Today we picked up our trailer which has had a custom made cage fitted. We can now rest assured no tools will fly off and can transport bulk materials or rubbish. We moved the tool box slightly forward also and bolted it down permanently.
We now have a work van on loan for a few months. This has plenty of room and is great for going to light jobs where the trailer is not required.
Friday, 30 September 2011
Tuesday, 27 September 2011
Day 215 - Quakes expose fissures in society
From the Cape Argus
September 20 2011 at 12:00pm
ALONGSIDE the banks of the Avon in Christchurch, the first spring since the earthquakes has arrived. The pretty cherry blossom is out; daffodils, rhododendrons, magnolias and camellias of vibrant colours are bursting into life.
Nature is trying its best to cheer up Christchurch.
But the reality is different. Christchurch is a dead city, the centre cordoned off and quiet. The only sound is of the mechanical diggers tearing at the wreckage and the dump trucks carting away loads of rubble.
No one knows how long it will take Christchurch to rise from the ashes of the three earthquakes that devastated it, body and soul. At least 15 to 20 years is the best guess. Although there have been bigger quakes on the Richter scale, the second one to hit the Canterbury region in February is considered the most vicious in history.
“You could hear the earth roaring, it was a cascade of noise that seemed to go on forever. You felt the whole ground lift like a wave,” a resident told me.
But perhaps the saddest thing, even allowing for the 181 deaths and the loss of property and ruined lives, is the psychological aftermath. The Canterbury earthquake has forced its people to look inwards at themselves, their lives and their shattered city.
“Christchurch is studying itself and it does not like what it is seeing” said one local.
Bitter in-fighting has replaced the initial shock and grief. Cantabrian has turned on Cantabrian; there has been looting and now burglaries, too. The anger has focused on both the corporate world and local politicians who between them sanctioned ludicrous building projects in areas such as wetlands which scientists had warned for years should never be built upon.
Not for nothing, it seems, did the Maori call Christchurch “the shaky place”. Even now, geologists warn there is still an 80 percent chance of another severe quake.
But the invective has spread among residents, too. “This is now a divided city; there is huge anger coming out,” one told me. “It is east against west. It is people who have lost almost everything against others who are unaffected and just don’t care.”
Years of campaigns to prevent housing on former swamp areas were ignored by the politicians. They succumbed to the developers’ entreaties and sanctioned building.
Thus, as Christchurch struggles to come to terms with the enormity of the task it has been handed by nature, it is estimated a colossal 12 000 houses will have to be demolished. Most of the city centre is being razed.
A tour of the city and its suburbs is a journey into gloom.
On a window ledge inside the Bench Café in Durham Street North, in the heart of the city, lies a copy of The Press, the Christchurch daily. Dated Tuesday, February 22, the front-page headline is: “Teacher quits after affair with student”.
It is a reminder of the day Christchurch was all but destroyed by the third of the quakes that struck the region over nine months.
At nearby Hemingway Fine Wines, incongruously, full bottles of champagne remain undamaged and untouched.
Today, the only activity in the city centre is the business of demolition. Hotels like the Grand Chancellor, Crowne Plaza (where the South African rugby team used to stay) and Copthorne are doomed, the town hall and convention centre likewise. Throughout the city, deserted buildings, commercial and private, await demolition.
In the eastern suburbs you find regions where a death sentence has been passed on the entire community. In some cases, no damage is discernible to the naked eye. But the shifting ground has inflicted widespread devastation.
With great fissures in the ground and destruction everywhere to roads and properties, complete streets are earmarked for demolition.
In the meantime, some residents who have remained in wrecked streets are still without water after seven months, are still using portable toilets in the road.
Yet most areas on the western side of the city are quite unaffected.
Nature’s unexplained division has led to bitter disputes between people.
David Tattle is 67 years old and had created a world to be envied. A successful deep sea diver, Tattle was living the good life: a beautiful home on a quiet lane beside the banks of the Avon, six boats in a huge building at the end of his one-acre plot and a pony in the garden.
But his life was changed forever in just nine months. In the wake of the first quake last September, he sanctioned repair work and improvements on his home worth about NZ$100 000 (R615 143). The builders were barely finished when the next quake struck.
Today, Tattle’s house is condemned. The river close to his front garden is polluted by sewage. His wife has left him and the home he considered worth $1.2 million has been valued at $770 000.
“I have seriously thought of committing suicide because I can’t see how I am going to get out of this,” he tells me.
“No one outside Christchurch can understand how fighting against corporate insurance companies for what should be yours by rights, has just deepened the anguish.
“I lost six friends in the earthquake. There was enough pain and agony. But now we are having to suffer more.”
Tattle’s fears are shared by thousands of other Christchurch residents.
The future? “It’s bloody grim at the moment, I can tell you. Suddenly, from having everything, I have no future.
“I have lost a lot of friends because of the in-fighting. People are turning on each other and it is a sad sight.”
Tattle is correct. As if the plummeting quality of life in Christchurch were not enough – no beaches to visit due to pollution, no libraries, theatres, concerts, plays, rugby matches – copious numbers of letters to The Press have portrayed the protesters as “whingers”.
In the wake of the disaster, ordinary people have discovered the limits of liability demonstrated by the giants of the insurance world.
People who had insured both their property and land against earthquake damage, paying handsome premiums over a number of years, have found the insurers unwilling to meet the obligations to which policy holders assumed they were entitled.
Campaigners for this large group of people allege the New Zealand government buckled, like one of Christchurch’s many buildings, under a fierce collective argument raised by the insurers, many of which are based in Europe.
From initially appearing to assure householders they would be fully recompensed, the government has retreated, say these residents.
Thus, reduced payouts have been proposed that would leave them either forced to take out new mortgages to cover the additional money required to buy in unaffected, more expensive parts of the city, or leave Christchurch for good.
