Addington Action

Day 450 - funding secured for Addington Action building

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Fri, 18 May 2012 06:00:00 +0000

Funding has now been secured for Addington Action to rent a building for 2 years.

The building will be set up like a small efficient factory for the Addington Action volunteers to work out of.

Bulk storage of building materials, blankets, and other supplies.
A place to park work vehicles and trailers.
A canteen to feed the volunteers a free mid day meal.
A big workspace to make, fix, paint, pack and distribute as required.
A help desk to take inquires from the public and dispatch jobs.

This building will replace the current situation of Addington Action operating out of spare bedrooms and home garages spread all over the place. There should be a big increase in efficiency, safety standards, training and better utilisation of volunteers.

The budget is $25,000 per year.

The Todd Foundation - Christchurch Earthquake Recovery Fund has agreed to provide $12,500 a year for 2 years.

The Tindall Foundation - Canterbury Response Fund has agreed to provide $12,500 a year for 2 years. This follows a recent visit to Christchurch.

The estimated breakdown of annual costs are
$20,000 - Gross rent
$2,700 - Power
$1,030 - Phone & Internet connection
$300 - Security
$120 - Cleaning
$2,000 - Fit-out

These figures may well change, as long as the total cost comes to no more that $25,000 a year.

The plan is to look for a suitable building in July, fit it out in August to be ready for full operations to start at the beginning of September.

Day 449 - Addington School rep

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Thu, 17 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

Rebecca Meachen is the new rep from Addington School on the committee of Addington Action.

Rebecca is the School Community Liaison person.

Rebecca will be able to directly access resources for school families from Addington Action.

Day 448 - fruit & veggie co-op now has 6 distributors

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Wed, 16 May 2012 03:00:00 +0000

Today the Christchurch South Fruit and Veggie Co-op (CSFVC) packed fruit and veggies for 128 households at the Sydenham Community Centre with an army of volunteers from Addington Action, Helen Anderson Trust, KidsFirst, Manuka Cottage, Opawa Baptist, Sydenham Communty Centre, Sydenham Salvation Army, and Waipuna Trust.

Lesley from the DHB Community and Public Health provided enough copies of a nice recipe this week and enough slip folders to put the recipe collection in for each household.

The fruit and veggie packs cost $10 each, contain between $20 to $30 worth of produce at supermarket prices, and can be ordered in advance and picked up from these distribution centres.

Kidsfirst Kindergarten Selwyn St
366 Selwyn St, Spreydon
366-3472
Wednesdays
Manuka Cottage
45 Dickens St, Addington
338-1613
Wednesdays 11am – 3pm
Opawa Baptist Church
285 Wilsons Rd Waltham
379-7680
Wednesdays 10.30am – 2pm
Sydenham Community Centre
25-27 Hutchison St Sydenham
331-6146
Wednesdays 10.30am – 12 noon
Sydenham Salvation Army
Wednesdays
Waipuna Trust
Cnr Pages & Woodham Rds
386-2159
Wednesdays 10.30am – 1.30pm

More distribution centres are being set up now and will be announced when open.

Groups (eg community centres, schools, kindergartens, churches, etc) who want to find out more about becoming a distributor to your community should contact Addington Action.

Day 447 - food parcel distribution shifts to Wednesdays

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Tue, 15 May 2012 02:00:00 +0000

The day that Addington Action distributes food parcels has now shifted from every Tuesday to every Wednesday. The food parcels are supplied by 0800 Hungry and are distributed in the Addington area by the church, school, street and workplace reps on the Addington Action committee.

Food Day
A typical Wednesday for Addington Action is

8am - setup the CSFVC packing operation
9am - CSFVC packing begins
10.30am - return the empty produce crates to CHEP and FCC
12noon - feed the crew
1pm - pick up food parcels from 0800 Hungry
2.30pm - deliver food parcels to the temporary depot
3pm - home delivery of food parcels by Addington Action members.

