Excellence Award for Willard Street
Willard Street is officially among the best developments in the country.
ŌCHT’s 13th new community received an Excellence Award in the Community and Affordable Housing Property category at the Property Industry Awards in Auckland last week.
The South by Southeast Architects-designed, Consortium Construction-built development was the only South Island development to get an excellence award in that category
The outright winner was Kāīnga Ora's Riccarton Road development, which was awarded Best in Category. Consortium also built that development.
ŌCHT general manager property Ed Leeson says the award further highlights the standard-setting work of our long-time development partners as we improve community housing.
Our partners consistently delivered on a shared vision to “build great homes that beat the high standards you'd expect in any other modern residential development”.
"With each new design, new build and new community we show what can be achieved for community housing,” Ed says.
The design team included Quion, Planz, and Rangzen Pro.
South by Southeast Architects and Willard Street received a Canterbury Architecture Award (Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects Award) 2024 earlier this year.
Willard Street opened in September 2023. Its 35 new 1-5 bedroom homes replaced 26 single bed units the city council built and opened in 1940.
The new community built upon this legacy, delivering on the city’s wish to replace the capacity lost when 400 council-owned, largely one-bedroom units were damaged in the 2010/11 earthquakes.
With Willard Street, ŌCHT delivered 410 new bedrooms in 270 new homes at 13 new communities since 2019.
The new - and now award-winning - Homestar 7-rated homes were a far cry from the units they replaced.
The north-facing properties have energy efficient heat pumps and high-performing thermal envelopes which means it will be easier and cheaper for tenants to keep their homes comfortable year-round.
They're our first build using structural insulated panels, an insulated core sandwiched between engineered wood panels, made offsite and craned into place from the back of a truck.
The panels saved construction time - and they're incredibly thermally efficient, which’ll keep our tenants warm for decades to come.
Landscaped grounds feature shared common spaces where children can play and easy access to the Simeon Park complements tenant’s private courtyards and sunny balconies.
The homes are just a short walk from Addington School, bus routes and the Selwyn Street shops, making it the ideal place for a mix of household types and sizes.
Nearly half the new homes have two or more bedrooms, recognising the pressing and ongoing need for affordable multi-bedroom public rentals in Christchurch.
ŌCHT’s new tenants come from the Ministry of Social Development’s Public Housing Register. In June, 759 of 1947 registered for housing in Christchurch needed two or more bedrooms.
Willard Street is the first of our developments funded by a private sector loan. Generate KiwiSaver partnered with Community Finance to invest in our project as part of their focus on investments that have a positive social impact.
The Christchurch City Council owned and operated 26 weatherboard bedsits at Willard Street until the property was transferred to ŌCHT as part of the Christchurch Housing Accord.
Our previous development awards include:
Brougham Street: Civic Trust Award (Category A) 2022; Canterbury Architecture Award (Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects Award) 2022, Property Council of New Zealand Property Industry Excellence Award 2022, New Zealand Commercial Project Awards (Residential) (Silver) 2023.
Glovers Road: New Zealand Commercial Project Awards (Residential) (Gold), and the Innovation Award 2023.
Tiwaiwaka Lane: New Zealand Commercial Project Awards Silver Award (Residential) 2021
Willard Street: Canterbury Architecture Award (Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects Award) 2024. Property Industry Awards Community and Affordable Housing Property Excellence Award 2024.