Worker housing proposed

ACCOMMODATION for an influx of outoftown construction workers for the new Dunedin Hospital will be built in a beachside suburb if a resource consent application is approved.

The Dunedin City Council is currently accepting submissions on the application by Christchurch company GK Accommodation Ltd to build 46 onebedroom units at the former Brighton Caravan Park.

Construction workers would be moving to the city on a semipermanent basis for eight years or more, the application stated.

‘‘The result of the new Dunedin Hospital construction project is that a significant pool of construction workers will be from outside of Dunedin, and the corresponding need for worker accommodation,’’ it said.

Many would be working for large firms and ‘‘flyin flyout’’ arrangements were predicted.

The application seeks to use the 10,081sq m site, home to nearly 20 people when it was sold last year, for residential activity once again.

The 46 units would be transportable and would house one person each, with a 3m by 6m design containing sleeping, living, cooking and bathroom facilities.

Shared facilities, such as 13 car parks and laundry services were also included in the proposal.

The proposal runs above maximum density limits, but the application argued this was a technicality, as the plan would mean more buildings, but fewer people than building limits provided for.

‘‘The proposal is the residential use of residentially zoned land, albeit not in a form anticipated.’’

The title allowed a density of 20 residential units, which at 3.5 people per unit would result in 70 people on site, the application said.

As a caravan park, the site’s maximum capacity was 47.5 people.

‘‘The consented environment provides for an expected occupancy of almost 50 people.’’

Plans to mitigate any effects included an onsite manager whose contact details would be displayed at the site entrance, the provision that units would not be rented or leased separately, and a layout preventing large groups from congregating.

The application argued against public and limited notification, stating there was nothing exceptional or unusual about it.

‘‘The offered conditions of consent assist with the mitigation of effects, and overall, the proposal is assessed as having less than minor effects to the surrounding properties, while providing beneficial effects.’’

Saddle Hill Community Board chairman Scott Weatherall said the proposal could be beneficial, as those living in the units would use nearby shops and ‘‘put money back into our community’’.

The community board would make a submission if there was ‘‘a firm direction’’ from the community.

Community information evenings should be held by the developer to keep people informed as there had not been any communication so far, he said.

‘‘I don’t think the community would be against what they’re aiming to do as long as they understand what the process is, and what the concept is, and what the end result might be.’’

Submissions close on September 30.

SIGNIFICANT costcutting proposals at the new Dunedin Hospital could lead to protests in city streets, Dunedin Mayor Aaron Hawkins says.

Bed numbers, operating theatres and even entire wards could be dropped from the plans for the new hospital’s inpatient building as the Ministry of Health reviews its design amid inflationary pressures and rapidly escalating construction costs, the Otago Daily Times reported on Saturday.

Many of the proposed costcutting measures had been vigorously opposed by concerned medical staff, the ODT report said.

Yesterday, Mr Hawkins said any proposed change of the scale suggested in the report would be ‘‘absolutely intolerable’’.

He was not surprised aspects of the project were being reviewed.

He pointed to the Dunedin City Council’s Dunedin Hospital SOS campaign several years ago, which had two goals — ‘‘save our site’’ and ‘‘save our services’’.

The first goal was achieved by the commitment from the Government to build the new Dunedin Hospital in the city centre, he said.

The second objective had also seemed on solid ground given the updates the council had received, ‘‘which makes the story on Saturday morning so concerning’’.

‘‘If the proposed changes are anything like what is mentioned in the article, that would be absolutely intolerable,’’ Mr Hawkins said.

In 2010, about 10,000 people marched through the streets in support of neurological services.

More recently, more than 6000 people supported the campaign to rebuild the hospital in the city centre, he said.

‘‘We know that people in Dunedin are prepared to organise in support of the public health system,’’ Mr Hawkins said.

It was the responsibility of the Government to provide a hospital Dunedin and the wider Otago region deserved, he said.

He did not believe the situation had reached crisis point yet, but ‘‘there are plenty of options available for us to let Government know that we won’t accept a secondrate hospital’’.

He had raised his concerns with Dunedin Hospital local advisory group chairman Pete Hodgson and expected they would be passed on to those overseeing the project, he said.

Mr Hodgson declined to comment yesterday.

Dunedin Labour MP and former health minister Dr David Clark said he had seen no documentation to suggest there would be further service cuts to the hospital.

He believed every major project was being looked at for budget constraints during the present ‘‘highinflation climate’’ but did not believe cuts were necessary.

Dr Clark said he would be watching the project to ensure Dunedin residents got the hospital they needed and deserved.

The statement provided by Dr Clark was in line with recent statements from Health Minister Andrew Little.

Mr Little was unavailable to comment yesterday, but a spokeswoman reiterated his statement reported on Saturday.

‘‘As I said last time, every major building project in the hospital system has been asked to look carefully at their costs, because in the current climate we expect cost escalation.

‘‘In relation to the new Dunedin Hospital I have received no advice about proposed changes to the scope or scale of that project.’’

Last year, the budget for the new hospital was increased to $1.47 billion, and Mr Little acknowledged it might need to be increased again due to the spiralling cost of building supplies — a factor which was not present when what was originally a $1.2 billion budget was set.

A graphic shown at a recent healthcare conference said the budget was now $1.7 billion, a figure Mr Little has not commented on.