Tourists keep homeless out
Nelson’s housing market has been notoriously tight for a long time – but with the return of international tourists, some moteliers are choosing not to host emergency accommodation or Housing First clients.
The Male Room drop-in centre manager Louis Chapman said the facility had its busiest day ever last week, with 56 people through the doors.
‘‘It’s far from your typical homeless people that are struggling to get houses at the moment,’’ Chapman said. ‘‘It’s now gone to people who are working full time, families, mothers, [and] kids.’’
And there were vulnerable men and women living in tents.
Chapman kept an eye on rentals in the area on Trade Me and said they had declined quite rapidly over the last few months.
He wondered if those displaced by the August floods were getting preferential treatment.
The emptying of long termers in tourist accommodation was a ‘‘common theme’’ every year, he said, from November through to February, particularly in the backpacker market and campgrounds, who’d ‘‘prefer to have international tourists who are far more likely to spend money at the bars downstairs’’.
In general, owners preferred having people pay nightly rather than weekly rates over the summer period, Chapman said.
The Motueka Garden Motel manager Vince Bloomfield said from the start of the pandemic, they had taken in a number of people, some of whom had been living rough.
‘‘Some of them were good, some of them weren’t,’’ Bloomfield said.
Some drank, or smoked weed, or brought more people around than they were supposed to, he said. Bloomfield said the town used to have eight or nine hotels – but one was bought by Talley’s, and another was bought by growers to accommodate seasonal workers. There were now four, he said.
The Motueka Garden wasn’t in a position to offer emergency accommodation any more – they were just too busy and too full, he said.
Overseas tourists were coming back and the hotel was going to be receiving Dutch tour groups for the next 16 weeks.
Peter Mellor, owner of the Balmoral Motel in Ta¯hunanui, had chosen to continue putting a roof over the head of the homeless via a contract with the Housing First programme.
With a rent bill of $10,000 a month, when tourism evaporated in the wake of the pandemic and lockdowns, the guaranteed income saved them from potential bankruptcy.
But they also felt they had a role to play in the community – the ‘‘social justice issue is always on our minds’’.
Balmoral Motel had a contract extending until next June – after that, it would depend what was on offer, Mellor said.
It was guaranteed income, but it had its moments, he said. Many of the clients had dependencies or mental health issues, he said, but they were ‘‘very patient’’ with them.
Nelson, Marlborough and West Coast regional commissioner Craig Churchill said they were aware of the potential for pressure on motel demand with the border reopening and tourists returning.
‘‘We expect availability to tighten up over summer, as it traditionally does in Nelson with more events in town,’’ he said.
Emergency housing wasn’t their first option – but was a last resort, he said.
There were a range of measures to help, he said, such as financial support to help people stay with family or friends, help with rent if they were behind, help with paying a bond for a new property, help with negotiating with landlords to retain their tenancy, exploring accommodation options, or helping them into transitional housing.
‘‘Demand for emergency housing is a symptom of the wider issue of a lack of affordable housing across Aotearoa.
‘‘That is why there is a major programme of work under way across government, aimed at increasing the supply of public housing and improving housing affordability and supply.’’