The Third Floor

 I don't think anyone who has not seen it has any conception of how high three floors is in a residential area.  This and a roof makes this line of 3 houses a small tower block, not a house. Yes, the noise is constant and depressing. 

It is overbearing and hideous. Even with just one framework wall in place you can get an idea of how ugly it is going to be. Why? Because they will bang a sloping roof on top as well. Cute eh? I bet they love it in Tawhai Street.  One of my neighbours looked horrified when I told him all the houses along Tawhai Street will be three storeys high.

Am I the only one who has been keeping track of the development's impact? Evidently. 

If you use your imagination, you can imagine how this will tower over gardens across Tawhai Street and beyond but, on the 'bright side', due to the imminent arrival of the ugly two storey buildings on the other side of our fence, the horror can only get worse. 

Why three storeys in a residential area? I have no idea.

This is the view from my kitchen window. Zoomed in a bit to show how close it is to the perimeter. I don't think the people at Number 10 mind, their dog isn't freaking out as it does when I walk into my garden. How long will it take for the first child to fall into the culvert?

Here's te crane ready to life the third storey into place.

Maybe making them taller allows the authorities to cram more families on to a smaller space? The current (National/ACT) government is more focused on profit for a few than affordable housing so I am guessing this is about right.

Gardens are a thing of the past. I have a copy of the plans. Each house has a small concrete patch as a meagre substitute. (The plan has 'trees' on it but as a tree takes 3/5 years to grow to any height (except Pittosporum which is a faster grower) I don't hold out much hope of their survival.

Dur to property investment running riot in New Zealand and no Capital Gains Tax, a few people are making a lot of money at the expense of the community in need of decent housing. Just look at the number of two year old new builds on the market right now. 

The myth of the buyer's market persists however, with telephone number prices for cramped and tiny dog kennels with (if you are really lucky) a parking spot off the road.