Estate agents in nearby Ashburton and Timaru already report growing business. One man’s misfortune is another’s opportunity.
The other equally unpalatable choice is to accept a payment for their ruined properties based on rateable value. Government spin has portrayed the offer – sell the whole property based on its 2007 valuation, or just the land and then argue with insurance companies over the value of the house – as more than generous. But, as with most things that pass through the hands of politicians, the reality is a little different.
The Rev Michael Coleman has been thrust into this increasingly bitter moral argument by the pleas of ordinary Christchurch people to take up their cause. He finds himself trying to juggle people’s emotions and lives.
“I think there is a lot of anger coming out now. Bexley was marshland for decades, it should never have been built upon.
“But in the past 10 to 15 years property developers pushed hard to put housing on that land and the local councillors acquiesced. It has been disastrous. Pretty much every house built out there will have to go and because government values the land so low, people are getting very low offers.”
Coleman says the average value for sections in this area is between $68 000 and $110 000. But as he points out: “For those people to move anywhere else in Christchurch, especially on firm land, each section will cost them on average around $250 000. They just don’t have that money. That is why we have been fighting the government in the past few months.”
New Zealand is believed to have the highest level of insurance business in the world. Yet it has done many of Christchurch’s residents little good.
“It is in our culture to insure yet now the insurance companies are holding us to ransom, they’re backing out all over the place” says Coleman.
“They’re saying that even where homes are repairable, they won’t pay full replacement value, which means people have to accept the government’s offer based on rateable value. But a rateable value is not an exact figure for the value of your home.
“These people seem to have one of three choices: be burned by the insurance companies, burned by the government or burned by the distorted market.”
John Hallinan, a registered valuer in the city for 40 years, has said the difference between rateable value and actual retail value could be as much as 40 percent. For example, resident David Haywood paid $420 000 for his home yet the rateable value has been set at $285 000.
Coleman is a calm, logical man. Yet he concedes: “We are looking at huge amounts of ruined lives. I don’t know what people are going to do. Retired folk can’t get a mortgage to make up the financial shortfall. Most people will need about $150 000 extra to buy anything on better land.
“The government has looked at none of the implications for people. Theirs is a one-dimensional response because they won’t enter the market to make new land available at reasonable prices. And they won’t allow neutral valuations. There is no consideration for the implications on people’s lives and there is no transparency at all.”
The likeliest winners out of all this are the insurance companies, which are increasing premiums for new policies, and the banks, which will finance the unwanted mortgages many people will have to take out with negative equity now a significant factor.
Coleman adds: “Twelve-thousand people is an enormous number to kick off their land and give them no assistance to move somewhere else. There is massive stress within these people. They feel the government has abandoned them.”
Aside from this fight, certain facts are inescapable. Long-time Christchurch resident Barbara O’Brien points to the design of many CBD buildings that folded like a pack of cards in the quake.
“Many were shoddy buildings, the worst of 1960s design where everything was open-plan. All the downstairs was open which meant there was nothing holding it up, so the rest of the building collapsed into that vacuum. Some of the buildings had been modernised and key architectural features removed,” she alleges.
O’Brien says the rest of New Zealand needs to understand the extent of the damage and the impact on the economy for years. “I would really encourage people to come here and look. I don’t think they have any idea what it is really like.
“But they are going to be affected economically by this. As for Christchurch, this is a deeply unhappy society. People are frightened of the future.”
There are a few slivers of light and hope. Philip Aldridge, chief executive of the Court Theatre, is anticipating reopening on December 10 and a special concert by Placido Domingo on October 6 to help raise funds for the city.
Aldridge has just returned from London where he persuaded the legendary Maggie Smith to become the patron of the theatre’s appeal fund.
Had he not returned from Britain with a heavy heart when he saw once more the widespread damage to Christchurch?
“Yes. We were incredibly despondent for a few days after it happened. But then we felt we had to do something, rebuild and inject hope and life. We are going to be the first institution in the city to rebuild so it has become totemic.
“I live in Christchurch and I know what people are suffering. People have lost lives, homes and jobs.
But a cultural infrastructure is imperative to the life of the city. We hope we can, in some small way, help lift spirits by starting again.”
With savage irony, the title of the first play that will be staged in the building is leading New Zealand playwright Roger Hall’s Short Cut to Happiness.
If only the whole city could stumble upon such a path.
September 20 2011 at 12:00pm
ALONGSIDE the banks of the Avon in Christchurch, the first spring since the earthquakes has arrived. The pretty cherry blossom is out; daffodils, rhododendrons, magnolias and camellias of vibrant colours are bursting into life.
Nature is trying its best to cheer up Christchurch.
But the reality is different. Christchurch is a dead city, the centre cordoned off and quiet. The only sound is of the mechanical diggers tearing at the wreckage and the dump trucks carting away loads of rubble.
No one knows how long it will take Christchurch to rise from the ashes of the three earthquakes that devastated it, body and soul. At least 15 to 20 years is the best guess. Although there have been bigger quakes on the Richter scale, the second one to hit the Canterbury region in February is considered the most vicious in history.
“You could hear the earth roaring, it was a cascade of noise that seemed to go on forever. You felt the whole ground lift like a wave,” a resident told me.
But perhaps the saddest thing, even allowing for the 181 deaths and the loss of property and ruined lives, is the psychological aftermath. The Canterbury earthquake has forced its people to look inwards at themselves, their lives and their shattered city.
“Christchurch is studying itself and it does not like what it is seeing” said one local.
Bitter in-fighting has replaced the initial shock and grief. Cantabrian has turned on Cantabrian; there has been looting and now burglaries, too. The anger has focused on both the corporate world and local politicians who between them sanctioned ludicrous building projects in areas such as wetlands which scientists had warned for years should never be built upon.
