Oamaru House Trust has operated an accommodation facility from 95 Hanover St in Dunedin since its inception in 1999 with the aim of providing affordable accommodation for support persons and patients needing care at Dunedin Hospital.
The lease held by the Oamaru House Trust is due to be terminated on October 31 because the building is scheduled for demolition.
While the self-funded trust is in a financially viable position to meet the costs of closure, it does not have the financial resources to fit out a new building to required accommodation standards or to purchase a new suitable building within walking distance of Dunedin Hospital.
"That’s the hottest part of the central city in Dunedin and it is in the millions of dollars to purchase [a property], and we can’t do that," trust chairman Tony Caldwell said.
"We only found out two weeks ago, so it’s still early days. If the closure goes ahead, we would be looking at four months. So, even if we did find something, we’re not going to be able to refit it in four months."
Mr Caldwell said the next step would be to try to talk to Waitaki District Council, but it was unlikely to get government funding.
Since it was set up following two years of fundraising, "thousands upon thousands" of Otago patients and families have utilised the accommodation facility.
"Our room rates are reasonably cheap. They start at $120 up to $150 a night.
"It was designed for young families or just families in general to stay, particularly those with young children, but also for elderly people who need treatment in the hospital so the husband, the wife or the partner can have accommodation, especially when they’re coming from out of town like Oamaru."
It was not just people from Oamaru who used the facility, Mr Caldwell said.
"Cromwell and Alexandra are big users of the facility, Queenstown and even Invercargill. So, those people come from out of town and got nowhere to stay, they stay there. We don’t rent the place out for Dunedin residents — it’s all for country folks."
Former Oamaru Hospital Board chairman Keith Marshall said the Oamaru House Trust’s accommodation service provided "invaluable support for folk" in their time of need.
"If the government is as committed as they say they are to healthcare support for rural communities, then they should step up and address the long-standing shortfalls in patient transport and short-term stays that are a constant bugbear for the people of Waitaki."
