On the petition document, it was claimed the plans for the development were to build over 130 homes across three stages.
However, Kāinga Ora general manager of urban development and delivery Mark Fraser said the current plan is to only build 44 homes.
Of these homes, 15 were intended to be used as public housing, 14 were proposed to be long-term rentals for workers and 15 would be affordable homes.
“These new homes will help to address the shortage of suitable and affordable houses to rent or buy in the area and make it easier to attract much-needed workers to Ohakune to support businesses and the local economy,” Fraser said.
The claims of 130-plus homes came from resource consent lodged by the council that included the mention of potential second and third stages of the project, bringing the total number up to a maximum of 157 homes.
Kirton said while there was potential to develop the land further, whether this would happen had yet to be determined by the council and would rely on Government funding.
He said the plans for the development came from community consultations the previous council did in 2020 around the district to determine if more housing was needed.
“There was an overwhelming result saying that there was a need for housing, particularly in areas such as Raetihi, Taumaranui and also Ohakune.”
He said the housing crisis may be worse in Ruapehu than in other areas of the country.
This was due to many homes being used as holiday accommodation rather than permanent housing, affecting the rental market in particular.
“We’ve had living studies here, there and everywhere indicating there’s a huge need for housing in various parts of the community, not only [for] those wanting affordable homes, but there is a need for people who work and play in this area,” Kirton said.
The council lodged an application for Government funding from the Covid-19 Response and Recovery Fund for the development of the 44 homes, with Kāinga Ora and Ngāti Rangi being brought on as development partners.
Murphy admitted there wasn’t mention of the current plan being to only build 44 homes in the petition, but said even those 44 homes would pose a significant safety issue to the Carrot Adventure Park and the road neighbouring the planned development.
“There are a lot of kids from ages 3 to around 15 walking around those roads. 44 new homes on that intersection... those additional cars, even those 44, are a massive increase to the carrot park,” he said.
The current plans would also divert a pathway between Snowmass Drive and the park through the development, crossing seven live driveways, which he also saw as a safety issue.
He and many members of the community were disappointed the council had not communicated the plans for the development beforehand, having only been consulted on it once resource consent had been lodged.
Save Ōhakune was not against public housing but believed the council had gone about it in the wrong ways, and Murphy thought the funding should instead be used to purchase existing homes in town.
“There are a lot of properties that have double-glazing, have heating, for around $300,000 to $400,000,” he said.
However at the meeting, Manley said the Government funding the council received was specifically for developing new homes, not buying existing ones.
Murphy said the council should go back to the Government to repurpose the funding so it would be spent on the existing homes rather than development.
Other towns in Ruapehu were in more urgent need of housing than Ōhakune, he said, and he believed the development would harm the town’s image as a tourist destination.
“It would look terrible next to the carrot park,” he said.
It was anticipated work would begin to prepare the land for development in late 2023.
Finn Williams is a multimedia journalist for the Whanganui Chronicle. He joined the Chronicle in early 2022 and regularly covers stories about business, events and emergencies. He also enjoys writing opinion columns on whatever interests him.