Not for nothing, it seems, did the Maori call Christchurch “the shaky place”. Even now, geologists warn there is still an 80 percent chance of another severe quake.
But the invective has spread among residents, too. “This is now a divided city; there is huge anger coming out,” one told me. “It is east against west. It is people who have lost almost everything against others who are unaffected and just don’t care.”
Years of campaigns to prevent housing on former swamp areas were ignored by the politicians. They succumbed to the developers’ entreaties and sanctioned building.
Thus, as Christchurch struggles to come to terms with the enormity of the task it has been handed by nature, it is estimated a colossal 12 000 houses will have to be demolished. Most of the city centre is being razed.
A tour of the city and its suburbs is a journey into gloom.
On a window ledge inside the Bench Café in Durham Street North, in the heart of the city, lies a copy of The Press, the Christchurch daily. Dated Tuesday, February 22, the front-page headline is: “Teacher quits after affair with student”.
It is a reminder of the day Christchurch was all but destroyed by the third of the quakes that struck the region over nine months.
At nearby Hemingway Fine Wines, incongruously, full bottles of champagne remain undamaged and untouched.
Today, the only activity in the city centre is the business of demolition. Hotels like the Grand Chancellor, Crowne Plaza (where the South African rugby team used to stay) and Copthorne are doomed, the town hall and convention centre likewise. Throughout the city, deserted buildings, commercial and private, await demolition.
In the eastern suburbs you find regions where a death sentence has been passed on the entire community. In some cases, no damage is discernible to the naked eye. But the shifting ground has inflicted widespread devastation.
With great fissures in the ground and destruction everywhere to roads and properties, complete streets are earmarked for demolition.
In the meantime, some residents who have remained in wrecked streets are still without water after seven months, are still using portable toilets in the road.
Yet most areas on the western side of the city are quite unaffected.
Nature’s unexplained division has led to bitter disputes between people.
David Tattle is 67 years old and had created a world to be envied. A successful deep sea diver, Tattle was living the good life: a beautiful home on a quiet lane beside the banks of the Avon, six boats in a huge building at the end of his one-acre plot and a pony in the garden.
But his life was changed forever in just nine months. In the wake of the first quake last September, he sanctioned repair work and improvements on his home worth about NZ$100 000 (R615 143). The builders were barely finished when the next quake struck.
Today, Tattle’s house is condemned. The river close to his front garden is polluted by sewage. His wife has left him and the home he considered worth $1.2 million has been valued at $770 000.
“I have seriously thought of committing suicide because I can’t see how I am going to get out of this,” he tells me.
“No one outside Christchurch can understand how fighting against corporate insurance companies for what should be yours by rights, has just deepened the anguish.
“I lost six friends in the earthquake. There was enough pain and agony. But now we are having to suffer more.”
Tattle’s fears are shared by thousands of other Christchurch residents.
The future? “It’s bloody grim at the moment, I can tell you. Suddenly, from having everything, I have no future.
“I have lost a lot of friends because of the in-fighting. People are turning on each other and it is a sad sight.”
Tattle is correct. As if the plummeting quality of life in Christchurch were not enough – no beaches to visit due to pollution, no libraries, theatres, concerts, plays, rugby matches – copious numbers of letters to The Press have portrayed the protesters as “whingers”.
In the wake of the disaster, ordinary people have discovered the limits of liability demonstrated by the giants of the insurance world.
People who had insured both their property and land against earthquake damage, paying handsome premiums over a number of years, have found the insurers unwilling to meet the obligations to which policy holders assumed they were entitled.
Campaigners for this large group of people allege the New Zealand government buckled, like one of Christchurch’s many buildings, under a fierce collective argument raised by the insurers, many of which are based in Europe.
From initially appearing to assure householders they would be fully recompensed, the government has retreated, say these residents.
Thus, reduced payouts have been proposed that would leave them either forced to take out new mortgages to cover the additional money required to buy in unaffected, more expensive parts of the city, or leave Christchurch for good.
Estate agents in nearby Ashburton and Timaru already report growing business. One man’s misfortune is another’s opportunity.
The other equally unpalatable choice is to accept a payment for their ruined properties based on rateable value. Government spin has portrayed the offer – sell the whole property based on its 2007 valuation, or just the land and then argue with insurance companies over the value of the house – as more than generous. But, as with most things that pass through the hands of politicians, the reality is a little different.
The Rev Michael Coleman has been thrust into this increasingly bitter moral argument by the pleas of ordinary Christchurch people to take up their cause. He finds himself trying to juggle people’s emotions and lives.
“I think there is a lot of anger coming out now. Bexley was marshland for decades, it should never have been built upon.
“But in the past 10 to 15 years property developers pushed hard to put housing on that land and the local councillors acquiesced. It has been disastrous. Pretty much every house built out there will have to go and because government values the land so low, people are getting very low offers.”
Coleman says the average value for sections in this area is between $68 000 and $110 000. But as he points out: “For those people to move anywhere else in Christchurch, especially on firm land, each section will cost them on average around $250 000. They just don’t have that money. That is why we have been fighting the government in the past few months.”
New Zealand is believed to have the highest level of insurance business in the world. Yet it has done many of Christchurch’s residents little good.
“It is in our culture to insure yet now the insurance companies are holding us to ransom, they’re backing out all over the place” says Coleman.
“They’re saying that even where homes are repairable, they won’t pay full replacement value, which means people have to accept the government’s offer based on rateable value. But a rateable value is not an exact figure for the value of your home.
“These people seem to have one of three choices: be burned by the insurance companies, burned by the government or burned by the distorted market.”
John Hallinan, a registered valuer in the city for 40 years, has said the difference between rateable value and actual retail value could be as much as 40 percent. For example, resident David Haywood paid $420 000 for his home yet the rateable value has been set at $285 000.
