No images? Click here
Welcome to Hononga Hapori, our Palmerston North Community Update for December
We've got some great updates for Palmerston North, so keep reading to find out more
Kia ora,
It’s hard to believe December is already here. I hope you have been enjoying the warmer weather.
If this is the first update you have received from us, thank you for signing up and a warm welcome to you! We have some exciting updates for Palmerston North and it’s great we can share these with you.
Kāinga Ora - Homes and Communities not only provides warm, dry homes for whānau in need, but also works to support communities and build sustainable, thriving and inclusive communities.
Our team enjoys giving back to the community, and recently we volunteered for the Pink Ribbon Appeal for the Breast Cancer
Foundation. We connected with some very inspiring people and were touched by the generosity of our communities for a very good cause.
I hope you enjoy this update with important information about construction milestones and the work we are doing with our partners to support communities.
Please feel free to get in touch with me if you have any questions or feedback.
Have a safe and happy festive season.
Ngā mihi
Rebecca Kinloch
Senior Stakeholder Relationship Manager – Kaitūhono Matua
Community Engagement and Partnerships
What's happening in your neighbourhood?
We’re excited about delivering new houses in Palmerston North, so more individuals and families will have a warm, dry, and safe place to call home.
We understand that you would like to keep updated about what is happening in your neighbourhood. As our housing projects and opportunities are at different stages, we have created an interactive map to ensure you always have access to the most up-to-date information.
A few highlights:
- Our developments at 17-19 Wharenui Terrace/54 Rangiora Avenue to build 14 new homes, 26 North Street to build 50 new homes and 101 North Street to build 10 new homes are progressing well, with the delivery of the homes due next year
- We are starting to build six two-storey homes at 46-48 Manchester Street in the early new year
- Kāinga Ora also looks to the market as an opportunity to deliver more warm, dry homes. We have an agreement with Gemscott Developers to acquire nine new two-bedroom homes at 32 & 34 Albert Street.
Retrofit Open Home for Partners and Stakeholders
Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities is making significant improvements on a number of homes in Palmerston North through our Retrofit Programme.
We are upgrading these older homes to make them warmer, drier and more energy efficient by installing full insulation, double glazing, improved airtightness, ventilation and new heating.
Recently, we invited our partners and stakeholders to come along and have a look through one of the newly upgraded homes to see the wonderful improvements first-hand.
42 Homes have now been upgraded in Palmerston North as part of this programme, 16 homes are currently under construction and 29 homes are forecasted to be completed before the end of the financial year.
Graeme Broderick, Kāinga Ora Regional Director Taranaki, Whanganui and Manawatu: “We want to ensure our customers live in good quality, well-maintained and comfortable homes. As many of our homes were built a long time ago, we are breathing new life into the homes.”
Opportunities to provide feedback and meet with us
In addition to our digital updates, we will continue to provide regular opportunities for you to connect with us face-to-face at our community drop-in sessions.
We do not have any face-to-face opportunities scheduled before Christmas, but you are welcome to contact me on 021 228 3167 or communities@kaingaora.govt.nz if you have any questions.
We will be in touch in the new year with dates for the next community drop-in sessions, where you can come along to ask questions or share your thoughts and ideas around how we can better support your community.
UCOL | Te Pūkenga students design community spaces for Kāinga Ora customers
Kainga Ora – Homes and Communities always seeks opportunities to work with local partners and organisations to support our customers and communities.
A recent example is our collaboration with UCOL | Te Pūkenga where students designed community spaces for the 24 upgraded apartments at 32 and 34 Brentwood Avenue.
One of the students, Michael McKay from Palmerston North, designed a safe, weatherproof outdoor space for families to relax, share kai and supervise children at play.
“Having grown up in a rural setting, I want to encourage others to get outside as it benefits physical and mental health,” says Michael.
Michael says talking to an actual client gave him a sneak peek into how things may work in the industry.
“I find it easier to learn by doing than by being told what to expect, so this experience was great. A big thank you to Kāinga Ora for this opportunity, I hope future students will get a similar opportunity,” ends Michael.
Gardening tips and tricks from MFAN
Kāinga Ora has a great partnership with Manawatū Food Action Network (MFAN) to help our customers with kai security. We thought you might like to read about some great tips from the MFAN team to help you to grow kai at home.
Plant of the month: Tomatoes! The options are endless; you can use them as a base for pasta sauces, grill them in the oven with oil for homemade sun-dried tomatoes, use them fresh in salads, or share them with neighbours and friends!
Did you know?
- If you have tomato seedlings that are very “leggy” and tall, you can plant them with most of their stalk underground. Tomatoes are from the same family as potatoes and will happily grow roots from the nodes along their stalk, where the leaves emerge from
- Even if they aren’t “leggy”, planting them with 2/3 or their length buried in the earth will result in a stronger root system and hopefully a better crop.
- Dig a nice deep hole, carefully break off the lower leaves and then plant them deep in the soil with just the top third of the plant above ground
- Remember to use a stake or 2 for tying your tomatoes up to prevent them from falling over or getting blown down by the wind
- It also helps raise the tomatoes off the ground and allows better airflow around the plant to prevent disease
- For tying up tomatoes (or any other plants in the garden), just harvest a single blade of harakeke (Flax) and pinch off small strands from the edge of the blade: instant biodegradable garden twine for free!
Now is also a good time to grow more delicate types of plants that like the heat, such as courgettes and cucumbers. If we are going to have a hotter than normal summer, you could think about sowing some watermelon and rock melon too.
Share your tips for growing kai and be in to win!
If you have any great gardening tips for growing kai that we could share, please send them through to communities@kaingaora.govt.nz. All entries received will go into the draw to win a $50 New World card. Gardening tips must be received by Friday 12 January 2023, 5.00pm. Winners will be contacted by Monday 15 January 2024.
Questions?
If you have questions or would like to discuss anything further, please contact:
Rebecca Kinloch
021 228 3167
communities@kaingaora.govt.nz
For more information about our proposed developments in Palmerston North, please visit https://kaingaora.govt.nz/manawatu-whanganui
View our Palmerston North developments on Social Pinpoint
If you know of someone who would like to receive these updates please share the registration link with them: subscribe to our updates.
