“Hard to fault” – Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities Community and Affordable Housing Property Award goes to Riccarton Road Project in 2024 Property Industry Awards

MEDIA RELEASE

Auckland, 14 June 2024: A Riccarton Road public housing project has won the Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities Community and Affordable Housing Property Award tonight. This was one of 11 Excellence and Best in Category awards handed out at the Property Council New Zealand Property Industry Awards, Aotearoa New Zealand’s most prestigious property awards programme.

The completed development – a visually stunning, high density FUD apartment complex – is the first of its kind for Kāinga Ora in Christchurch. The project was purpose-built to deliver public housing for older individuals or people with disabilities as there were few suitable solutions for these groups as the existing housing portfolio did not meet their modern living requirements. The project team consulted closely with stakeholders like Age Concern to ensure the design functioned well and would meaningfully meet the demand for older people requiring accessible homes.

Built on a site previously occupied by four earthquake damaged homes, the development comprises a three-level apartment containing 15 one-bedroom units and five one-and-half-bedroom units for residents who need carer or whānau support. Onsite amenities include a community room, communal laundry and parking.

“The calibre of this building has raised the bar for social housing. It resembles market quality and optimises structural design to increase operational efficiency,” said Andrew Evans, chief judge, Property Industry Awards. “Consortium Construction has delivered a project that was hard to fault.”

The judging panel remarked that the smarts applied to the total development process and the harmony and commitment of the team that worked on this project played a significant role in the overall success.

The needs of the end user were considered in every decision, evident in details throughout, including extra fire cell protection which allows residents to wait within the foyer on each level if they are not physically able to use stairs in an evacuation.

It is the first new building in New Zealand to be installed with the Allume SolShare system, which takes electricity generated by solar roof panels and shares it equally among each resident and is the first Kāinga Ora development to meet an 8 Homestar V4.1 rating. The SolShare system is predicted to reduce customer power bills by around $350-$400 a year. Kāinga Ora monitoring in February indicates 90%+ of electricity used by apartments during the day is being provided by the panels.

The notoriously variable climate of Christchurch poses difficulties when designing a thermally comfortable home – an important health consideration for older customers. Operational solutions include ducted heat pumps and mechanical ventilation. Thermal modelling by Cosgroves showed that even without cooling, the apartments do not exceed 25 degrees Celsius for more than 10% of occupied hours.

The building’s modern residential design features street-facing balconies and a gable roof which reflects the vernacular of the area. Concrete panel construction and brick veneer cladding were selected for high durability, low maintenance and aesthetic appeal. Visually permeable 1.8m brick veneer fencing and landscaping provide an attractive streetscape as well as privacy for residents with road facing outdoor areas.

“This development has set a benchmark for social support housing. The comfort and quality it provides for residents is extremely meaningful,” said Leonie Freeman, Property Council New Zealand chief executive. “The Riccarton Road project exceeds suitability for purpose on almost every level and is an exemplary project for modern social housing.”

 

ENDS

 

Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities Community and Affordable Housing Property Award

Best in Category: Riccarton Road

  • Owner/developer: Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities
  • Construction: Consortium Construction
  • Architect: Architectus
  • Structural engineer: Ruamoko Solutions
  • Service/mechanical engineer: Cosgroves
  • Quantity surveyor: BQH
  • Project manager: Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities
  • Civil engineer: Kirk Roberts Consulting
  • ETC: WSP

 

Excellence:

  • Bader Ventura, Auckland
  • Manaaki, Auckland
  • Oxford Terrace, Lower Hutt
  • Te Kī a Alasdair Apartments, Wellington
  • Te Mātāwai Greys Ave Auckland
  • Willard Street Social Housing, Christchurch

 

Merit:

  • 54 Parkhaven Drive, Auckland
  • Aroha Auckland
  • Harrison Street, Wellington
  • Hutcheson Street units, Blenheim
  • Papaioea Place Redevelopment for Social Housing, Palmerston North
  • Puriri Park Road, Whangārei

 

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