Coleman is a calm, logical man. Yet he concedes: “We are looking at huge amounts of ruined lives. I don’t know what people are going to do. Retired folk can’t get a mortgage to make up the financial shortfall. Most people will need about $150 000 extra to buy anything on better land.
“The government has looked at none of the implications for people. Theirs is a one-dimensional response because they won’t enter the market to make new land available at reasonable prices. And they won’t allow neutral valuations. There is no consideration for the implications on people’s lives and there is no transparency at all.”
The likeliest winners out of all this are the insurance companies, which are increasing premiums for new policies, and the banks, which will finance the unwanted mortgages many people will have to take out with negative equity now a significant factor.
Coleman adds: “Twelve-thousand people is an enormous number to kick off their land and give them no assistance to move somewhere else. There is massive stress within these people. They feel the government has abandoned them.”
Aside from this fight, certain facts are inescapable. Long-time Christchurch resident Barbara O’Brien points to the design of many CBD buildings that folded like a pack of cards in the quake.
“Many were shoddy buildings, the worst of 1960s design where everything was open-plan. All the downstairs was open which meant there was nothing holding it up, so the rest of the building collapsed into that vacuum. Some of the buildings had been modernised and key architectural features removed,” she alleges.
O’Brien says the rest of New Zealand needs to understand the extent of the damage and the impact on the economy for years. “I would really encourage people to come here and look. I don’t think they have any idea what it is really like.
“But they are going to be affected economically by this. As for Christchurch, this is a deeply unhappy society. People are frightened of the future.”
There are a few slivers of light and hope. Philip Aldridge, chief executive of the Court Theatre, is anticipating reopening on December 10 and a special concert by Placido Domingo on October 6 to help raise funds for the city.
Aldridge has just returned from London where he persuaded the legendary Maggie Smith to become the patron of the theatre’s appeal fund.
Had he not returned from Britain with a heavy heart when he saw once more the widespread damage to Christchurch?
“Yes. We were incredibly despondent for a few days after it happened. But then we felt we had to do something, rebuild and inject hope and life. We are going to be the first institution in the city to rebuild so it has become totemic.
“I live in Christchurch and I know what people are suffering. People have lost lives, homes and jobs.
But a cultural infrastructure is imperative to the life of the city. We hope we can, in some small way, help lift spirits by starting again.”
With savage irony, the title of the first play that will be staged in the building is leading New Zealand playwright Roger Hall’s Short Cut to Happiness.
If only the whole city could stumble upon such a path.
Monday, 26 September 2011
Day 214 - Low-cost homeowners losing out
Many homes in Kaiapoi have been red-zoned because their rateable value is too low, residents were told at a rally in the town yesterday.
The Rev Mike Coleman said the Government looked at a property's rateable value, then calculated how much it was going to cost to remediate the land and if the cost to fix the land was more than the property was worth, the land was zoned red.
Properties in the more expensive suburbs on the Port Hills and in Fendalton would never go red because it would cost the Government too much money, he said.
Up to 200 people attended the rally at Kaiapoi's band rotunda and most of them were living in the red zone.
Some 860 properties in Kaiapoi and a further 80 in Pines Beach were classified red last month by the Government. Residents have been given the choice of accepting one of two Government options to buy their homes, based on the 2008 Waimakariri District Council rating valuation.
Coleman accused the Government of turning its back on the people of the region and he wanted people to come together to fight the Government's decisions.
"If we don't, the Government's going to run roughshod over thousands of homes. People are going to be affected by debt for years."
Christchurch lawyer Brent Selwyn told residents they should not take any action until they had explored every avenue available to make sure they got everything entitled to them in their insurance policy.
"No-one should sign anything without the right advice," Selwyn said.
Pines Beach residents Zoe and Andrew Breward went to the rally to get some information about what was going on. They have three properties in Pines Beach which were in the red zone and they were fighting the decision on their family home.
Shirley Cairns, who has a red-zoned home in Kaiapoi's Cass St and helped organise the rally with her husband Brent Cairns, said she was concerned about the impact the red-zone decisions would have on the community. "If 900 leave our community that's a huge skills drain and a huge brain drain."
Another rally would be held at the Wairoa Reserve in Bexley on Sunday, October 9, at 2pm.
Reprinted from The Press
29/9/2011
The Rev Mike Coleman said the Government looked at a property's rateable value, then calculated how much it was going to cost to remediate the land and if the cost to fix the land was more than the property was worth, the land was zoned red.
Properties in the more expensive suburbs on the Port Hills and in Fendalton would never go red because it would cost the Government too much money, he said.
Up to 200 people attended the rally at Kaiapoi's band rotunda and most of them were living in the red zone.
Some 860 properties in Kaiapoi and a further 80 in Pines Beach were classified red last month by the Government. Residents have been given the choice of accepting one of two Government options to buy their homes, based on the 2008 Waimakariri District Council rating valuation.
Coleman accused the Government of turning its back on the people of the region and he wanted people to come together to fight the Government's decisions.
"If we don't, the Government's going to run roughshod over thousands of homes. People are going to be affected by debt for years."
Christchurch lawyer Brent Selwyn told residents they should not take any action until they had explored every avenue available to make sure they got everything entitled to them in their insurance policy.
"No-one should sign anything without the right advice," Selwyn said.
Pines Beach residents Zoe and Andrew Breward went to the rally to get some information about what was going on. They have three properties in Pines Beach which were in the red zone and they were fighting the decision on their family home.
Shirley Cairns, who has a red-zoned home in Kaiapoi's Cass St and helped organise the rally with her husband Brent Cairns, said she was concerned about the impact the red-zone decisions would have on the community. "If 900 leave our community that's a huge skills drain and a huge brain drain."
Another rally would be held at the Wairoa Reserve in Bexley on Sunday, October 9, at 2pm.