Day 446 - interview for The Press

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Mon, 14 May 2012 05:14:00 +0000

Today was an interview with David Killick for The Press for publication in early June.

Day 445 - last day of repairs till spring

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Sun, 13 May 2012 01:54:00 +0000

Today was spent hurriedly finishing off some final repairs on an uninsured quake damaged house.

Then all the tools were put safely into storage for winter.

No further repairs will be started on quake damaged uninsured houses till the start of September. Many of the volunteer work crew are retired or have health problems and need to stay warm.

In July around 50 houses waiting on repairs to start will be visited to quickly plan out the work that needs to be done and sort them on a priority list.

taking photos
calculating materials
sorting out access

Addington Action HQ
In August, it is planned to establish a workshop for Addington Action volunteers. $25,000 has already been raised. The workshop will replace and consolidate the existing 5 garages and spare bedrooms in use all over Addington. There will then be an advertised address that volunteers can turn up to at 9am with their boots on ready to work and so a lot more work will get done.

And there will be some sort of official opening around this time.

One job at a time
And then back into it in September going flat tack till mid May 2013 fixing as many places as possible one at a time.

There will be two lists.

One of places needing outdoor clearing of rubble, rubbish and general tidying up in order of priority.
The other of places needing building repairs, painting etc in order of priority.

Each home will be started and completed before going onto the next place. This will give people certainty because they will know where they sit in the queue.

Day 444 - Family Expo

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Sat, 12 May 2012 04:44:00 +0000

There was a great turnout to the annual Family Expo that was held at Spreydon Baptist Church on Lyttleton St, Spreydon earlier today from 10am till 3pm.

The event is open to anyone to participate in or visit.

Addington Action had a stall and made many useful contacts for future work.

Some more committee members were nominated.
Additional distribution points for the Christchurch South Fruit & Veggie Co-op.

Day 443 - scales for fruit and veggie co-op

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Fri, 11 May 2012 04:47:00 +0000

Today we bought a set of industrial scales and a set of commercial kitchen scales for the Christchurch South Fruit & Veggie Co-op (CSFVC),

These are needed to quickly weigh the produce for calculating the quantities to go into each bag. They are both heavy duty commercial items which should stand up to years of use but weren't cheap.

They were paid for out of the recent donation from LUSH Charity Pot.

Day 442 - National Radio reports on Christchurch poverty

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Thu, 10 May 2012 05:30:00 +0000

From National Radio

Katy Gosset reports on Christchurch residents who are struggling to make ends meet. How much do you spend on your grocery bill and could you make do on just forty dollars a week? Katy Gosset visits the Healthy Eating Co-op that's trying to make a difference. (13′59″)

Play (Windows)
Play (Other)

Download: Ogg Vorbis MP3

Listen

Day 442 - Welfare & War Pensions Forum

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Thu, 10 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

A very useful forum was held earlier today at Papanui RSA about the welfare of returned service men and women and their families.

Addington Action keeps coming across many elderly people who are in difficulty following the quakes, and this was an opportunity to find out useful information and establish contacts with organisations assisting veterans.

It became clear in the meeting listening to the speakers that there is a lot of help available as a social right, but some are missing out in South Christchurch.

Day 441 - Housing Summit notes

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Wed, 09 May 2012 05:59:00 +0000

