'Neills Building Removals owner Jeremy O'Neill of Whangarei said he put his hand up for a certain amount of the blame.

However, council staff checked the house and boundary pegs when the house was on site and let him pour the concrete for the piles.

The council should have picked up the error and issued a stop work notice at that stage, Mr O'Neill said.

He was planning to invoice the council for costs incurred after the building was signed off.

As to how the house ended up on the wrong section, he said he had matched up the location with the plans, which were "a bit vague".

Mr O'Neill said he would remove the house but could not say when because work was "a bit berserk" before Christmas. Bizarrely, however, the house was being moved by his company as Mr O'Neill was speaking to the Northern Advocate.

The council is saying little in case the mix-up ends up in court. All a spokesman would say was that the council was aware of the issue and was investigating. The full details would be disclosed in due course.

Mrs Wisniewski was surprised to hear the house was on the move again yesterday.

"That's great but we want the section back to how it was before."

As well as damage to the section, a young pohutukawa had been cut down.

The misplaced house was the talk of the street, Mrs Wisniewski said.

"They just can't believe it," she said.

The last time Mr O'Neill made the news was in 2011, when a house being moved from Auckland fell off a truck on State Highway 1 near Ruakaka. It was being moved by his previous company, Pile Up Northland Ltd.