Reprinted from The Press
29/9/2011
Saturday, 24 September 2011
Day 212 - Interior Touch-Ups
Today we worked on two houses which needed gib stopping work. One house needed a ceiling panel replaced after a chimney fell and punched through; the other was an interior wall section which had been damaged. Volunteers Tim and Michael were on hand to complete the task with gib stopping technique instruction being provided by Addington Action founder Mike.
Today we also had Chrissy accompanying us. Chrissy is a second-year photography student who has chosen volunteer groups as the subject of her current assignment. She took many snaps throughout the day (including the ones above) and even took a hands on approach helping us to position and screw in the ceiling panel. Thanks Chrissy we appreciate your efforts!
We now have a pause on work activities while our trailer has it's cage fabricated and fitted. We expect to be back and busy on Thursday or Friday.
Today we also had Chrissy accompanying us. Chrissy is a second-year photography student who has chosen volunteer groups as the subject of her current assignment. She took many snaps throughout the day (including the ones above) and even took a hands on approach helping us to position and screw in the ceiling panel. Thanks Chrissy we appreciate your efforts!
We now have a pause on work activities while our trailer has it's cage fabricated and fitted. We expect to be back and busy on Thursday or Friday.
Friday, 23 September 2011
Day 211 - Walton St
The crew is off today to start fixing a house in Walton St, Sydenham. There are 5 rooms to fix up. This place will need many visits.
Tony McDonald led the crew, Mike was the trainer, Matt 2 and Alex were the apprentices.
Tony McDonald led the crew, Mike was the trainer, Matt 2 and Alex were the apprentices.
Thursday, 22 September 2011
Day 210 - Habitat For Humanity
We spent a couple of hours this morning fitting the inside beading to a large four-pane window, which had been rebuilt due to wood rot and cracking. Putty and filler was used on the gaps and cracks and after about two days it will be ready for a final sand and paint.
After lunch we went across town to Linwood to meet up with the team from Habitat for Humanity. This NGO helps families to build and manage their own homes and has created a special team to work on disaster relief in Christchurch. They have kindly agreed to a co-operative partnership with Addington Action whereby people, information, resources and cups of tea will be shared between the two groups. Please check out their website:
http://www.habitat.org.nz/index.php/pi_pageid/253
We have also secured the use of a borrowed work van while we raise the funds for one of our own which will be a huge help in coordinating our efforts around town.
After lunch we went across town to Linwood to meet up with the team from Habitat for Humanity. This NGO helps families to build and manage their own homes and has created a special team to work on disaster relief in Christchurch. They have kindly agreed to a co-operative partnership with Addington Action whereby people, information, resources and cups of tea will be shared between the two groups. Please check out their website:
http://www.habitat.org.nz/index.php/pi_pageid/253
We have also secured the use of a borrowed work van while we raise the funds for one of our own which will be a huge help in coordinating our efforts around town.
Wednesday, 21 September 2011
Day 209 - fundraising for a work vehicle
Spent the day at a funding seminar in the morning and in meetings all afternoon to find a way to raise money to get a work vehicle.
The projects on the go at the moment need a work vehicle to provide free assistance to;
Fixing a house in Lincoln Rd tomorrow, Walton St on Friday and Somerfield St on Saturday.
The projects on the go at the moment need a work vehicle to provide free assistance to;
- Fix every uninsured home in Addington (for elderly, disabled and single parent families with young kids) before winter 2012.
- Establish vegetable gardens.
- Delivering food parcels to hungry families.
- Clearing quake rubble from sections.
Fixing a house in Lincoln Rd tomorrow, Walton St on Friday and Somerfield St on Saturday.
Tuesday, 20 September 2011
Day 208 - clearing back section
The job today between odd showers is cutting down some old trees, chopping them up, so that a back section is clear for a vege garden.
And using the new chainsaw - a Stihl !!!
The committee have discovered lots of places where old overgrown trees have been damaged in the quakes and need to be cleared away from houses. A good grunty chainsaw will do the trick!
And using the new chainsaw - a Stihl !!!
The committee have discovered lots of places where old overgrown trees have been damaged in the quakes and need to be cleared away from houses. A good grunty chainsaw will do the trick!
Monday, 19 September 2011
Day 207 - office setup
The weekend was also spent getting the office for Addington Action shipshape for the long-haul.
There was a good throwout and shifting furniture around to make the place efficient. Other volunteers will be coming into help with many tasks so we can get heaps done.
A car has been borrowed today till next Monday. The work crew will be going out most days this week, repairing uninsured homes. Lets hope the weather remembers to be nice!
There was a good throwout and shifting furniture around to make the place efficient. Other volunteers will be coming into help with many tasks so we can get heaps done.
A car has been borrowed today till next Monday. The work crew will be going out most days this week, repairing uninsured homes. Lets hope the weather remembers to be nice!
Sunday, 18 September 2011
Day 206 - pesky shower
The repair job today was sorting out the shower water temperature in an uninsured home in Kipling St Addington. The hot water cylinder fell over during the February quake, was put back but the water temperatures have never been the same.
The suspect was that the shower mixer needed a tweak. All good so far - but removing the shower mixer face plate showed no sign of a mixing unit. Unless its been very well hidden.
Whoever built this flat never designed it for easy maintenance. Will need to get a more experienced person in to figure out what to do next!
The suspect was that the shower mixer needed a tweak. All good so far - but removing the shower mixer face plate showed no sign of a mixing unit. Unless its been very well hidden.
Whoever built this flat never designed it for easy maintenance. Will need to get a more experienced person in to figure out what to do next!
Saturday, 17 September 2011
Day 205 - red-zone residents fight back
Copied from Storyboard.co.nz
Metro News reporter Marcus Gibbs looks at whether there is a tide of discontent rising among red-zone residents.
The first red zone payouts have been received, in a week in which has seen two protests with more in the planning.
