By Adam Burns
The manager of a longstanding tenancy service in Christchurch says it is heartbreaking the organisation has had to close its doors.
Photo: 123RF
The Tenants Protection Association (TPA) has revealed it has ceased trading as of Wednesday due to financial constraints.
The charity has provided free advocacy, education and support for renters in the Christchurch area for about 40 years.
The TPA previously had a rental clinic in the Christchurch suburb of Linwood.
Dozens lamented the closure of the service when it was announced on its Facebook page on Wednesday.
Manager Cristene Trenuela-Chan said its services remained in high demand right up until it decided to close.
"The biggest heartbreak for us is the fact that when we shut our doors, we were still receiving messages from clients wanting support," she said.
"That's the heartbreak that we can't help the community right now because of our constraints so essentially it shows our services are still very much needed.
"Particularly now in the current climate, housing is a big topic so we don't want to close."
She said several factors had contributed to the pressures, including a loss of funders and Covid-19.
"We do hope we can find a solution for our financial constraints so we can open our doors again."
A Givealittle page has been set up this week to raise funds.
Trenuela-Chan said the charity needed at least $50,000 to help secure its future and to help with debt repayments.
About $700 had been raised in 24 hours as of Thursday afternoon.
The Christchurch City Council told RNZ it had paid more than $130,000 dollars in grants to the organisation over the past two years.
This included annual grants of $60,000 the association had been receiving since 2020 - as part of a three- year agreement and a further $15,000 from council's discretionary response fund in April.
The TPA has requested another $15,000 this week from council and is due for its final annual grant in September.
"Council is concerned that TPA have found themselves in this situation considering the important work they do and is working with them to look at options," council community partnerships and planning manager Gary Watson said.
"The release of the last year of the annual grant is dependent on annual accountability reports around the outcomes the grant was applied for."