Thursday, 17th May 2012
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| Rental crisis looming in Ashburton |
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By Sue Newman February 6, 2012
"Employers are bringing new staff in here and they're desperate for accommodation. "These are good people, people we need." Mr Burdett said he felt like he was having to play God when people were queueing for rental properties. "People are pleading their case but sometimes if you're not here then you miss out." And it will only get worse as the influx of workers into Christchurch for the city rebuild begins. Accommodation in Christchurch is already under extreme pressure and it is inevitable demand will flow south to Ashburton, he said. "There's almost a case for some kind of temporary accommodation here, particularly single and double accommodation. "Something has to happen and it has to happen now, but we don't want to end up with slums when it's over. "We probably need something that has a 10-year life and can then be moved." The looming housing crisis meant that for developers the time had never been better to build affordable spec housing, Mr Burdett said. The housing situation was the worst he had seen and while it was frustrating for agents it was desperate for people looking for somewhere to live, he said. "There's no easy answers. You worry for these people, but what can you do?" Grow Mid Canterbury chief executive Rob Brawley said his organisation was looking at ways to meet future permanent accommodation needs for the demand that would come as the Christchurch rebuild began. This was likely to be from people who were working both in Ashburton and Christchurch. He has a seminar planned to encourage local private investment in Ashburton's housing stocks. Mayor Angus McKay said the Ashburton District Council was aware of a potential problem looming with a shortage of rental accommodation. Ahead of the Grow Mid Canterbury seminar, discussions have been held on the council's role in helping work through the looming crisis, he said. "The council is happy to assist, with local banks, builders etc and we believe we have sufficient zoned development land available now for more permanent accommodation to be built." Temporary accommodation had been tried in Christchurch, but this had not been successful, Mr McKay said. "This is not something there appears to be a demand for here. "Any demand for this kind of housing is likely to be closer to the labour needs." President of the Ashburton branch of the Master Builders' Association Mark Wilson said it would be a big call to undertake a rapid-fire boost of Ashburton's housing stocks. If all resources were pulled together it could be possible to build a large number of homes within a six-month period, but that could only happen by pulling staff off other work around the district and out of the area, he said.
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