Red-Zone Residents Fight Back from Metro News on Vimeo.
Metro News reporter Marcus Gibbs looks at whether there is a tide of discontent rising among red-zone residents.
The first red zone payouts have been received, in a week in which has seen two protests with more in the planning.
Friday, 16 September 2011
Day 204 - Laurie has an idea
Former Addington Action committee member Laurie Geddis visited today to discuss some fundraising ideas. Cheerful as usual, full of enthusiasm and rearing to go!.
A lot of working people in Christchurch are in big trouble and the big pots of money raised are not getting to these people.
There will be a meeting next week of the leaders of a number of groups who work closely together on the ground to see what can be organised.
Laurie is also using the Addington Action trailer tomorrow to shift a family into another home. The single mother spent weeks in hospital in an induced coma as a result of fungii and mould caused by liquifaction on her health. She is asthmatic, has twins under 5 and a 3 month year old.
A good use for the trailer!
A lot of working people in Christchurch are in big trouble and the big pots of money raised are not getting to these people.
There will be a meeting next week of the leaders of a number of groups who work closely together on the ground to see what can be organised.
Laurie is also using the Addington Action trailer tomorrow to shift a family into another home. The single mother spent weeks in hospital in an induced coma as a result of fungii and mould caused by liquifaction on her health. She is asthmatic, has twins under 5 and a 3 month year old.
A good use for the trailer!
Thursday, 15 September 2011
Day 203 - introduction to the Benefit Fact File
Lynette gave an excellent 1 hour introduction to the Benefit Fact File at an Addington Action training seminar today.
Many working people in Addington are not getting the assistance they are entitled to from WINZ.
People with reduced hours of work due to the effects of the quakes, are entitled to income top up so that they can feed their families and pay for rent and power. They are being turned away by WINZ staff and suffering unnecessarily.
Addington Action is going to make sure that situation does not continue by making sure everyone affected knows about their rights and how to confidently deal with government bureaucrats.
Many working people in Addington are not getting the assistance they are entitled to from WINZ.
People with reduced hours of work due to the effects of the quakes, are entitled to income top up so that they can feed their families and pay for rent and power. They are being turned away by WINZ staff and suffering unnecessarily.
Addington Action is going to make sure that situation does not continue by making sure everyone affected knows about their rights and how to confidently deal with government bureaucrats.
Wednesday, 14 September 2011
Day 202 - section clearing
Today's job was clearing a backyard of rubble and broken stuff and taking the lot to the tip.
The home was in Redruth St.
Sam Russell turned up with his trailer, and Michael, Matt 2 and Mike came in Matt 2's car with the Addington Action trailer.
The lady made a donation to help someone else. Thank you!
The home was in Redruth St.
Sam Russell turned up with his trailer, and Michael, Matt 2 and Mike came in Matt 2's car with the Addington Action trailer.
The lady made a donation to help someone else. Thank you!
Tuesday, 13 September 2011
Day 201 - more help with food bank
Dianne has taken over the job of picking up the weekly food parcels from me. Each week a van goes to 0800 Hungry in Bromley and picks up food parcels ordered for Addington people. Flo handles organising the distribution of the parcels by the street reps. My job is to write up the orders for each week.
Delegating is a great thing!
Delegating is a great thing!
Monday, 12 September 2011
Day 200 - nice suprise
I had just got back from giving a talk to U3A in Invercargill. A nice surprise was waiting in the letterbox - $1500 donation cheque from Southland for repairing more homes.
Many thanks!
Many thanks!
Sunday, 11 September 2011
Day 199 - successful Riverside Rally
This article was written by Lois Cairns and originally featured in the Sunday Star-Times
on Sunday, September 11th, 2011. The photograph shown here of the Red
Zone Rally in Richmond, Christchurch was taken by James Dann.
It can also be read on the Christchurch Earthquake Recovery Journal
Disgruntled homeowners in Christchurch’s residential red zone have held a mass protest rally today (Sunday, September 11th, 2011) in an attempt to persuade the government to rethink its offer for their quake-damaged properties.
The rally was organised by the Riverside Community Group, and was held on the riverbank just south of the Medway St bridge in the suburb of Richmond, where residents have voted to reject the government’s offer to purchase their properties for their 2007 rateable value until their concerns have been addressed.
“We need a collective response to highlight the issues – we’re not looking for a bail-out, we want fair play for red zone residents,” spokesman Mike Coleman said.
The group was worried that insurance companies were not honouring full replacement policies for homes that were due for demolition in the red zone and that there was no mechanism in place for reviewing the rateable values on which the government offers were based.
Residents also wanted the government to take more active measures to improve the availability and affordability of sections for new homes so they could relocate without losing equity or increasing their debt.
Coleman said there also needed to be certainty and clarity regarding the future use of red zone land.
“We would like to see the land become a permanent public reserve. This would give some peace to those having to leave the land, confidence for those in adjoining green zones and real impetus to the rebuild of the eastern suburbs.”
Expected to join the rally are red zone residents angered by the government’s decision not to release geotechnical data on individual properties or to introduce a review process.
“There are a lot of people in Brooklands, like in Pines Beach and Kairaki, and Kaiapoi too, who don’t want to move and are disputing the zoning,” Brooklands resident Stephen Bourke told The Press newspaper last week.
Some faced losing up to $150,000 if they accepted the government’s offer.
“The [government's] two options are not options. They’re just taking our land off us,” he said.
Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee is in Europe, meeting with reinsurers, but has defended the government’s package and indicated that no changes will be made.
He said previously that the government was taking steps to ensure affordable land was available for people in the red zone to purchase and it was also investigating the option of making land available for lease.
“There would be many in Christchurch and throughout New Zealand who would be pleased to receive an offer of the 2007 capital valuation of their property,” Brownlee said.
