Turanga Financial Well-being project officially launched

 

Talking Auckland usually covers the physical side of Geography and Planning aspects in Auckland. By physical I mean planning in things we can or will be able to touch, see, smell, hear, or taste – our five senses. Whether that be physical urban and transport development, our natural environment, or plans on “paper” mapping out the future. From time to time though and as a Human Geographer I will cover Auckland issues that look into the human aspect of our city. Whether that be the people itself or what is known as social and civic infrastructure I often find that our Human Geography and Planning gets overlooked.

That said my submissions to the Auckland Plan and the Proposed Unitary Plan will cover the physical and human sides of our planning regime.The Manukau Super Metropolitan Centre concept developed by me makes references to the social infrastructure and how developing this social infrastructure is needed to give the heartbeat to a vibrant Southern Auckland.

An extract from my Draft Unitary Plan Submission:

The Super Metropolitan Centre makes an important contribution to our sense of identity whether it is international, national, regional or sub-regional in sense identity construction.

Source: 

The wider context to the Super Metropolitan Centre can be read HERE.

 

Back to Turanga

 

Yesterday I was privileged to be at the Turanga launch at the Manukau Civic Centre along with other media and guests.

The Turanga (Turanga meaning ‘A Standing Place’) project is an initiative co-led and designed by Auckland Council to help Pacific communities in Auckland with financial well-being. The ultimate goal of the financial well-being being allowing those in the Pacific community into their own houses and/or financial independence. And these two points were mentioned over and over again at the launch yesterday by the different speakers including the Deputy Mayor who was present.

From the press statement on the Turanga project

60 Pacific families to test financial management initiative

 

A new initiative aimed at tackling the lack of home ownership in the Pacific community will be launched by Auckland’s Deputy Mayor Penny Hulse this weekend.

The three-year pilot initiative, called Turanga, will trial a holistic approach that aims to improve the overall financial wellness of the participants, and identify and address barriers currently preventing many Pacific people from owning their own home.

With almost half of all Pacific Aucklanders living in crowded households and likely to experience long-term indebtedness, Penny Hulse says it is vital that urgent action is taken.

“There are significant challenges for many Aucklanders to become home-owners, but it can be especially hard for the Pacific community to get a foot on Auckland’s housing ladder,” she said.

The initiative will be launched in Manukau on Saturday 31 May, and will be attended by Councillor Alf Filipaina as well as other invited guests.

Twenty families a year will take part in Turanga, providing information about their financial, social and cultural circumstances to identify the challenges they face.

The findings will be used to develop a programme for each family tailored to their specific needs.

“The Turanga initiative will highlight the challenges that prevent home ownership, so we can start working with our Pacific community on actions that will make a difference,” said Penny Hulse.

“This is not a silver bullet that will fix the problem immediately; we have to be realistic about that. But in 15 to 20 years, one-in-eight of the working-age population aged 15 to 39 will be of Pacific origin.

“And if they are not able to get onto the housing ladder, it will have a significant impact on them, their families and the wider Auckland community.”

…..

 

My own take from the Turanga Launch

Turanga is a stand alone project co-led and designed by Auckland Council and various other non Government organisations in Auckland. The project when I asked is not part of The Southern Initiative but rather interestingly it has deeper roots from the Housing Project Office. The Housing Project is more known for overseeing the Housing Accord Special Housing Areas. That said while I was at the Turanga launch yesterday I noticed a strong Christian presence and wanting a strong living Auckland.Further down the post though I will outline an aspect our physical planning regime need to recognise with Pacific communities and housing.

 

Deputy Mayor Penny Hulse gave a speech at the Turanga launch which a few points were raised.

The first point raised was that if the Pacific community is not thriving then Auckland as a whole does not thrive. That remark is by virtue an extension of the Deputy Mayor’s earlier remark at May’s Budget Committee in which she said: “If South Auckland fails, ALL of Auckland fails.” Both statements are true as Auckland only thrives and is strong as its “weakest link” in the organism (that is the City). Right now and this is me being honest of my home which is South Auckland and has been my home for 23 of the 29 years I have been alive thus far South Auckland is the weakest link in Auckland if you look at the statistics. But this is where the negative lens looking stops. The South does have a solid foundation and large amounts of capital to build on as both as a place and as part of a sense of identity (see top of post for the Super Metropolitan Centre ideal). This is why our planning needs to watch for both the physical and social aspects. It is just more than asphalt, bricks and mortar to a city.

