Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei Properties starts first 51 of 350 homes on ex-Unitec land
Construction is about to begin on the first 51 townhouses at Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei Properties’ land at Ōwāiraka Mt Albert, as part of a wider 4000-home residential development.
Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei Trust deputy chairman Ngarimu Blair said that entity would develop 350 new homes at Te Kukūnga Waka precinct.
Cottee Parker architects designed the first 51 places, which G.J. Gardner is now starting to build, he said.
Those will be two-, three- and four-bedroom townhouses around a pocket park, all called Te Punga, which Blair said evoked the anchor of voyaging traditions because punga means anchor.
The first townhouses are expected to be sold later next year, he said.
At least 4000 new homes are to be built within the Te Kukūnga Waka precinct.
The precinct is on ex-Unitec land, which was part of a Treaty of Waitangi settlement with three Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland rōpū (groups).
That will cover 39.7ha.
Blair said the development also included significant infrastructure upgrades to benefit the wider Mount Albert community:
- Developing 1.2m-diameter storm water pipes at the development for new homes and to cut flooding in the area.
- Building a new wastewater line with Watercare to protect Te Auaunga Oakley Creek from pollution and overflow.
Grant Kemble, CEO of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei Whai Rawa, said the housing project met that entity’s commercial strategy.
“Te Punga is designed to generate income from our assets and strengthen our financial position,” Kemble said.
Te Punga was an ambitious project that would be carried out over a decade, spanning nine stages, he said.
Three Tāmaki Makaurau rōpū have housing plans beside the old Carrington Hospital.
These are:
- Marutūāhu: joined Ockham Residential to build the new Toi and Whetū apartment blocks, which opened in September.
- Ngāti Whātua: about to start the first 51 of 350 homes at Te Punga;
- Waiohua-Tāmaki and project partners.
The project is a large-scale urban development led by the three Tāmaki Makaurau rōpū of Marutūāhu, Ngāti Whātua and Waiohua-Tāmaki and their project partners.
That is being run by the Crown via Te Tūāpapa Kura Kāinga Ministry of Housing and Urban Development.
Collective Treaty of Waitangi redress provides the three rōpū with the development opportunity. This includes leading the detailed master planning, consenting and delivery of the new homes.
A reference master plan and strategic framework have been published to give an overview of the project, the ministry said.
In 2022, the Herald reported how Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei’s investment arm was then planning its first 38 homes at Carrington’s Unitec.
Property general manager Neil Donnelly said three years ago: “We’re weeks away from applying for resource consent for the first 38 on the southern part of the site near Woodward Rd.
“It will be all terraced housing. We’d plan to start building next year,” Donnelly said of the 4.1ha site.
Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei has a further 9ha it can build on there, so it has much bigger plans, he said.
Construction started on the site two years ago. Civil works began there in 2023.
Vertical construction is about to begin. G.J. Gardiner has arrived at the site to get established.
A year ago, Ngāti Whātua opened Hawaiki, a $20 million-plus, 24-unit papa kāinga (village) sold exclusively to hapū members, where homes can only be onsold to about 7000 registered whānau members.
Kemble said a dawn karakia was held at the new Ōrākei estate on the Kupe St/Hawaiki St corner last December.
“These homes are only for hapū and can only be resold to hapū,” Kemble said, relating how some banks initially expressed unwillingness to loan but BNZ and Westpac agreed.
Funding from Te Tūāpapa Kura Kāinga Ministry of Housing and Urban Development’s Māori infrastructure fund and progressive home ownership fund assisted hapū members into home ownership.
Anne Gibson has been the Herald‘s property editor for 25 years, written books and covered property extensively here and overseas.
- Stay ahead with the latest market moves, corporate updates, and economic insights by subscribing to our Business newsletter – your essential weekly round-up of all the business news you need.