Housing Summit Notes May 9 2012
Knox Church Christchurch

1. Identifying Specific needs in the rental market – Plenary

People with health related concerns – boarding houses gone
Erosion of low cost housing
Landlords having to go from residential to commercial
Support for landlords who want to continue with social housing rentals
Affordable housing – affordable rentals
Marginalised/vulnerable either forced east or to areas where the supports for them aren’t existing
Young parents staying in situations which aren’t good because they can’t find or afford the alternative
Specific youth housing solutions – most vulnerable youth can’t stay with their families
Kids out of CYF care have nowhere to go
Brewing public health crisis
Encourage people to come forward and tell their stories
People living in cars etc – no access to facilities i.e. showers etc
Women/children living in cars – safety issues
Salvation Army to find people needing assistance esp. those living in cars, tents etc. Information gathering and giving assistance where needed.
People with disabilities need accessible housing. Temporary villages aren’t as accessible as needed. People with disabilities need to be involved.
Older people – big increase in hospital admissions.
Older people living in restricted parts of their houses.
Agencies working in this area need to be co-ordinated and their needs/requirements addressed.
Red zone deadlines extended?
City council to take quicker action on new developments/land
Rebuild of new housing stock – pressure on insurance companies
Social recovery plan/strategy needed
Rent controls/letting fees
Communication between govt and council needs improving
Liveable houses in red zone could be used for housing temporarily
Children living in sub standard housing – health issues this winter
Chch housing forums – several dates throughout year – TPA
European ways of building – heating use less and sustainable – less reliant on energy
Red Cross storage grant extended to people in rentals
Winter assistance grant available again this year
Red Cross have recovery outreach teams available
Less talking more action
Feelings of isolation in red zone areas, major lack of communication/information/some supports
Everything is interlinked
Government intervention for processes to start taking place
Land development to stop people being forced out of the city
Insurance companies/EQC battling amongst themselves
April next year all red zoners need to be out
Govt needs to take housing crisis seriously
Suspension of deadlines?
Rentals being sold because of good market prices
Multi faceted crisis intervention needed
Lack of government response
Market won’t take care of itself
Issues re contractors coming into the city using rental stock
Temp accommodation options for contractors being stymied
Council consents/CERA delaying people trying to work through the crisis and temp accom

2. (a) What is the most pressing issue out of those identified? – Small Groups

The reduced rental stock, whether from damage or lack of availability. The threat of the April deadline and the effect of people living in cars etc. Shortage of housing stock traced back to market ideology. Lack of a social recovery strategy and a cohesive action plan. Arrival or workers from outside chch. Acknowledge there is a problem and govt both local and central need to acknowledge. Empathy with homeless because the scope is increasing. Damaged homes that don’t have decisions made about them yet. No answers from EQC. Timelines is a key issue. Clarification of issues. Whole communities are feeling alienated. The holdup for HNZ is also due to EQC. Council planning staff to meet with CERA staff. Glenn to be involved with meeting. The supply is the greatest problem. Range is an issue.

2. (b)How would you go about fixing it?

A trust to buy houses in red zone that can be located. A lodgers scheme utilising people with available bedrooms. Agency managed? A super agency driven by the community and not govt driven. Starter packs with guidelines and assisted by real estate firm. It’s not just going to be single men – as time goes on families will be brought out adding to the rental issues. The belief there is a large amount of land in city for infill housing – co-ordination needed on where and availability. Change in local govt zoning? Eligibility for temp housing needs to be reviewed. CERA should be dealing with these issues because they have the say and make the decisions. Extending April deadline. Relocatables on land. Consents that go with that need loosening. Loosen bureaucratic timelines etc. looking at overseas models that work well. Govt grants and loans. Using red zone houses for rentals. Measure the scale of some of these problems. Use agencies that are out there. Upskill people in chch and provide training so don’t need to import workers. Representative and recognised official task force with a clear mandate and connection back to communities. Simple practical probs like community showers, landlords who commit to low cost housing. Accountabilities need to be in place. This forum should put out a press release and future meetings. City plan rules on density changed. Temp housing for TC3 zones is a major problem. We don’t have temp housing stock for this. A thousand temp houses needed now. Existing houses on red zone land now owned by govt could be repaired and relocated or rented out.

2. (c) And whose responsibility is it?

CERA and government. Everyone’s responsibility. HNZ issues with their own insurance not EQC Contact HNZ if agencies are working with people needing housing. HNZ hasn’t seen a huge increase. Happy to work with agencies directly. Affordablity – income in relation to rent Adequate dwelling? Suitable property i.e size Accessibility to money for rent – do you have funds for initial costs etc. Can you sustain house rented. E.g. stairs/physical disability. Community owned social housing ? Govt seed money.

