The new 12-storey BNZ office building helps revitalise downtown Wellington. Photo / Mark Mitchell
The new 12-storey BNZ office building helps revitalise downtown Wellington. Photo / Mark Mitchell
It’s been eight years since the Kaikōura earthquake damaged BNZ’s nearly eight-year-old building beyond repair, and finally, the bank’s Wellington staff are coming together under one roof.
“BNZ Place” is formally being opened by Finance Minister Nicola Willis on Thursday.
The highly profitable Australian-owned bank has spent northof $50 million fitting out the building, which it’s leasing from developer, Newcrest LP.
About 1500 of BNZ’s 1800 Wellington staff can work from the 12-storey building at 1 Whitmore Street.
Situated across the road from PWC’s waterfront building, about 500 metres from Parliament, the building helps revitalise the site, previously used for a petrol station.
Rather than have a basement for car parks, BNZ Place is base isolated to make it quake-resilient.
BNZ’s general manager of property Kelly Galbraith said making room for car parks was an option, but BNZ opted to use the space to create areas for staff to connect with each other.
The café and communal space for BNZ staff in BNZ Place. Photo / Mark Mitchell
“We’re trying to make it somewhere people want to come and work,” she said.
It’s a been a disruptive time for BNZ staff, who have been spread across various offices in the city since the 2016 earthquake. The “working-from-home” Covid era further limited the amount of face-time staff have had with each other.
The building includes a windproof rooftop deck and BBQ area, open-plan lounge and dining area, recreation rooms, and range of workspaces.
The wind-protected roof-top BBQ area for BNZ staff at BNZ Place. Photo / Mark Mitchell
A group of people were heading to a Zumba class in the “yoga room” when the Herald was taking a look, while a man was using a rowing machine in the “cardio room”.
There is also a “retreat space” with pod-like beds and a “faith room”.
Sleep pods for staff to use in the BNZ Place office building. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Staff can unwind by playing table tennis or a piano, while the main open-plan lounge area has a pool table, and a cafe and a big screen for gaming.
Much like car parks, private offices and top-floor boardrooms aren’t a feature of the building, which admittedly isn’t where the bank’s senior leadership team is based.
BNZ’s top brass are Auckland-based, with many of its technology-focussed staff in Wellington.
While it’s hard to find a spot in the building that doesn’t have a view, Galbraith said the best spaces were available for all to use.
She said building occupancy was still only 60 to 70 per cent on any given day, with the company allowing staff to work from home up to two days a week.
BNZ has for some years done “hot desking”, meaning staff move around with laptops, rather than have their own desks.
There are various spaces available for meetings or privacy.
The outlook to Wellington waterfront and PWC from the function space in BNZ Place, available for BNZ business customers. Photo / Mark Mitchell
While BNZ sold much of its art collection some time ago, works are still splashed throughout the building.
A puhoro design, representing Pacific people’s journey to Aotearoa is a feature, as is lighting above the stairwell in the shape of the Southern Cross.
On display are banking relics from the past, including scales, physical books used to denote the value of gold sold to bank by miners, and retro-looking bank cards and merchandise.
Galbraith said BNZ drew on the expertise of its customers for various parts of the building’s fitout, including Studio Pacific architects, Maxwell Rodgers, which restored furniture salvaged from the old office, Vidak, Alaska Construction, Europlan, and Egmont Dixon project management.
BNZ has had a presence in Wellington for 160 years.
Jenée Tibshraeny is the Herald’s Wellington business editor, based in the Parliamentary press gallery. She specialises in government and Reserve Bank policymaking, economics and banking.
