The latest addition to Wellington’s council housing stock is Araheke, a complex of nine passive houses in Brooklyn.
The large townhouses were opened at a dawn blessing on Friday, with council including Mayor Tory Whanau and mana whenua representatives in attendance. The houses were named Araheke at the ceremony.
Passive homes stay cool in summer and warm in winter and can save tenants money on power bills.
Whanau said she was “stoked” Araheke would add to the number of “quality, affordable, family-sized homes” for social housing tenants.
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“Wellington is on the cusp of transformational change and it’s important that we create a city that caters to everyone’s needs. Araheke is a part of that.”
The houses were designed for multi-generational families as well as families with accessibility requirements.
Wellington City Council/Supplied
The homes are officially open after a blessing and naming ceremony.
One of the houses was fully accessible and two others were Lifemark-rated, meaning they were designed with some accessibility features.
Most of the homes have four bedrooms and one has three bedrooms. They are larger than the other flats that make up the bulk of the council’s housing stock.
Councillor Teri O’Neill said Araheke was “a great example of medium density done well” and noted it was conveniently located near schools and childcare, shops, and public transport.
Wellington City Council/Supplied
Araheke, bottom right, is a new Wellington City Council housing complex made up of nine passive houses.
The new council development, located on Harrison St, was first proposed when the previous one-bedroom council flats in Brooklyn were found to be earthquake prone. Work started on the houses two years ago.
The council’s Te Kāinga affordable central city apartments also expanded this week, with 74 new apartments on Willis St opening to tenants at the end of the month.
There are now 180 Te Kāinga rental apartments in the central city, which the council offers for below market rent.
The applications for these rentals are prioritised for people working in the public sector, public transport, hospitality, tourism, healthcare, education, Māori organisations, the arts, and start-ups.
