Venture Timaru is undertaking the survey and encouraging as many people as possible to complete it, to help gain a wider understanding of the district’s housing needs both now and in the future.
Venture Timaru chief executive Nigel Davenport said that for many businesses, attracting new staff was closely linked with housing availability, so to have some clear direction about the housing needs for workers and the community was critical.
The information will be shared with the Timaru District Council to guide plans for new housing developments and projects and infrastructure.
"We simply need more people in our district to add vibrancy and ensure our district can prosper into the future. Aligned to this, our businesses need to attract more staff, therefore we need more housing to accommodate these people — but the question is ‘what kind of housing is this?’," Mr Davenport said.
"Many of our businesses are attracting a global workforce, and often the traditional Kiwi quarter-acre house and section is of no interest to them. They look for an apartment or townhouse with limited or no outdoor space, so they have plenty of free time when they’re not working to explore the region and beyond.
"Many of these people love inner- or near-city living, which means we need to accelerate housing in our city or towns either with new projects or converting existing buildings."
"We’ve been quite specific with some of the questions, as it will give really valuable information for the council, developers and indeed us all."
Mr Davenport encouraged workplaces to share the survey with their staff and networks to spread as widely as possible, as this would provide better information.
The survey can be found on surveymonkey.com.
