Ministry’s claims of emergency housing in Queensotwn-Lakes disputed
While the Ministry of Social Development’s adamant it does have ‘‘emergency housing available’’ in the Queenstown-Lakes, that comment’s being disputed locally.
Last week, Queenstown mayor Glyn Lewers told Mountain Scene there’s no emergency housing here — something MSD denies.
In a statement, MSD Southern regional commissioner Steph Voight says not only is emergency housing available here, but ‘emergency housing special needs grants’ are paid to those who meet eligibility criteria and are subject to an income and asset test.
However, information about how many grants have been applied for, approved or denied in February last year compared to this February was all suppressed — that’s because the number was less than six.
MSD says they are working with one emergency housing supplier in the Queenstown-Lakes, which has a number of different units available.
While their capacity varies on tourist demand, ‘‘we are comfortable there is enough space to meet any emergency housing demand in Queenstown for any individuals or whānau who meet the eligibility criteria’’.
Emergency housing, MSD says, is typically short-term solutions in motels, backpackers or boarding houses.
Salvation Army Queenstown community ministries director Andrew Wilson says that’s the issue.
Emergency housing a ‘technicality’
‘‘Technically, there is emergency accommodation, but it’s a very loose definition, because you could be shipped down to Invercargill,” Wilson says.
After a spate of house fires in 2021 — following which one family had to stay with a firefighter because there was no emergency housing in the Whakatipu — he attended a multi-agency meeting, including representatives from MSD and the motel association, to see if there were ways to improve the situation for those in greatest need.
Wilson, noting that was in the middle of the Covid-induced tourism downturn, says the plan was for moteliers to work with MSD and have rooms available for emergency housing so, in the event of a fire, for example, people could be housed in minutes.
‘‘The challenge is, because MSD relies on the hospitality sector, motels, etc, for emergency accommodation, it’s great when there’s a global pandemic where travel is limited, but when things have started back up, you get into a problem where there can be days where there’s literally not a single bed free in the community,’’ Wilson says.
‘‘As I understand it, it’s up to the accommodation provider themselves whether they accept emergency accommodation individuals.
‘‘Without any sort of formal agreement in place, you can quite often see — and we’ve certainly had our own clients in this position — where there just aren’t rooms in Queenstown.
‘‘Officially there’s always going to be emergency accommodation, it’s just where they place them.’’
Scott: “You can’t get warm under a voucher”
Queenstown Lakes Community Housing Trust executive officer Julie Scott also disputes provision of emergency housing in the district and says people in the most desperate need will be offered ‘‘vouchers’’ instead.
‘‘You can’t get warm under a voucher.
‘‘The government does not have emergency housing in this district.’’
She says while emergency housing is available as a safe house for those fleeing a domestic violence situation, that’s ‘‘very short term’’ and ‘‘very different’’ to housing people living and working in the district.
According to the Work and Income website, to qualify for emergency housing, an applicant must have nowhere to stay for the next seven days, be a permanent New Zealand citizen or resident, and ordinarily reside in NZ.
‘‘It also depends on the income and assets you have,’’ the website states.
Meantime, there are also compounding issues around a lack of public housing available here.
Kāinga Ora — formerly Housing New Zealand — has 13 public housing properties in the district, eight three-bedders and a one-bedder in Queenstown and four three-bedders in Wānaka, while the housing trust has about 40 on its books already.
The problem, Scott says, is all of them are occupied, and the turnover within them’s virtually non-existent.
‘‘No one ever moves — why would they?
‘‘It’s a good, secure, warm, dry, affordable home, and we’re not building enough to keep up with our demand.’’
While Scott says another public house is included in the trust’s 10-unit Northlake development, in Wānaka, and plans to include an element of public housing at Arrowtown’s Tewa Banks 68-home development, that’s still to be confirmed.
At present, the housing trust’s got 870 on its waitlist for some form of community housing, and are fielding calls from some families on it who have been given notice on their current properties “and have nowhere to go”.
“It’s pretty tough,” Scott says.
