Hastings Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst has welcomed today’s announcement regarding the first stage of the Government’s investment towards more housing in Hastings.

The Hastings housing package includes:

• 200 houses including state housing and papakainga affordable rental homes;

• 100 Housing First places in Napier and Hastings;

• House repairs for whānau with children and short-term temporary housing for severely overcrowded houses;

• More wraparound services for people receiving the Emergency Housing - Special Needs Grant.

"We know that to tackle the housing crisis we need to provide a tailored response to each region’s needs. We’ve worked closely with the Hasting District Council, iwi and community to come up with this package," Housing Minister Megan Woods says.

"I would like to acknowledge the mayor of Hastings District, Sandra Hazlehurst, and the Chair of Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngahiwi Tomoana, for their collaboration with central government on this work.

"The new houses will be a mix of public housing from Kāinga Ora, Community Housing Providers, and papakāinga affordable housing on Māori land. $8.7m will support delivery of the papakāinga housing and whānau home repairs, on top of existing funding sources.

"Housing First is an internationally recognised approach which gets people into homes first and then connects people with the right social services for them. The Government will be expanding this programme to Napier and Hastings through Whatever it Takes Charitable Trust, Emerge Aotearoa and Te Taiwhenua o Heretaunga," the Minister says.

Minister for Māori Development Nanaia Mahuta says Te Puni Kōkiri will deliver and support papakāinga housing in the region to ensure whānau Māori have access to safe, warm and affordable housing.

"Utilising the regional network of Te Puni Kōkiri, an additional 22 affordable rental homes will be constructed and infrastructure for 17 further sites will help ensure more housing is delivered in the near future."

Many factors are contributing to a massive housing shortage in Hastings – from a lack of affordable homes and rent increases, to the need to house 4,500 seasonal workers every year, coupled with emergency, social and senior housing all being at capacity.

This is putting huge pressure on families, many of whom are living in cramped and unhealthy conditions or in the worst cases, being left to live rough in their cars and on the streets.

Mayor Hazlehurst says she is delighted that the Government has delivered on the promise made by the Prime Minister when she visited Waipatu Marae in April this year.

“Jacinda Ardern made a commitment to work together to deliver a plan that would firstly deal with the issue of homelessness and our severe housing shortage in the short term and secondly, to ensure the housing market works for everyone so that home ownership is possible for the whole community in the medium to long term,” she says.

“We are really pleased to be chosen for this pilot programme and I’d like to thank her ministers responsible for housing and the government agencies that have been working with us, under the leadership of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, to make this happen for our people.”

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