He warned that people who did not accept the government’s offer for their land and refused to move could eventually find themselves faced with a compulsory order to sell their property for its market value at the time.
He said those in the residential red zone would only be given access to geotechnical data on their homes once all properties in the region have been assessed.
But Christchurch Central MP Brendon Burns, who will be speaking at today’s rally, does not believe that is good enough.
“One of the things I will be talking about… is the right of people to know. Withholding land information after originally committing to release it all, cuts across people’s ability to make decisions about which land offer to accept,” he said.
It can also be read on the Christchurch Earthquake Recovery Journal
Disgruntled homeowners in Christchurch’s residential red zone have held a mass protest rally today (Sunday, September 11th, 2011) in an attempt to persuade the government to rethink its offer for their quake-damaged properties.
The rally was organised by the Riverside Community Group, and was held on the riverbank just south of the Medway St bridge in the suburb of Richmond, where residents have voted to reject the government’s offer to purchase their properties for their 2007 rateable value until their concerns have been addressed.
“We need a collective response to highlight the issues – we’re not looking for a bail-out, we want fair play for red zone residents,” spokesman Mike Coleman said.
The group was worried that insurance companies were not honouring full replacement policies for homes that were due for demolition in the red zone and that there was no mechanism in place for reviewing the rateable values on which the government offers were based.
Residents also wanted the government to take more active measures to improve the availability and affordability of sections for new homes so they could relocate without losing equity or increasing their debt.
Coleman said there also needed to be certainty and clarity regarding the future use of red zone land.
“We would like to see the land become a permanent public reserve. This would give some peace to those having to leave the land, confidence for those in adjoining green zones and real impetus to the rebuild of the eastern suburbs.”
Expected to join the rally are red zone residents angered by the government’s decision not to release geotechnical data on individual properties or to introduce a review process.
“There are a lot of people in Brooklands, like in Pines Beach and Kairaki, and Kaiapoi too, who don’t want to move and are disputing the zoning,” Brooklands resident Stephen Bourke told The Press newspaper last week.
Some faced losing up to $150,000 if they accepted the government’s offer.
“The [government's] two options are not options. They’re just taking our land off us,” he said.
Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee is in Europe, meeting with reinsurers, but has defended the government’s package and indicated that no changes will be made.
He said previously that the government was taking steps to ensure affordable land was available for people in the red zone to purchase and it was also investigating the option of making land available for lease.
“There would be many in Christchurch and throughout New Zealand who would be pleased to receive an offer of the 2007 capital valuation of their property,” Brownlee said.
He warned that people who did not accept the government’s offer for their land and refused to move could eventually find themselves faced with a compulsory order to sell their property for its market value at the time.
He said those in the residential red zone would only be given access to geotechnical data on their homes once all properties in the region have been assessed.
But Christchurch Central MP Brendon Burns, who will be speaking at today’s rally, does not believe that is good enough.
“One of the things I will be talking about… is the right of people to know. Withholding land information after originally committing to release it all, cuts across people’s ability to make decisions about which land offer to accept,” he said.
Friday, 9 September 2011
Day 197 - U3A
I was invited to give a talk today by U3A to an audience of 100 at the Windsor Anglican church hall in Invercargill.
It was great to be able to talk to such an interested audience about Addington Action and the experiences of community organising in response to the February quakes in Christchurch. I then got to cover the previous life experiences that equipped me for such a role. Public speaking sure helps get the old noggin in order!
It was great to be able to talk to such an interested audience about Addington Action and the experiences of community organising in response to the February quakes in Christchurch. I then got to cover the previous life experiences that equipped me for such a role. Public speaking sure helps get the old noggin in order!
Thursday, 8 September 2011
Day 196 - gift from New Brighton
Some nice people in New Brighton sent $200 to Addington Action to help with the repairs to uninsured homes.
Many thanks!
Many thanks!
Wednesday, 7 September 2011
Day 195 - organising repairs
Today, Paul and Helen Gailbraith from Habitat for Humanity visited to discuss how Habitat's and Addington Action's efforts could best compliment each other.
Paul, a builder with many years experience, is now Project Manager for the "Rebuild Christchurch" project.
Discussed were
Paul, a builder with many years experience, is now Project Manager for the "Rebuild Christchurch" project.
Discussed were
- Sharing resources
- Who is doing what
- Common criteria for providing assistance
- What lessons have been learned so far
Tuesday, 6 September 2011
Day 194 - more repairs for next week
There are no repairs this week. Instead the time is being spent sorting out the next lot of jobs which are in.
- Antigua St, Spreydon
- Ward St, Addington
- Parlane St, Addington
- Somerfield St, Spreydon
- Walton St, Sydenham
Monday, 5 September 2011
Day 193 - free vegetables this coming summer
After discussions with our CDHB contracts manager we are happy
to notify the community that our Community Garden Plots are NOW
AVAILABLE to all community members.
With the price of vegetable being at an all time high this is an opportunity for communities and whanau of all ethnicity and backgrounds to grow fresh vegetables for the table.
Wai-ora Trust has, for the past 3 years opened up its property to whanau and community groups to grow fresh vegetables as part of our Maori Community Action Plan. However as part of our Earthquake recovery strategy we are opening up this service to everyone.
We provide everything you need to succeed including:
All you need to do is:
While the vegetables are free we do ask for a small one off koha to cover the cost of a sign for your plot as well as some tea and coffee for your group to enjoy.
This has been a hugely beneficial service over the past 3 years with hundreds of individuals harvesting corn, cabbage, potatoes, lettuces, beetroot, tomatoes and numerous other veggies to take home to their Community groups and whanau.
It has helped young mothers reduce their shopping bill, community groups feed their clients and whanau teach their children about the importance of gardening and healthy eating. Just as importantly it has helped reduce the financial stress on families and helped them put vegetables on the table.
