Fa’amatuainu
Tino Pereira | CEO
“Teu muamua lou loto-i-fale” – In the context of the Samoan housing space, the metaphor reflects the wisdom of taking heed first of the inner safety and integrity of the household as the overriding value underpinning the fale space. In essence, Our Whare Our Fale speaks to that sentiment, highlighting the quality of the lives of the families and the community as a critical driver for this unique and historical project.
“When we strengthen our wellbeing and protect our dignity for our loto-i-fale (inside our homes), we also protect and strengthen our wellbeing outside our homes - reflecting on the blessings of high quality Pasefika-designed and built homes.”
Our communities have been yearning for a re-affirmation of these values as we begin to re-imagine a Pasefika village in Aotearoa New Zealand. CPC now has a community mandate to build these homes that are authenticated and designed by Pasefika -and built by Pasefika for Pasefika. The homes will help leverage socio-economic outcomes, prosperity and sustainable wellbeing.
Jason Leung Wai
Strategy, Policy
& Housing Lead
Our Whare Our Fale is a real option for Pasefika families wanting to own their own home. Not only are the houses designed for the Pasefika community, they are affordable. The homes are built on leasehold land by CPC, so land costs and developer margins are not part of the cost. Further we have used scale and partnerships to keep the build costs down.
As well as making the homes more affordable, we make them accessible to more families through a Shared Ownership Scheme, where we retain some of the ownership, which you can purchase at a later date.
“We want Pasefika families to live in a house that is their own, and for their whole family to share in the benefits that home ownership brings”
We will guide you to a position where you can buy an Our Whare Our Fale house, and then we will support you once you are in your home to ensure that you can fully realise the benefits of owning your own home.
Elyjana Roach
Design and Masterplanning Lead
Our Whare Our Fale is one of the most pivotal moments in our community's history to ask ourselves how we want to live together. How are we building our communities in a way that supports health and well-being for the generations to come? This project aims to do this through Pasefika-led design that re-imagines the village in its master planning and architecture.
We've designed a range of typologies, from 4-bedroom houses that are more multi-generational to 3- and 2-bedroom options for growing families. The homes are to be warm and dry, with plenty of natural sunlight and access to open space. The design captures the quote, "The Englishmans home is his castle armoured to keep out intruders – not so the Polynesians from the islands; his home is open with the warmth of his land in his heart for any who desire to come within."
“One of the most exciting parts of the design is how the arrangement of the houses centers around the common areas, which is central to our Pasefika ethos.”
The shared common spaces allow for extended living, social gatherings, and the opportunity to foster community interactions. Through Our Whare Our Fale, we have the most significant opportunity to re-think how our community functions and operates in the context of Aotearoa, by returning to the fundamental principles underlying our Pasefika cultures.
Anthony Carter
Stakeholder Engagement Lead
Our Pasefika community is at the heart of the Our Whare Our Fale project. The 300 homes we are building are designed by, and built for, the Pasefika community.
We want our Pasefika community and key stakeholders to have a clear understanding of the purpose of Our Whare Our Fale. We want them to be engaged in and supportive of the project. We want them to be comfortable in and proud of the homes we are building for them.
“Affordable, fit-for-purpose housing is critical to improving our community’s quality of life. Our Whare Our Fale will positively impact our community and contribute to the dreams and aspirations of our Pasefika families.”
With our community we want to develop an ongoing highway of information and input to the work of CPC and informing what we build and how we enable the Pasefika community into those homes. We will continue to have deep and wide engagement, sharing information in ways that are familiar to Pasefika communities.