For Ockham’s Joss Lewis, New Zealand’s return to Red under the traffic light settings poses no problems. 

“Naturally, I’m devastated for the organisers of Splore and all of the other fantastic big events everyone was looking forward to,” says Joss. “But we’re very fortunate here at Ockham that we can still cater for all of our customers in a personalised way that suits them best under the red-light setting.”

The Ockham sales suite is currently open for business every day (including weekends) from 12-2pm. Visitors will just need to scan in and wear a mask. For extra safely, Joss has split the sales team into two bubbles.

“Half the team are in on Monday and Tuesdays, the other half on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and then we're doing alternative weekends,” she explains.

“Having the team in two separate bubbles just provides that extra level of safety to protect both us and the public. Of course, if those times don’t suit, we’re more than happy for people to make appointments with us. Or if you’d just prefer an individual appointment so you’re not sharing the sales suite with anyone else, that’s fine too!”

Zoom Ninjas

All of Ockham’s sales team are now black belt-level Zoom experts so that’s another good option. “The technology is amazing,” says Joss. “We’ve got pretty adept at sharing the plans and talking people through them. We can give you a really clear understanding of the apartment without having to meet up in person. And also take the time to run through all your questions about buying off the plans.

“Customers also can also take a virtual tour of the apartment. Really, the only thing you're missing out on if you don't come in is looking at the physical model and our display kitchen and bathroom,” Joss adds. “But if we're in the suite, we can always walk you around the sales suite on Zoom.”

At this stage, 75 per cent of apartments at Manaaki have sold but Joss says there still plenty of first-rate apartments waiting to be snapped up.

“People often worry that all of the good ones have gone!” Joss says, with a smile. “But there are still one-, two- and three-bedroom options at Manaaki at various different price points. There are even a few prime spots on the west-facing side looking out over the park left. With The Greenhouse too, there are some truly beautiful apartments available.”

However you choose to get in touch – by Zoom, in person or even with a good, old-fashioned phone call, our sales team can’t wait to hear from you.

“Call, email or FaceTime us anytime!” says Joss. 

Construction keeps on trucking

“We’re just about to hit a big milestone at The Greenhouse,” Ockham Construction’s William Deihl says.

 “We’ve excavated down to the bottom of the basement, we’re getting those ground beams in and we’re looking to get our tower crane up this weekend. The crane will really free up the site, which means we'll be able to move product around easily and really get things cranking. The crane will also give everyone a good idea of the height of the building. Basically, the cab of the crane, where the driver sits, will be just above the top of the building, so you can look out for that if you’re in the Ponsonby area.”

 Meanwhile, as we eagerly await the crane’s arrival, work is progressing nicely at other Ockham projects across the city, as Will explains below:

• “Aroha is going really well, the precast panels for level one of building one have arrived and we’re preparing to pour the slab for the ground level of building two.
• We're coming to the final stages of Star Newton on Nixon Street, it will be completed in March. It’s great seeing the building in all its glory with all of the beautiful brick work.
• At Manaaki, over half of the ground beams are in place for building A, so it's really reacoming along. We've got the site works done for buildings B, C and D as well.
• All of the retaining is complete at Aalto, and we’ve excavated down to the basement level.
• The timings are similar for Koa Flats, the retaining work is finished and we’re making significant headway with the excavations.”

 Will says that the social distancing, sanitising, and mask-wearing required under red-light restrictions is now second-nature for construction team.  

 “Basically, we've been working with restrictions the whole time since coming out of the first lockdown. Vaccine passes are checked religiously, and masks are strictly enforced. It’s really important to us to protect our staff and the families of everyone on site.”

The Ockham Sales Team

Joss Lewis  021 245 5155
Lisa Redgrove 021 415 980
Zara Kehoe  021 162 4451
Georgina Munro  021 457 102