Red-stickered houses down in Nelson-Tasman, yellow ones on the rise

Wednesday, 31 August 2022

Geotechnical adviser Grant Maxwell at a house on Grenville Terrace house that has been red stickered. The house is one of 91 across Nelson-Tasman that cannot be entered following the recent floods and slips that hit the region.

There are now 91 red-stickered homes in the Nelson-Tasman region, Civil Defence announced on Wednesday.

Of those, 88 are in Nelson and three in Tasman district. That’s down from 95 homes across the region, recorded on Monday.

The number of yellow-placarded homes has risen slightly to 103 properties with 90 in Nelson and 13 in Tasman district. That total is up from 86 on Monday.

There are now 562 white-stickered buildings.

Housing Minister Dr Megan Woods says 21 households in the Nelson-Tasman region have so far registered for the Government’s Temporary Accommodation Service.

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Nelson MP Rachel Boyack, left, visiting flood-affected streets in the city with mayor Rachel Reese, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, Emergency Management Minister Kieran McAnulty and Agriculture Minister and West Coast-Tasman MP Damien O’Connor, urges affected families to register for temporary accommodation if they may have a need.

The numbers change as teams continue inspections of homes affected by floodwaters or slips.

Red-stickered homes must not be entered under any circumstances. Yellow-stickered homes may be entered temporarily but householders may not reside there. White-placard properties have been assessed and can be re-occupied with caution.

Civil Defence was unable to say how many of these homes were rentals.

Nelson Tasman Civil Defence and Emergency Management public information manager Paul Shattock said accommodation had been arranged for everyone who initially requested assistance.

As the region moved out of a state of emergency and into a recovery phase on Wednesday, the Government’s Temporary Accommodation Service (TAS) was activated. Temporary accommodation is used for a short to medium term, while repairs are undertaken following a natural disaster.

Housing Minister Dr Megan Woods on Thursday said TAS was accepting registrations from those who could not return to their homes, needed assistance finding temporary accommodation, and who had not already been contacted by TAS’s matching and placement team.

The Student Volunteer Army stepped up to help property owners in the massive clean up after massive flooding and slips in Nelson (video from August 2022).

“TAS is working closely with local authorities in the Nelson, Tasman and Marlborough regions to assess the damage, establish how many homes have been affected, and to scope the longer-term need,” Woods said. “We expect to have a fuller picture in the coming weeks as more people register with our services. So far, 21 households have registered.”

Nelson MP Rachel Boyack urged anyone who believed they could possibly need assistance to register, even if their property had not yet had a complete geotechnical assessment.

“Please register,” she said. “We’d rather know the potential need for the future than not know.”

Boyack said once the extent of the need was clear, a “whole range of options” could be considered.

Wherever possible, TAS used existing, undamaged residential housing as temporary accommodation but other options had been used if there was a shortage of rental accommodation.

Cracking in Grenville Terrace, Nelson, which forms part of the Tāhunanui Slump. Around 50 properties were evacuated from the area.

“In Westport, for example, portacabins were brought in,” Boyack said. “But I can’t pre-empt what will be provided [in the Nelson-Tasman region] until we have a full picture of what people need.”

People could register their details online at temporaryaccommodation.mbie.govt.nz or, call 0508 754 163. Tenants and landlords of rental properties should visit tenancy.govt.nz.

Summit Property Management general manager Stewart Henry said they hadn’t had many inquiries yet.

“It appears quite a number are waiting to see what the verdict is with how long it will be with their own place till it’s occupiable or what's happening rather than committing to a rental.

“Once people know it’s going to be 10 or 12 months before their house is ready they’ll be coming in then and saying we need to rent somewhere.”

Henry said they had 15 properties that would be coming available over the next four weeks.

“We’d normally have between that and 20 or 25. But then again, people tend to want to move less in winter.”

Nelson Tasman Citizens Advice Bureau manager Megan Cole said the team hadn’t been inundated with calls either.

“Quite often that may come after that emergency has been lifted. We’ve had probably two tenancy issues around their houses that have been red stickered and what their rights and their responsibilities were in an emergency situation,” she said.

“We can help them and guide them and give them the information they need so that they feel empowered.”