 

The second point raised by Penny Hulse was the acknowledgement around the South having housing overcrowding and subsequent deprivation (poverty is another term for it) especially with Pacific (and Maori) families and communities. Now Turanga being a financial well-being project will assist with financial literacy within the Pacific community, literacy that will allow the Pacific community to have a greater uptake in home ownership alongside their European cousins. Home ownership is great I know as Rebekka and I own our own home. However, home-ownership has different concepts and meanings which our planning regime must acknowledge. Home ownership for me is a three bedroom house in Papakura suited to Rebekka, Jerusha (our daughter) and myself. For a Pacific family (and I am happily to be corrected/educated here) home-ownership might mean a 5-6 bedroom super large house that might be collectively owned. That super large house as well as the neighbourhood/local community would facilitate large amounts of communal social areas as well as private ‘zones’ for individuals, couples, and individual families to retreat to. From there we move out to more sub regional social infrastructure as that impacts home ownership as well.

Transport costs to education and employment centres, the closeness to social and civic facilities such a parks, churches, healthcare, retail and service centres all impact on home ownership through housing affordability as well as the physical house. So this is where our planning needs to be switched on. Is there good and affordable public transport available to town centres (where often community infrastructure like doctors, service centres, libraries and so on are located), the Manukau Super Metropolitan Centre (as the nexus hub), education centres, and employment centres like again Manukau City Centre and/or the Wiri industrial complex as an example. Don’t be surprised if most people forget about this when it comes to housing affordability and home ownership. Something I hope Turanga will not “forget.”

 

It has been mentioned that the Turanga project is part of the Auckland Plan especially Chapter 1: http://theplan.theaucklandplan.govt.nz/aucklands-people/ . Although as I said earlier Turanga has more ties back to the Housing Project Office rather than The Southern Initiative itself.

 

After the Deputy Mayor spoke we had some more speeches highlighting individual points either from experience or the Turanga Project.

One speech or rather testimony emphasised the greatness the Pacific community does have (in regards to its culture and to its people) and how they (the Pacific community) and we (the rest of Auckland) should strengthen that greatness. Turanga as the financial well-being project works and strengthens that Pacific greatness insofar that they can also enjoy home ownership which I as a European take for granted (and I know I do). This greatness (as it can and should be shared amongst all) needed to be replicated across Auckland because if you can build upon that greatness and strengths you give better and solid outcomes. I would take it that burying social deprivation once and for all being such an outcome.

In other speeches I noted an acknowledgement the difference between Pacific communities back in the native Pacific Islands and Pacific communities here in an internationalised city such as Auckland. This acknowledgement illustrated the faster pace and different survival “instincts” need to survive in such a place as Auckland compared to the native home. It would draw similar comparisons to a family or community coming in from a rural or provincial environment in New Zealand and moving to Auckland which is a Beta World City. The Turanga Project it was hoped would act as a bridge to the gap between the two environments.

Finally a memorable piece came up in which Matthew 7:24-29 (The Wise and Foolish Builders) which rings rather true to what your house your home is built on.

From Biblegateway.com – NIV version:

The Wise and Foolish Builders

24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

28 When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, 29 because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.

 

Where ever one might be with their religious beliefs (or not) the parable stands rather true. A house built on sand will be destroyed in the storms where as a house built on solid rock will stop cop the same storm but not be destroyed as the house on the sand would.

And this is what the Turanga Project wants to fulfil. Through financial well-being a house and home can be built on that solid rock rather than the sand if that financial well-being was not there.

 

 

Concluding Remarks

Again as the Deputy Mayor had said the Turanga Project is not a silver bullet to solve all ills that might be prevalent. But it is a tool in the toolbox that aims to help rid those ills by fostering financial well-being within the Pacific community. How Turanga will go we shall see in three years time as the first twenty families undertake the project. Remember if South Auckland fails ALL of Auckland fails and Turanga is hoped as a tool against the South from failing as the City is only strong as its weakest link.

Source: Facebook – Penny Hulse’s page