The proposed redevelopment of the Workotel site by Kāinga Ora has Upper Riccarton residents concerned it will not be a “particularly healthy” environment for those living there. Photo / Supplied
The proposed redevelopment of the Workotel site by Kāinga Ora has Upper Riccarton residents concerned it will not be a “particularly healthy” environment for those living there. Photo / Supplied
Upper Riccarton residents have banded together to fight a social housing development planned for their backyard.
The residents’ association was formed in October out of neighbours “angrily talking” about the proposed Kāinga Ora – Houses and Communities development on Main South Rd.
The development will take over the old Workotel site, across from St Peter’s Anglican Church, and will feature 110 new homes, a mixture of three, four and five-storey apartment blocks, townhouses, terraced houses, duplexes and standalone houses.
The new 110-home development will feature a range of community and residential facilities, as well as a new tree-lined street. Photo / Supplied
There would be a new tree-lined public street connecting Main South Rd with Ballantyne Ave, as well as green spaces and communal spaces.
Said the newly formed Church Corner Residents’ Association chairman Tony Rider: “We went from something that was just neighbours chatting to saying actually, you know what, there’s no one else really looking out for the neighbourhood.”
Even after only a few meetings, he was already noticing the community coming together more.
The association was concerned the development would not be a “particularly healthy” environment for those living there or those already in the area, that an added road from busy Main South Rd would overload the quiet Ballantyne Ave, and that many residents were not even aware it was happening.
“We don’t feel what is proposed is, in a nutshell, the best they can do,” said Rider.
The high-density proposal would be placed in the low-density neighbourhood.
“They’re just jumping to a very condensed micro-community within the community.”
Kāinga Ora regional director Canterbury Liz Krause said houses on the border of the complex would be similar to those already on Ballantyne Ave.
The taller buildings would be in the centre of the complex.
Rider’s personal concerns about the environment that might develop arose from his time living in Cabrini-Green, Chicago, one of the United States’ worst social housing disasters.
“It had very similar buildings to what this Main South Rd project is doing.
“When I saw, particularly the three renderings when they had a virtual walk-through of it, it brought back some of the nightmares from when I was a kid.
“It only takes one light bulb to go out and you’ve got a place for people to drug deal, you know,” he said.
Said Krause: “We want to promote diverse, thriving and sustainable communities. So the health and well-being of our customers is a key driver of this project.”
The Riccarton Workotel site housed hundreds of construction workers after the quakes. Photo / Star News
Rider thought they should provide more programmes for those who might live there so to not aggravate pre-existing issues.
There was already social housing on Main South Rd that they had had issues with, Rider noted.
Rider said residents were surprised when Star News reported in September that Kāinga Ora said it had received “overwhelmingly positive” feedback about the proposal.
He had not spoken with anyone who lives in the area who is happy with the proposal.
Krause said there had been a “range of feedback.”
The resource consent for the site – supposed to be filed in September – had not yet been lodged as Kāinga Ora was assessing what the city council’s decision on housing intensification meant for the development, Krause said.
She did not answer whether residents’ concerns would be taken into consideration.
