Repair options are being assessed for the now 543 public houses damaged in the Auckland floods.
Deputy Chief Executive for Auckland and Northland Caroline Butterworth says while the damaged homes represent a small
percentage of the properties owned and managed by Kāinga Ora - Homes and Communities in Auckland, there is a big repair
job ahead.
The repairs will need to be done on top of the normal maintenance work that Kāinga Ora does on its properties.
In the majority of cases the flood-damaged homes can still be lived in but, as of 1pm Thursday 9 February, Auckland
Council has issued four Kāinga Ora homes with red placards and 137 homes with yellow placards.
"The worst-damaged homes are unable to be lived in without significant repairs so we will find permanent new homes for
those customers,'' Ms Butterworth says.
To date Kāinga Ora has been focused on making damaged homes safe for its customers, by doing things like removing wet
carpet and checking electrics, in preparation for a much larger repair programme to address the damage.
Repair work will be prioritised on a needs basis, taking into account customers’ individual circumstances.
"Some of our customers may have a longer wait than others so we’re going to have to ask for people’s patience and
understanding as we work to fix these homes.’’
Ms Butterworth says Kāinga Ora will continue to provide practical support and assistance to customers impacted by the
floods.
"We’ve been in touch with every family that we are aware has been severely impacted, but if there are any customers out
there who do need help, I urge them to call us right away on 0800 801 601 or email aucklandrecovery@kaingaora.govt.nz. We’re here to help and if our customers need assistance from other support agencies and community groups, we’ll help
to connect them.’’About Kāinga Ora
Kāinga Ora is New Zealand’s largest provider of public housing, with almost 70,000 properties in its housing stock
providing homes to around 200,000 customers and their whanau. In Auckland, we house nearly 100,000 people in 29,000
homes.
Our role is to deliver and enable homes to meet the growing housing needs of the wider community. As an urban
development agency, many of our projects are focussed on delivering more market and affordable homes and through our
urban development functions whole new sustainable communities.
We also administer numerous programmes on behalf of the Government including funds which are helping more New Zealanders
into their own homes and funding critical infrastructure projects across Aotearoa.
We are leading the largest urban regeneration in New Zealand’s history. By working with iwi, public and private sector
partners, we are building and enabling thousands of new homes in towns and cities where many people are in serious need
of housing.