If you are interested and would like a registration form, or further information please contact Ricky Ehau via e-mail on ricky@waioratrust.org.nz
Gardens start in a few weeks so don’t hesitate as plots are limited,
With the price of vegetable being at an all time high this is an opportunity for communities and whanau of all ethnicity and backgrounds to grow fresh vegetables for the table.
Wai-ora Trust has, for the past 3 years opened up its property to whanau and community groups to grow fresh vegetables as part of our Maori Community Action Plan. However as part of our Earthquake recovery strategy we are opening up this service to everyone.
We provide everything you need to succeed including:
- The land
- The seeds and plant
- Tools
- Knowledge and support
- Practical help
All you need to do is:
- get a group of 6 dedicated friends or whanau members together
- Have everyone come to work in the garden for at least 1 hour per week!
While the vegetables are free we do ask for a small one off koha to cover the cost of a sign for your plot as well as some tea and coffee for your group to enjoy.
This has been a hugely beneficial service over the past 3 years with hundreds of individuals harvesting corn, cabbage, potatoes, lettuces, beetroot, tomatoes and numerous other veggies to take home to their Community groups and whanau.
It has helped young mothers reduce their shopping bill, community groups feed their clients and whanau teach their children about the importance of gardening and healthy eating. Just as importantly it has helped reduce the financial stress on families and helped them put vegetables on the table.
If you are interested and would like a registration form, or further information please contact Ricky Ehau via e-mail on ricky@waioratrust.org.nz
Gardens start in a few weeks so don’t hesitate as plots are limited,
Sunday, 4 September 2011
Day 192 - in for the long haul in shaky town
It's 12 months since the first major quake in September 2010 and 6 months since the February quake. There is lots for Addington Action to do.
As the weather warms, it's a good time to fix up as many damaged uninsured homes as possible for both elderly and those with significant disabilities.
To do this, we need volunteers, building materials, tools and transport to be able to get as much done as possible.
Thanks to recent donations, we now have a stockpile of building materials, a trailer, and plenty of contractor tools. And 20 capable volunteers who take turns on the repair crews.
We currently borrow vehicles if they are available, but we would get a lot more done if Addington Action owned a work vehicle. We use about $100 of petrol/oil each week doing lots of short trips around town. A Fleetcard would make paying for fuel use simple for the committee to administer.
Addington Action is currently fundraising to get a second hand reliable vehicle that could be a
As the weather warms, it's a good time to fix up as many damaged uninsured homes as possible for both elderly and those with significant disabilities.
To do this, we need volunteers, building materials, tools and transport to be able to get as much done as possible.
Thanks to recent donations, we now have a stockpile of building materials, a trailer, and plenty of contractor tools. And 20 capable volunteers who take turns on the repair crews.
We currently borrow vehicles if they are available, but we would get a lot more done if Addington Action owned a work vehicle. We use about $100 of petrol/oil each week doing lots of short trips around town. A Fleetcard would make paying for fuel use simple for the committee to administer.
Addington Action is currently fundraising to get a second hand reliable vehicle that could be a
- Van
- Ute
- 4 wheel drive
Saturday, 3 September 2011
Day 191 - Riverside Rally
RIVERSIDE RALLY
2pm Sunday 11 September
Avon Riverbank just south of the munted Medway Street Bridge
Riverside Community Group in east Richmond is calling for a mass rally.
We will not accept the offers from CERA or Insurance Companies until:
2pm Sunday 11 September
Avon Riverbank just south of the munted Medway Street Bridge
Riverside Community Group in east Richmond is calling for a mass rally.
We will not accept the offers from CERA or Insurance Companies until:
- Insurance companies honour Full Replacement policies for homes that are due for demolition in the red zone
- RVs are reviewed where there is significant and demonstrable undervaluation
- Measures are taken to improve availability and affordability of relocation options so that home owners can move on without losing equity or increasing their debt burden
- There is certainty and clarity about the future use of the red zone lands
Please support us
– bring your own placards and banners!
BBQ
– bring your own placards and banners!
BBQ
Friday, 2 September 2011
Day 190 - roof job 1
Matt and Michael worked on a house in Sydenham today to make it weather tight following damage by the quakes. Joeli joined in to help Matt on the roof in the afternoon. Michael tidied up the back section and re plastered loose wall bricks. Tracy and Mike picked up tools and materials.
A dehumidifier has been put in the house to dry out rooms that have suffered water damage and are mouldy.
In a few weeks, the first room will be gutted, lined with batts and relined with new gib board. Once that's fixed, the other rooms will be done one by one. Then donated carpet will be laid.
The exterior of the house will be water blasted and given a paint job by the painting team in October.
This lady has a serious disability and has been left stranded so we will give her the works to get her back on her feet! Its an honour to be able to help someone who faces life with such courage.
A dehumidifier has been put in the house to dry out rooms that have suffered water damage and are mouldy.
In a few weeks, the first room will be gutted, lined with batts and relined with new gib board. Once that's fixed, the other rooms will be done one by one. Then donated carpet will be laid.
The exterior of the house will be water blasted and given a paint job by the painting team in October.
This lady has a serious disability and has been left stranded so we will give her the works to get her back on her feet! Its an honour to be able to help someone who faces life with such courage.
Thursday, 1 September 2011
Day 189 - fixing a broken window
Today, Tony and Matt are replacing a badly damaged window on a house in Lincoln Road. Needs to be done quick in case the weather goes soggy later today. Will need to come back in few weeks to do interior trim, once the wall has dried out.
Last night, Matt and other Mike attached the giant tool box to the front of the trailer and sorted out compartments etc. Matt sharpened up the wood chisels for today.
Today, I get to run errands for materials and more tools!
Last night, Matt and other Mike attached the giant tool box to the front of the trailer and sorted out compartments etc. Matt sharpened up the wood chisels for today.
Today, I get to run errands for materials and more tools!
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