June 1st – Report Back

Day 441 - fruit and veggie co-op growing

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Wed, 09 May 2012 05:30:00 +0000

Today the Christchurch South Fruit and Veggie Co-op (CSFVC) packed fruit and veggies for 103 households.

The fruit and veggie packs cost $10 each, contain about $25 worth, and can be ordered in advance and picked up from these distribution centres.

Kidsfirst Kindergarten Selwyn St
366 Selwyn St, Spreydon
366-3472
Wednesdays
Manuka Cottage
45 Dickens St, Addington
338-1613
Wednesdays 11am – 3pm
Opawa Baptist Church
285 Wilsons Rd Waltham
379-7680
Wednesdays 10.30am – 2pm
Sydenham Community Centre
25-27 Hutchison St Sydenham
331-6146
Wednesdays 10.30am – 12 noon
Waipuna Trust
Cnr Pages & Woodham Rds
386-2159
Wednesdays 10.30am – 1.30pm

More distribution centres are being set up now and will be announced when open.

Day 441 - high rents force community group out

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Wed, 09 May 2012 05:25:00 +0000

Christchurch Press
9/5/2012

By Sam Sachdeva

Spiralling rents and insurance problems could force the closure of vital community organisations in Christchurch, an MP says.

Wigram Labour MP Megan Woods has raised concerns after hearing of an Addington community house that is being forced out of its home of 19 years because of insurance problems.

Manuka Cottage, run by the family and community section of Anglican Social Services, has been operating in Addington since 1993.

Cottage community development worker Cherylan Davies said the organisation had rented the house for 19 years without any problems.

However, the landlord had recently been told that he would not be able to receive insurance if the group remained in the house as it was classed as a commercial activity.

Davies said the organisation had been told it had to find a new location by the end of the month.

A commercial rental property in the same street had an annual rent of $28,600, more than triple the $9000 rent the group was paying now.

"All our expenses will increase incredibly, and we're already struggling," Davies said. She said the house was used by community groups and provided a safe environment for vulnerable people.

"They're human beings like you and I, and for whatever circumstances, life has dealt them some pretty huge blows. This gives them a place to come and connect," Davies said.

This year, a landlord was forced to evict Anglican Social Services from his Gloucester St house after he was unable to obtain commercial cover.

Woods said the cottage had been "absolutely integral" to Addington residents.

The insurance issues were likely to affect other community organisations that had been using residential properties as their base, she said.

The insurance problems showed a "clear market failure" that the Government needed to address, she said.

Woods said she had written to Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee outlining her concerns and asking for action.

An Insurance Council spokesman said the organisation was not aware of problems with community organisations obtaining insurance cover.

Brownlee could not be reached for comment.

Day 440 - BNZ closed for good

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Tue, 08 May 2012 07:00:00 +0000

The BNZ closed today so all staff could take part in helping various community efforts around the country.

Kezia, JJ and Graeme arrived from local BNZ branches to work as part of the Addington Action for the day.

Bob, Joan, Christine and Mike also joined in. The job was to shift 5,500 Kg of bricks from Brickworks Lane in Huntsbury to the Community Gardens on Strickland St in Spreydon for use as a landscaping resource.

6 trailer trips later (between loads of morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea) the job was done.

There was more than a few laughs figuring out how many calories were used handling 5 and 1/2 tonnes twice while carrying them 20 paces to and from the trailer. A chockie fish to the first person who can give a believable answer.

Day 439 - Lincoln Rotary donate $2,000

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Mon, 07 May 2012 03:32:00 +0000

A nice surprise in the mail today. Lincoln Rotary have sent a cheque for $2,000 to assist with repairs of uninsured homes. This follows a talk given last week to the weekly meeting of Lincoln Rotary about the work Addington Action has been doing.

