Moteliers in the Tasman region who are providing emergency housing are not keen to be named.
They are worried they would lose business if it were known they provide emergency housing. One went as far as to threaten to get lawyers involved if his name was printed.
“It would decimate my client base if people knew I took WINZ clients,” says one motelier.
However, they were willing to comment if theirs and their business names were not published.
One motelier said that Ministry of Social Development (MSD) clients receiving emergency accommodation in his motel would have to leave over Christmas due to the seasonal increase in tourists.
When asked where these clients would find accommodation he named a motel, but when contacted the manager at the named motel said he was unaware of that plan.
Another motelier said his MSD clients would stay in the motels over Christmas.
On a recent trip to Napier and Hastings, Waimea Weekly’s editor sat on the side of the road and called around twenty motels. He was told over and over that they no longer deal with the public.
He says that it’s a warning to Tasman. If this happened here it would have a negative impact on wineries, restaurants, water taxies and the wider tourism industry.
Moteliers in the Nelson Tasman region said they were not at capacity except over the Christmas New-Year period.
One motelier said the emergency housing tenants are good tenants 90 per cent of the time, but if word gets out they are there, corporate clients will no longer book with him.
Another motelier agreed that tenants are usually good, but said their associates were the problem.
“The biggest problem to the women and to the motel are the ex’s,” he said.
There have been instances of rooms being trashed.
Emergency accommodation is short-term accommodation for people unable to access other accommodation. The MSD approved 119 emergency housing special needs grants (EHNSG) in the Tasman region in the last quarter, and 455 in the Nelson region. MSD’s senior media advisor, Jerome Cvitanovich, said this accommodation is usually in motels.
When asked about the fee paid for emergency housing, a motelier said they do charge more for MSD customers than for tourists.
“This is to build in the cost of repairs for damage and wear and tear of a family living in the motel,” he said.
Karen Hocking, General Manager of Housing for MSD, said they were not aware of a surcharge for wear and tear.
“We believe this should be a normal part of the operating costs of accommodation providers,” said Karen.
A motelier also said he didn’t want his motel named as he didn’t want to be blacklisted by WINZ for his comments.
Alasdair Dunwoodie, manager of Parkside Motels, said that they are currently choosing not to accept emergency housing clients. He said that families living at a motel doesn’t go with the image corporate clients are looking for.
“Once you do have families you can’t go back, as the motel gets run down,” said Alasdair.
Rachel Boyak, MP for Nelson, said motels are not ideal for long-term stays for families and whanau, but do form part of the response to supporting families while more housing is bought on board.
“The housing needs of vulnerable families must always have top priority,” said Rachel.
She said motel owners make decisions about entering these arrangements based on their own commercial needs and interests.
Being asked to leave for the Christmas period shows there is little security in the week by week system of staying at a motel. It may be better than current alternatives, but it is a temporary solution to one problem and has the potential to cause another problem for a region like Tasman where tourism is key.