Affordable housing redevelopment confirmed for city’s east

Christchurch City Council has confirmed the sale of the former Sandilands Community Housing Complex to not-for-profit developer Kāinga Maha (KM), part of Home Foundation Charitable Trust, and Ōtautahi Community Housing Trust (ŌCHT).

It follows an Expression of Interest process to identify potential purchasers, with a focus on respondents who would include social and/or affordable homes in their development plans.

KM will acquire 18 of the 22 sites, while ŌCHT will take over the remaining four. The existing 22 units (44 bedrooms) will be replaced by an estimated total of 51 units (98 bedrooms), significantly increasing the housing capacity. 

The properties, located on Griffiths Avenue, Nicholas Drive, and Coulter Street in Linwood, were closed progressively from late 2016 due to the presence of asbestos.

After a pilot remediation program on two units proved uneconomical, the Council decided in 2023, following community consultation, to sell the properties (excluding the two renovated units) to organisations committed to building social or affordable housing.

Mayor Phil Mauger says the agreement is a win-win.

“We want our city to be a place where people have access to affordable, warm and secure housing and we also know that we can’t do this on our own. Both KM and ŌCHT have a proven track record of award-winning developments that deliver positive housing outcomes for our community.

“Our goal for these sites was to see them redeveloped in a similar way to their historical use and this ticks all the boxes. The redevelopment will have a mixture of tenure types, including social rental, affordable rental, affordable ownership, and market housing. I’m really pleased we’ve been able to make the land available for this purpose.”

The planned units will range from 1 to 4 bedrooms, catering to diverse housing needs.

The Council is currently finalising its commercial negotiations with the two organisations.