Clearmont Crescent

Opened in 1964, apparently the road name Clearmont Crescent, as with nearby Belair Avenue, was proposed by the developers Beazley Homes Ltd purely for the sound of the name.

Beazley Homes, a company originally from Hawke's Bay, developed land and built affordable houses. The company was very good at what it did. From 1950, builders Barry Beazley and his father "Radiata Fred" operated throughout the North Island. By 1961, they had expanded to the South Island and a year later, the two formed Beazley Homes Ltd. The company headquarters was in Mount Maunganui.

Barry Beazley pioneered the idea of pre-assembling timber framework for wood homes. This technique allowed the company to send out more than 40 house kits a week from Mount Maunganui by truck, rail or ship around New Zealand and overseas.

Beazley Homes Ltd provided a complete service, with planning, design and construction services for dwellings suited to all types of climate and terrain. By 1975 the company was producing more than 1500 houses a year in New Zealand. There were 80 Beazley-accredited franchise builders who were provided with supporting services such as drafting, estimating and managerial advice. The company had its own display village at Māngere.

Beazley Homes' pre-cut homes and the modular designed construction were exported throughout the South Pacific. Beazley Homes was sold as a going concern to Fletcher Holdings, then re- emerged as Fletcher Building. It is famous all over the country and has several large local projects to its credit.

Barry Beazley moved to Australia and, with his son Mark, developed a steel modular home system which became known as Force 10. Barry died, aged 80, at Mount Maunganui in July 2009.

This story was originally published in the Taranaki Daily News.