*We are thrilled to be celebrating a third win for this Canterbury development, which has previously been awarded the 2020 Dulux Grand Prix New Zealand Award and Excellence at the 2020 Property Council New Zealand Rider Levett Bucknall Property Industry Awards, and again at the 2021 Te Kāhui Whaihanga award at the NZIA Architecture Awards.*

This is the first time in the Property Council Awards history that a State Housing project has received Excellence. A worthy nod to an incredible team who persevered to demonstrate that modern social housing developments are at the forefront of innovation, design and sustainability, and stand among the best in the country.

It’s always rewarding to see a project come together and help members of the community, so we’re very pleased to announce the completion of our 28-unit development on High Street, Rangiora - another project that continues our commitment to delivering social housing that's affordable, well designed and empowers a community to flourish.

For this project, we teamed up with Rohan Collett Architects to design, develop, and build an age-friendly social housing community for Kāinga Ora. The one-bedroom units have all been masterfully planned and designed to allow residents to live their best life both individually and communally, and 10 of them are also fully accessible.

Shared courtyards, communal gardens, bike sheds, mobility scooter access, and parking are just some of the design features that will allow this community to flourish. The homes are not only warm, dry and safe, but also flexible enough to adapt to changing lifestyle circumstances and mobility needs without compromising on beautiful design - proof that the very best of both housing standards and design can be maintained while still delivering cost efficient outcomes.

One resident who is enjoying her new home is Amelia Kouka. After losing her home in North Canterbury after the earthquakes, Amelia had been couch surfing for seven years before she was admitted to hospital and received a heartbreaking terminal cancer diagnosis. Support from her family ensured Amelia never had to sleep rough, but she struggled without a space, let alone a bed, to call her own.

Now, "having this wonderful place to come home to keeps me fighting," she says. Amelia has shared more about her journey and the difference her new home is making here.

It’s people like Amelia that make everything worthwhile for us, and we hope she and all the new residents enjoy their new home.

But not only are we helping Kiwis in need. The completion of this development also means 28 new homes for families in Fiji and Nepal as part of our Home-for-a-Home Scheme. You can find out more about the scheme here.

As always, a big thank you to all the incredible build partners who contributed to the success of this project and helped make a lasting impact to the Rangiora community: BG contracting, Wright Wire Electrical, Dyers Road ITM, Carters, Hometech, Myall & Thurlow, TMCO, Showerwell Home Products, Rock Solid Foundations, Goom Landscapes, Bellchamber Brick & Block, Millers curtains, Smart Energy Insulation, MK Kitchens and WasteCo.

(Photography by Lightforge - Dennis Radermacher)