The hunt to find a new home
About a dozen Wellington community organisations that deal with some of society’s most vulnerable people may have to find new homes as the building they occupy is earmarked for apartments.
Tenants in Southmark House were informed of the decision about the future of the Willis St building late last year.
The building, which is fronted by the Salvation Army shop, is home to community-based groups and NGOs, such as the Sexual Abuse Prevention Network, Community Housing, agencies that work with prisoners and the criminal justice system, refugees, chaplaincy services, Amnesty International and the Mental Health Foundation.
Although most still had leases, some said they felt compelled to leave and were worried trying to stay might lead to rent increases.
However, yesterday, family of building owner, Ian Cassels, said that conversion work had been paused and there was no hurry – but serious repair work needed to be done on the windows and there were options for remaining tenants.
Developer Alex Cassels said no tenants were being forced to do anything. ‘‘While our long-term goal was to turn it into affordable housing, the building is currently commercially tenanted and we are committed to operating it as such.
‘‘Right now, we are focusing on doing some critical window repairs for Southmark House, so any tenant who wants to stay longer can do so . . .’’
But the news was too late for those that had left and others that were in negotiations.
A number were still searching to find new homes amid low vacancy rates after the 2016 Kaiko¯ura earthquake meant office space was at an all-time low.
The market rate for office rentals has also increased, meaning rent subsidies for agencies such as Wellington Rape Crisis were not enough.
Agency manager Kyla Rayner said a big chunk of funding went to landlords and she didn’t want to choose between a social worker or rent.
She was struggling to find a building with affordable rent that suited the needs of the agency.
‘‘We are in a really hard place at the moment, it is proving quite difficult.’’
The Sexual Abuse Prevention Network works closely with the agency and would like to move with it. General manager Fiona McNamara said: ‘‘There was a sense of being moved on . . . we were made to feel unwelcome, it’s not a great place to be.’’
JustSpeak director Tania Sawicki Mead said moving was an expensive process for the Robson Hanan Trust.
It had now set up a shared working space for NGOs on Webb St, which it was fundraising to fit out. The trust was joined by ChangeMakers Refugee Forum, which had also been based at Southmark. At least three other NGOs from the Willis St location had pooled their resources and found a place together, she said.
‘‘We felt pressure to get out . . . there was a lot of ambiguity. It was a confusing process.’’
Not-for-profit organisation Emerge Supported Employment Trust, which provides transition services for people with disabilities, moved after 12 years and will now be based at the Community Connections Office in Johnsonville.
Developer Ian Cassels told Stuff last month he wanted to build affordable apartments as soon as possible and insisted he was not kicking tenants out. They would gradually move out.
Tenants now could relocate to another Cassels CBD property, relocate elsewhere with a donation from The Wellington Company to compensate for the early release from the lease or remain in the building while the repairs happen.