Thank you Rotary

Day 438 - fundraising Crusaders BBQ 3

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Sun, 06 May 2012 09:30:00 +0000

The fundraising BBQ outside the Crusaders match sold 190 sausages earlier today. The fundraising is to support the food programme of Addington Action

Establish 100 new home veggie gardens
Distribution of food parcels supplied by 0800 Hungry
Operation of the Christchurch South Fruit & Veggie Co-op

Unlike previous matches, none of the VBASE managers came out to bully the BBQ sellers, which is great.

The sausages were sold before and after match.

Day 437 - concrete poured

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Sat, 05 May 2012 04:36:00 +0000

Today the work crew of Chantelle and Mike poured concrete to patch the broken path of a Sydenham house.

A load of demo timber was removed and dropped off to a house in Strickland St.

Another house finished.

Day 436 - trade accounts

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Fri, 04 May 2012 04:43:00 +0000

Addington Action now has 12 trade accounts around the city for purchase of supplies. This will speed up repairs, keep the paperwork tidy, and save a bit of dosh.

There is one left to open. An account with Bunnings Riccarton that will save the busy and friendly trade counter staff having to process frequent cheques.

Day 435 - Manuka Cottage think tank

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Thu, 03 May 2012 08:00:00 +0000

Earlier tonight,an emergency meeting was called at Manuka Cottage to consider options following a notice of eviction.

Manuka Cottage is a community centre in Addington and is located in Dickens St. It is located in a residential house at cheap rent and has been there for 20 years. The eviction has been caused by the insurance company refusing to renew insurance for the house because it has been deemed "commercial use".

Many more groups can expect to face the axe as this nonsense continues.

The meeting was very well attended with representatives from many groups, the local community board and the NZLP.

Day 435 - concrete prep

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Thu, 03 May 2012 04:38:00 +0000

Today Simon and Mike prepped a broken path for patching with concrete. Also took away a great load of demo timber for use as firewood and a load to scrap metal dealer.

Day 434 - the fruit & veggie co-op begins

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Wed, 02 May 2012 04:53:00 +0000

Today was the first day of operations of the Christchurch Fruit & Veggie Co-op (CSFVC). We packed for 55 households.

The weekly packing was held at the Sydenham Community Centre and will continue every Wednesday morning.

We started at 9am and were all finished by 10.30am. The orders were then taken away to these distribution centres. More will be opening soon.

Manuka Cottage
45 Dickens St, Addington
Wednesdays 11am – 3pm
Opawa Baptist Church
285 Wilsons Rd Waltham
Wednesdays 10.30am – 2pm
Sydenham Community Centre
25-27 Hutchison St Sydenham
Wednesdays 10.30am – 12 noon

The empty crates were then returned to CHEP and FCC.

Day 433 - Lincoln Rotary talk

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Tue, 01 May 2012 09:30:00 +0000

Lots of running around today getting ready for the launch of the Christchurch South Fruit & Veggie Co-op (CSFVC).

And then earlier tonight giving a talk to the weekly meeting of Lincoln Rotary. They were a great audience and asked a lot of good questions. Foods pretty good too!

Rotary puts most groups to shame with their hospitality to guests.

Thanks for the invite and hospitality Lincoln Rotary.

Day 433 - KidsFirst Kindergarten Selwyn St rep

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Tue, 01 May 2012 03:00:00 +0000

Geoff Wallis is the new rep from KidsFirst Kindergarten Selwyn St on the committee of Addington Action.

Geoff works at the Kindergarten.

Geoff will be able to directly access resources for the families of kids at the kindergarten. One of the first steps is for the kindergarten to become a distributor for the Christchurch South Fruit & Veggie Co-op (CSFVC).

Day 431 - Autumn Harvest

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 03:00:00 +0000

St Mary's Church had a fair at midday today and Addington Action joined in with a display. Always a great way to meet people. Chantelle and Mike crewed.

Day 430 - big clean up

noreply@blogger.com (Addington Action Committee) — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 05:18:00 +0000

Stu, Connor, Chantelle and Mike cleared a quake damaged rear section of rubbish and took it to the tip. Sydenham Salvation Army paid the tip fees. This work on this place is now finished till next September.