West Auckland family fighting Auckland Council over being denied storm recovery funds
Stephanie and Brendon Deacon and their two children, aged 5 and 7.
- A West Auckland family is confused why their home is considered safe yet nine neighbouring properties are being demolished.
- Auckland Council categorised the Deacon’s home as Category 1, denying them access to storm recovery funds.
- The Deacons have engaged a lawyer and requested a review, citing extensive expert assessments.
A West Auckland family cannot fathom how nine neighbouring properties are being demolished after being deemed uninhabitable following last year’s floods ... but their house is not.
Stephanie and Brendon Deacon say there is no sensible reason to differentiate their family home at Pinotage Place from neighbouring houses, and engaged a lawyer who says Auckland Council’s decision is illogical.
The council has evaluated their home as Category 1, which means it doesn’t qualify for financial assistance from the joint Council-Government’s $2 billion storm recovery fund.
The council has deemed neighbouring houses as Category 3, which means there is ‘an intolerable risk to life’ from future storms and owners are eligible for a buyout and removal.
Craig Hobbs, the council’s head of natural and built environment, said the council is working with the Deacons to understand their concerns.
“They have sought a review of their category under the council’s dispute resolution framework, which is the appropriate avenue for homeowners to dispute categorisation decisions.
“We have commissioned further assessments and will continue to work through this process in good faith,” he said.
The Deacons said at a meeting on November 6, the council said it would engage a surveyor and structural engineer to carry out further assessments and the report should be available in about three weeks.
The Deacons have not heard back.
“When we met with the council team at our house in early November, we talked about how upset and panicky the children become when it rains heavily.
“We have presented extensive assessments and reports from appropriately qualified experts to the council, and they are continuing to put their heads in the sand, or rather the mud.
“We have 2m deep water around us when it rains heavily, a four-wheel drive vehicle was dumped near our property by the floods in 2023 and still the council refuses to accept our reports.
“During flooding, we have no power, no running water and no sewage,” said Brendon, whose property also experienced extreme flooding in August 2021.
The couple said a house that has protected the family home from floodwater debris is amongst those being demolished.
The Deacon’s lawyer, Grant Shand, said there is no sensible reason to differentiate this young family and their home, from the neighbouring houses.
“There is a risk to life here. Just outside the door of the house, the water is upwards of 2 metres deep in flood, and the house is unstable. The Deacon’s categorisation is illogical,” he said.
Shand said flooding in the area has increased since the council approved the adjacent New World subdivision and the council must take responsibility for this.
Hobbs said the categorisation approach is applied fairly and consistently across all homes that opted into the council’s programme.
“The risk will vary from home to home depending on a property’s topography, how close they are to flooding or slip sources, and their floor level.
“Because of this, we will see different categories between neighbours, and even between units,” he said.
Asked specifically about the Deacon’s case, Hobbs said their home was given Category 1 status, which is where there is no intolerable risk to life.
“They requested a review of this category which is under way, along with further assessments,” he said.
Said Brendon: “All we want is our lives back.”
Sign up to The Daily H, a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.