Leaky claims centre on $60m complex

Contractors have raised alarms over leaks and major faults in the 10-year-old luxury complex. Photo / Herald on Sunday

Contractors who worked on Auckland's luxury Princes Wharf complex say parts are leaking and major faults have been ignored or patched up with cosmetic repairs.

Cladding, decks and joinery are allegedly leaking in the 10-year-old complex made up of six converted cargo sheds.

The claims centre on Shed 21, which houses the five-star Hilton Hotel, and Shed 24, which houses apartments, retail and office space.

Parts of those sheds are currently under repair. Management says the work is minor, but contractors who've worked on the wharf before believe the problems are more serious.

A group of apartment owners from Shed 24 is facing a $1.2 million repair bill and has hired a QC to represent it.

One contractor who worked on the wharf last year wrote to city officials warning lack of action could lead to a loss of structural integrity and eventual building failure.

In his letter, architect Malcolm McAll, of Ecos Homes, said he believed problems included leaky cladding, leaky decks and corrosion to the bottom of lift shafts: "Recently we opened up an area where there was a leak, found decaying timber and were then instructed to close the area without carrying out repairs."

A former Shed 24 tenant said his office was "like a colander".

"The second floor had quite a big deck area and the water used to cascade down into the office. If you got a big rainstorm there would be water running down the pillars."

The deck was replaced but that failed to solve the problem.

Another contractor said he believed decks, cladding and joinery in exposed areas were leaking. "It was never designed for that high-wind zone. Water would build up and blow up against the joinery and it couldn't get away."

The contractor believed previous repairs were minor and the cause of the problem had not been addressed.

"All that joinery should have been pulled out and reinstated to a higher specification."

He said his company did a "full report" but believed complex management put it in the "too-hard basket".

But he believed Shed 21 was less affected than Shed 24 because more extensive repairs were done earlier.

Parts of the Hilton are undergoing more work, but general manager Chris Partridge said it was "general maintenance and repair work".

Work had been done on the roof, but the building was managed by a separate company and "we're not always privy to what the work relates to".

Another contractor, who worked at Princes Wharf two years ago, said major repairs were needed in Sheds 21 and 24: "There were deck leaks, there were window leaks, there were roof leaks, there were a whole lot of things."

He said the problems were hampered by ships berthing and crashing into the wharf.

One leaky buildings expert - who asked not to be named - said the wharf's complicated leasehold arrangements would make it hard to establish liability for any leaks.

Dockland Holdings Limited holds the lessees' interest and subcontracts building management to a company called Livingstones.

Dockland director Marc Lindale denied the complex was leaky and said the current work was "normal repairs and maintenance on an area which is subject to high winds in a marine environment".

Work on Shed 24 was "not significant". Lindale acknowledged the work involved joinery, but there were no "systemic issues within the building".

An email exchange obtained by the Herald on Sunday shows proposed repairs include waterproofing decks and deck coverings, replacing joinery and rotten timber, repairing water-damaged interiors, poorly-constructed showers and potential recladding.

Gerald Bethell, whose parents own an apartment in Shed 24, has organised the group of apartments owners but refused to comment.

Lindale was aware the group had appointed a QC but was not aware of "all the issues".

Docklands was responsible for collecting the ground rent and managing owners' problems but ultimate responsibility for the building lay with the apartment owners.

One apartment owner said he had suffered minor leaks in his deck and carpark but was satisfied the building was generally sound.

Work on Princes Wharf began in 1998 after David Henderson's Kitchener Group bought the lease from Ports of Auckland Limited.

Henderson owns a $10m apartment in Shed 21. He said it didn't leak, and he was not aware of any leaky problems in Shed 24.

The development was designed by architect Colin Leuschke who hung up when contacted by the Herald on Sunday.

The city council said a consent for remedial work had been granted for Shed 24. A consent had also been lodged for Shed 21, the Hilton building, and exploratory work was being done under supervision of an architect.