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Kaipara District Council will replace its community housing units in Fagan Place with new prefabricated, one-bedroom homes, initially costing $1.5 million.
Council made the decision after considering the cost of upgrading existing the existing pensioner flats to meet healthy homes standards by the mid-2025 deadline.
It says pre-fab housing is cost-effective and the preferred option for “new, modern, warm, dry, healthy, homes,” while building them off-site will mean minimal disruption for current tenants.
The Fagan Place housing has not been improved since it was built in the late 1970s.
Council has earmarked $1.5 million in its current financial plan to start the project, acknowledging that additional capital will be required to complete the work.
The previous council began discussions in 2020 with a community housing provider about buying and running the 24 units in Fagan Place, but disagreements stalled the talks. Upgrading options were then considered, but when the new council was elected last year, it decided to look into modular, pre-fab units.
Mayor Craig Jepson acknowledged that many tenants will have felt uncertain and anxious during the drawn-out process.
“The new council worked through the options as quickly as possible to ensure the solution was suitable and cost-effective, and looked after our current tenants,” he said. “I have seen examples of some of these pre-fabricated one-bedroom homes.
“We are really happy that they will provide safe, dry and healthy homes for some of our community’s most vulnerable.”
Council has developed a set of standards for the pre-fab homes, based on earlier feedback from residents and “in line with best practice for this type of community housing”.
To be eligible for community housing, an applicant must be MSD-assessed, single, 65 or older, and with limited means.
