It was supposed to be a Kāinga Ora initiative to bring the residents of Wrigley Rd in Fordlands together by helping them dispose of rubbish free of charge. But it ended up a “smelly” and “disgusting” mess after people from outside the area took advantage. Senior journalist Kelly Makiha reports. 

Kāinga Ora has been forced to pick up the clean-up tab after “mountains of rubbish” were dumped on Rotorua’s Wrigley Rd following what was supposed to be a friendly day to bring the street’s community together. 

More than 40 tyres, whiteware, lawnmowers, old mattresses, drawers, old bikes, bags of household rubbish and dirty nappies were dumped on Fordlands’ Wrigley Rd, mainly over the weekend, after people who don’t live on the street “abused” a clean-up day organised by Kāinga Ora that offered free skip bins. 

Some larger items, lawfully leaned against the skip bins by residents who were following Kāinga Ora’s advice, were also left behind when the bins were removed, adding to the problem. 

An affected Wrigley Rd resident said neighbourhood dogs ended up sifting through the bags of rubbish causing what they said was a “smelly” mess as dirty nappies and other household waste were strewn across the footpaths, spilling on to the road. 

Mattresses, whiteware, tyres, mattresses and dirty nappies were among the items dumped by random people. Photo / Andrew Warner 

The clean-up day on Thursday last week was part of a programme of events organised by Kāinga Ora to bring communities together. Kāinga Ora has now put planned future free rubbish days on hold. 

Kāinga Ora, via a letter drop, offered all residents on Wrigley Rd to bring their rubbish out between 9am and 4pm and put it in the skip bins provided. 

One resident, who didn’t want her name published for fear of repercussions, told the Rotorua Daily Post it was initially an awesome day as residents were pitching in to help each other carry heavy items, including old fridges and mattresses. 

She said Kāinga Ora staff told some residents to lean their bigger items against the skip bins because they would fill the bins up too quickly, or were difficult to lift. 

Kāinga Ora's clean-up day went wrong. Photo / Andrew Warner 

But when the bins were removed at 4pm, those small piles remained. 

She said word then quickly spread, including on social media, that Wrigley Rd was the place to go to dump rubbish free of charge. 

She said on Friday she was concerned when more people arrived in cars with trailers and started to dump rubbish. 

She said she rang Kāinga Ora to warn it needed to clean up the mess or it would get worse. She said no one returned her call. 

Piles of rubbish being removed from the roadside on Wrigley Rd. Photo / Andrew Warner 

One of the piles was near her house and there were two other piles further down the street. 

“Over the weekend, we were getting trucks and trailers turning up and dumping all their stuff ... Dogs were getting into it. It was terrible, there were nappies and black plastic rubbish bags. It was smelly.” 

The dumping continued escalating over the weekend. 

“In the middle of the night, a big truck turned up and dumped 40 tyres. The pile was just growing and growing. It was mountains of rubbish. Disgusting.” 

She said even when council contractors arrived on Monday about midday to remove the rubbish, people were still arriving with trailers to dump rubbish. 

What Kāinga Ora says 

Kāinga Ora Bay of Plenty regional manager Darren Toy said, like other landlords, Kāinga Ora expected tenants to look after their homes and ensure rubbish did not build up. 

“When we are helping customers settle into their new home and community, a key focus is ensuring the tenant understands their responsibilities. That includes being a good neighbour and member of the community.” 

He said sometimes Kāinga Ora staff helped tenants remove rubbish. 

“The day was a great success with neighbours meeting and helping each other to ensure the street was looking good.” 

People from outside Wrigley Rd dumped rubbish over the weekend. Wrigley Rd. Photo / Andrew Warner 

But Toy said after the skip bins were removed, more rubbish was dumped, resulting in large piles of rubbish building up. 

In response to the resident’s comments, Toy said staff had advised residents to put some of the larger items to the side of the skips. 

“It looks like not all the large items were removed by our maintenance partner when they picked up the skip bins on Thursday.” 

Toy said calls were received about the additional rubbish and extra loads were picked up on Thursday and Friday but more rubbish was dumped over the weekend. 

He said Kāinga Ora would pay for Rotorua Lakes Council to remove the rubbish. 

“We have put rubbish removal days in other areas on hold until we can ensure they are not taken advantage of.” 

Illegal dumping 

Council waste and climate change, infrastructure and environmental solutions manager Craig Goodwin said it was disappointing the collection initiative was “abused leading to extra costs. 

“This is classed as illegal dumping.” 

Piles of rubbish being removed from the roadside on Wrigley Rd. Photo / Andrew Warner 

He said contractors Smart Environmental was sent on Monday to clean up the mess. 

“We estimate the cost could be $3000 to $4000 but will know once the work is completed.” 

Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist who has reported for the Rotorua Daily Post for more than 25 years, covering mainly police, court, human interest and social issues. 

This article was originally published on the NZ Herald here.