Whanganui District Council begins process of issuing earthquake-prone building notices

Earthquake-prone buildings within Whanganui’s priority building and thoroughfare group will have to display notices about their ratings. Photo / Bevan Conley

Whanganui District Council staff are working to identify earthquake-prone buildings, with notices set to appear on at-risk buildings.

Under the Building (Earthquake-prone Buildings) Amendment Act 2016, the council manages earthquake-prone buildings in the district. The act identifies three seismic areas throughout New Zealand - high, medium and low - with Whanganui categorised as a medium seismic zone.

Regulatory and compliance manager Jason Shailer said the council’s building control team had identified potential earthquake-prone buildings within Whanganui’s priority building and thoroughfare group.

“Building owners have also had the opportunity to supply the council with engineering assessments during this time, and now we’re about to start issuing applicable earthquake-prone building notices to these owners.”

The area covers 1 Victoria Ave to 200/200B Victoria Ave inclusive; 61 Guyton St to 100 Guyton St inclusive; 1 Maria Pl to 30 Maria Pl inclusive; 34 Ridgway St to 70 Ridgway St inclusive; and 32 Taupō Quay to 68 Taupō Quay inclusive.

By the end of 2024, the earthquake-prone buildings will have a notice that must be displayed in a prominent place at all times on or next to an affected building.

The notices, authorised by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, show an applicable New Building Standards (NBS) percentage rating.

For buildings with an NBS rating between 0% and less than 20%, a notice with a black and orange border will be issued. For an NBS rating between 20% and less than 34%, the notice has a black and white border. For buildings with an unknown NBS rating, the notice has an orange border.

The council will distribute most of the notices to building owners by the end of 2024.

Heritage building owners affected by the notices can apply for funding through the council’s Heritage Grant Fund.

Professional seismic assessments, such as engineering reports, can be refunded through the fund by up to 80% if the advice is less than $15,000 (excluding GST), and by up to 50% if the advice is more than $15,000.

Shailer said once a notice was issued, building owners had 16.5 years to remediate any areas that affected a priority thoroughfare.

“These areas are usually verandas, parapets and frontages. The remainder of the building, if identified as earthquake-prone, is required to be strengthened or demolished within 29 years. Individual notices will stipulate the timeframes required for each building and/or part of the building.”