In Gear | Rotary in Southern New Zealand Issue 1 | Page 42
with
Richard Boyed-Manson
How much will the houses sell for?
We’re trying to find this answer out ourselves.
Stay tuned.
Can I help paint/wallpaper/build the house?
We want all the help we can get, and we also want to
make sure these houses are of superior quality so we
get the best profit margin to give to Breathing Space
Trust. So, if you’re a qualified tradie, interior designer,
landscaper or painter we’d love to hear from you.
And, if you just want to pitch in, you can join us on a
muck in day. Check our events calendar for the next
one or follow us on Facebook.
Where can I donate?
Click here!
I’m not a builder, but I’d like to help.
We’re looking for helpers to keep the momentum
going on this build. If you can bake, film the roof
going on, provide DJ sets, make tea, clean up after
tradies, or muck in in the garden there’s likely a role
for you.
I know a guy who knows a guy.
That’s the spirit. Share our website with them by
clicking here.
How many homeless people are in
Invercargill?
Too many. And it’s winter. There are more than 400
people in Invercargill without a fixed home. This
means they could be sleeping on the streets, in cars
or flitting between couches at friends’ places.
Why are people homeless?
Tough question. Poverty, unemployment and
unaffordable housing are major reasons, but
circumstances can vary for everyone.
understood to be the first time Rotarians have tackled
building and auctioning two homes at once.
He says rather than focusing, as has been traditional, on
Rotarians providing many hours of unskilled labour – often
for modest returns – this project was founded on the basis
of members helping within their skill set. It’s structured so
other jobs can be completed by other professionals, when
there’s no-one available within Rotary, to ensure a highend finish and maximum returns.
“So far, we’ve had the likes of legal work, valuation, some
design work, and accounting work all done for free by
Rotarians who wanted to contribute.”
Richard says, with the market very much front of mind,
the homes have been carefully designed by Roger Beattie,
of Beattie McDowell Architects, to combine practicality,
functionality and aesthetics.
Who will the money raised go to?
Once the work on the 230.5sqm and 216.5sqm houses
is completed, eight weeks of open homes are planned to
showcase the properties, before they’re auctioned midway
through next year. Both designs are quite unique to each
other, and other homes in the popular new subdivision,
which is owned by Rutledge Developments.
What sparked this idea?
As its name suggests, the Breathing Space Trust was
set up to provide short-term shelter to those in need –
some “breathing space” to give them and other agencies
and services an opportunity to put in place longer-term
supports to get people back up on their feet.
All money raised will go to Breathing Space Trust.
They’ll use it for counselling, shelter and food for the
homeless. You can read more about Breathing Space
Trust here.
I wanted to see Rotary fundraise in a more effective
way than selling raffle tickets or cheese rolls. I believe
in the generosity of people in Invercargill and the
selflessness of Rotarians.
How many cheese rolls would you need to
sell to raise the same amount of money?
Gosh. Many, many cheese rolls.
While the numbers can fluctuate, Richard says it’s thought
hundreds of Southlanders are homeless at any one time,
for widely-varying reasons, ranging from job loss and
mental health issues to domestic violence.
Page 42 | In Gear - Rotary in Southern New Zealand - District 9980 | www.rotarydistrict9980.org