RAY White Real Estate owner Gregg Tickelpenny and Ōtorohanga office manager John Rothery. Photo Andy Campbell
It has taken six years and a lot of hard work through the pandemic, but Westridge Heights, Harpers Avenue has finally come to fruition.
The first subdivision of this scale in a generation has been completed, Ray White Real Estate owner Gregg Tickelpenny says.
“Westridge Stage 1 titles have now been released, which allows buyers to take ownership and proceed with house builds.”
Sixty-one of the 68 sections in stage one have sold.
“This strong result clearly shows the demand for Ōtorohanga to have a new housing subdivision with proximity to town,” Gregg said.
The developer, Tom Smit, focused on a polished finish with modern landscaping, lighting, footpaths, curbing and wide road appeal, with fibre and services available to sections.
The remaining seven sections are priced at $220,000.
It was an opportunity for people to buy an affordable section and build a new home, Gregg said.
The affordability factor was very important as the cost of building had risen over the past five years and the developer was trying to balance the price to meet demand.
People moving north to Ōtorohanga and south from Te Awamutu/Waikeria will see the pricing advantage, he said.
It has been three years since the turf was first turned and Ray White Ōtorohanga manager John Rothery said there were now three houses under construction.
“Stage one all the titles are in, and the houses are starting to be built,” he said. “Three years in the making right from the very beginning.
“It’s been a dream of mine for a long time to have a subdivision in Ōtorohanga.
He said they were thinking about having a celebration when the stage two titles came through, maybe in June. Stages two and three are currently under way.
“It’s been a long time and now I think it’s just come at the right time for a lot of guys. It’s just good to see it started, and let the people see that things are happening finally.
He said when all 128 sections in the four-stage subdivision were sold and homes built, it would represent a significant increase in population for Ōtorohanga.
“That’s got to be good for the council, more rates. It’s got to be good for the town, more people around in the streets.”
There will be other impacts on the town as the residents in the new homes furnish and develop their properties.
“The gardens, the landscaping – there’s going to be a lot of work going on, a lot of stuff that reverts back to the businesses in the town.
“That’s a couple of years down the track,” John said.
The Westridge subdivision would also free up some more houses in the central area of the town, as some of the buyers were existing residents, he said.
The development encountered the global financial crisis in 2008, the Covid pandemic and lockdowns of 2020/21 and its timely completion was assisted by a short-term $6 million loan from the Ōtorohanga District Council and Ōtorohanga Timber Company (OTC) in 2022.
“It was a challenge securing the finance needed to get through this final stage,” Mayor Max Baxter said in May 2022.
“The approach was for council to offer support in the terms of bridging finance in a short-term loan to get through what was otherwise going to be a problematic time. We can’t afford to stall it for a few years.”
The subdivision was supported by a $4 million loan from the council and $2 million from OTC over an 18-month term.
“It has worked out wonderfully well from a council and my perspective. At the time it was something that the council committed to,” Max said this week.
“At that stage the developer Tom Smit needed assistance to get the development across the line, and we obviously assisted as we saw the need to.
“We have now been paid back in full and we are getting building consents coming in already.
“It’s really good. It’s going to be great for the growth of Ōtorohanga, it’s going to secure the future of a lot of people and it’s going to be a fantastic development going forward.
