Work is set to resume on a major social housing development in Wellington, three years after it was stopped due to a cost blowout.
But the Kāinga Ora Arlington development in Mount Cook will build 104 social homes – about a third of the original plan for 301 homes.
Housing Minister Chris Bishop said he was disappointed it had taken so long for work to get back underway.
"We’ve just got to get development on the site, and I’ve been pretty frustrated by the lack of progress for a while," Bishop said.
Mayor Andrew Little was with Bishop at the site today to announce the revised plans.
"I know a lot of people have been waiting to see development happen," Little said. "The Government indicated to us some years ago that they didn’t think they could go through with the original planned development, so we’ve been talking about what could happen."
Development was put on hold by the then-government in 2023, just before the election, due to the budget ballooning to $419 million, up from $296 million originally budgeted in 2021.
"That cost escalation would have led to an eye-watering cost of around $1.4 million per apartment, prompting a redesign of the development," Bishop said.
The site had been sitting vacant since development stalled.
"We’ve been trying to find a value-for-money solution. We can’t spend 1.3 million bucks per apartment and frankly, most people would say 300 social housing units would have been extremely high-density housing," Bishop said.
"The point is: we’re getting on with it."
The plan also includes a $6 million cash injection for Wellington City to go towards supporting housing services for vulnerable people.
"For a city that has a homelessness problem and a rough sleeper problem, this is very welcome," Little said.
"What we find with a lot of people who are on the streets is that it’s not just enough to provide a roof over their heads, it’s actually other support that’s needed as well."
The proposal included one seven-storey building containing 55 one-bed and 37 two-bed apartments.
There would be 12 four-bed homes in a terraced formation.
The plan was still subject to the council approving a variation to its existing lease.
Construction was planned to start in 2027 and finish in 2029.
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