54 | Adding value and enjoyment The 16 hectares of former farmland was split into eleven lots of between 5000sqm to about 2.5 hectares. 408 Developments T T Virginia Wright “It’s close to both Feilding and Palmerston North and it’s only a kilometre to Colyton School, the local primary school, which has the Ginger Bird Café next door which is known for its good food and coffee.” DEVELOPMENT Fiona and Ross Barnett have been involved in land development and commercial property development for the last 10 years or more, taking on a new project when they see something they know they can make a difference to. Commercial projects generally involve buying an old property that needs to be gutted, or at least renovated and refitted, and is often also subdivided, Fiona explains. “We enjoy taking a building that’s been empty and looks terrible and transforming it to become a high-end commercial property and giving it a new lease of life.” Every project’s different but that’s exactly what they did to a recently completed commercial project in Hamilton’s Victoria Street. The large commercial building had three residential tenancies above it which needed a serious refresh, while the commercial premises were being gutted, earthquake strengthened, given a refit and subdivided into two new titles with firewalls and separate service connections as required. The exterior received some decorative elements and a professional paint job. The commercial front is protected by retractable bollards operated by remote, and the apartments each have a secure carpark, all of which gives the new tenants peace of mind. Their land development in Tirohanga Lane came about when they were approached by DN Driveways, the roading contractor they often work with. He’d been contracted to do the roading for the development by its original owners and when their other commitments took precedence over continuing with the subdivision he got in touch with Fiona and Ross thinking they might be interested in completing the project. “It was a big piece of land, and it seemed very peaceful despite not being too far from the road. It’s lush and green and you’ve got good line of sight through to the hills and the windmills so it’s a great piece of land to create some sections for people to live on with plenty of space for a horse or a couple of cows or whatever,” says Fiona. “We liked the area as well,” adds Ross. “It’s close to both Feilding and Palmerston North and it’s only a kilometre to Colyton School, the local primary school, which has the Ginger Bird Café next door which is known for its good food and coffee.” Already having consents in place for developing the 16 hectares of former farmland into eleven lots of between 5000sqm to about 2.5 hectares took a lot of the risk out of the project, although the Horizons Regional Council resource consent included conditions to ensure the water course running through the subdivision would cope with our increasingly severe weather events. The lots had been drawn up and all the necessary engineering done by the time the Barnetts took over the project early in 2022 but the work future-proofing the watercourse was not without complications. They weren’t allowed to work on it if it was raining and it seemed to be raining continuously for two years so the work to significantly widen and reinforce the watercourse took a lot longer than anticipated. LAND SURVEYING CIVIL & STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING RESOURCE CONSENTS 2B DENBIGH SQUARE, FEILDING | 511 QUEEN STREET EAST, LEVIN | 06 324 0309 OR 06 961 3080 | ADMIN@GEOWORKS.CO.NZ | WWW.GEOWORKS.CO.NZ The nuisance value was quickly forgotten however when the Barnetts saw it in action, and they now feel justly proud of it. In the Manawatu floods that closed roads and flooded bridges their watercourse held strong, reinforcing their confidence that those sections are safe even in unusually severe flood conditions. Four years after they began, the subdivision has sold five of the eleven lots, with two houses under construction and a third recently completed. “Having the houses taking shape really brings the development to life, it looked beautiful with lush grass and nice driveways and landscaping but it’s a bit soulless until people start living there. “We love seeing people enjoying the sections we’ve helped to create,” says Fiona.
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