21 May 2018

Construction on the Papaioea Place community housing development is due to commence construction with an additional two housing units than previously planned. The additional units increase the number of eco-friendly unit replacements to 50 and was approved at an Extraordinary Council meeting on Monday (14 May 2018).

Following an urban design review, a modified layout on the site allowed the additional units to be included in the first stage of the redevelopment at a cost of $288,650 (including GST).

Council also agreed to increase the budget for the redevelopment from $7,328,000 to $8,715,950 to cover the cost of; site works, civil works and landscaping variations. Construction cost increases, additional design fees and variations to the unit constructions also contributed to the increases.

The project was originally priced-based on a design and build concept however the successful design still required detailed design, resource and building consent approvals to meet a 4-Star Lifemark certification.

The 4-Star Lifemark certification ensures the units cater for a wide range of agility and mobility and can easily be adapted to meet tenants’ needs as their mobility changes over their life.

All these processes are now complete and following the approval of the increased budget, the successful Latitude Homes is ready to commence construction work from 1 June 2018.

Councillors voted in favour of the increased budget to also include the installation of solar tubes and a thicker layer of internal plaster board, as they felt these aspects of the build added value to the quality of living to the residents.

Existing tenants have been transferred to other units while the older units have been demolished and the new units are constructed.

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