Under- and uninsured Edgecumbe residents with flood-damaged homes could soon return to their properties through the help of a “tradie army.”
Whakatane district councillors have unanimously approved the Liveable Home project, which will be led by retired Whakatane builder John Pullar.
A “tradie army” has been pulled together by the Liveable Homes project team weeks after the April 6 flood, to provide under- and uninsured Edgecumbe homeowners with labour, expertise, and funding to make their homes habitable again,
Bay of Plenty Times reported.
The qualified tradespeople, with the support of the Ngati Awa Voluntary Army, will donate their time, labour, and expertise to participate in the repair and rebuild efforts.
Property owners who will be benefitting from the project will be required to sign a contract and provide detailed information about their circumstances, confirming that they don’t have the means to repair their homes, the report said.
Mary Grenfell, council chief executive, said the project kept the town from becoming a community of “the haves and the have-nots.”
“We know that if we don’t take action, up to 100 homes may have to be abandoned because the owners will not have the financial means to be able to repair them,” he told
Bay of Plenty Times.
“This project will tackle that issue head-on and avoid a situation where every second or third home in the worst-affected areas is derelict and deteriorating.
“If our communities are truly going to recover from this disaster, they can’t be studded with abandoned homes and overgrown sections.”
Whakatane mayor Tony Bonne said the project would also benefit insured people by maintaining neighbourhood property values, the publication reported.
“Think of your street,” he said. “Would you want 40% of houses left to rot?”
Related stories:
EQC leads clean-up efforts in flood-hit town
Uninsured and under-insured homeowners to get a ‘hand-up’ on repairs
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