A cabin community that is set to provide a roof for those who are experiencing long-term homelessness has officially opened in Nelson.
“It’s a match made in heaven”, Salvation Army Nelson Tasman community ministry director Ros Johnson says of the collaboration between The Salvation Army’s Housing First team, Habitat for Humanity, and the Victory Community Anglican Church.
A large congregation from Nelson and Tasman came together to celebrate the launch of the eight new cabins on Monday that will become transitional housing for members of the Nelson community from next year.
The cabin community has been in the pipeline for a few years after Habitat for Humanity Nelson’s Nick Clarke saw something similar operating successfully in Carterton.
Jaap Noteboom, team leader of Housing First says they are building a future for those who deserve a second chance.
He says Housing First has identified suitable residents who have all expressed interest, and they will be notified shortly.
“There was this great opportunity that we learned through our Covid-19 response as we helped people in motels, that it was important to keep people together.”
Jaap says, along with the accommodation, Housing First will provide residents with support and coaching.
“This is about getting people’s lives back on track” Jaap says.
Neville Jackson of Victory Anglican Church, which provided the land for the village on a three-year lease, was at the opening.
“I’m very conscious about the hard work that now begins, to build a community and a home,” he says.
“A chord of three strands is not easily broken,” Neville says of the collaboration, adding he hoped the community will be strong as a church.
The eight cabins built by NMIT/ Te Pukenga students, each contain a bed, desk, a chair, and a lazy chair with access to a common area containing a kitchen with communal toilets and showers.
Wayne Jackson, former chief executive of NMIT/ Te Pukenga, says the three-year collaboration with Habitat for Humanity was one he hoped would continue.
“It is a valuable social project, where students are getting real-life experience by building real homes,” Wayne said.
Nelson MP Rachel Boyack acknowledged the work of the students.
“It’s an exciting development where people will have a place to rest their heads at night”
Rachel says a lot of planning has gone into this community.
“Housing First offers a global solution to homelessness, where the initial focus is on providing a home.”
Housing First is a collaborative partnership between Te Piki Oranga, the Male Room and The Salvation Army Nelson Tasman Bays Corps, and operates under a contract with Te Tūāpapa Kura Kāinga – the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development. Since April 2020 they have transitioned 50 people from the street into social housing.
“We can beat this housing problem,” says Nelson Mayor Nick Smith as he addressed the crowd adding that the timing could not be more perfect.
“We should judge not a community on how the most advantaged live, but how the most disadvantaged live.”
