Tenants told to leave before Christmas
Residents of a 34-unit apartment block are being forced out days before Christmas.
Inhabitants in Grand Apartments, on the corner of Centreway Rd and West Hoe Rd in Orewa, received a 90-day notice to vacate their homes by December 15 to make way for repairs to the building.
In a statement from the building body corporate, Sharron O’Sullivan of About Body Corporates said, after a long process, the owners are embarking on remediation of the building which commences in January.
‘‘Regretfully for all owners and tenants, the building is required to be unoccupied for the repairs to proceed.
‘‘The body corporate and owners are unable to comment on any legal aspect of recovery due to a confidential agreement with all parties,’’ O’Sullivan said.
Works were expected to be completed in early 2019, she said.
The three-storey building was built in 2005.
Geotechnical investigations were conducted by Tonkin & Taylor and the building signed off by the then-Rodney District Council.
One tenant said she had only been in her unit for three months.
Two days before the 90-day notice her landlord told her she could expect to remain in the unit for another 12 months.
Then she was ‘shocked’ to receive notice saying she had fewer than 90 days to move.
‘‘[I was] pretty bummed, especially because it was right on Christmas.’’
Prendos, who are also overseeing remediation work at the Nautilus building in Orewa, are managing the repairs.
Council documents from Prendos show the mulit-million dollar job includes demolishing the inside of the bottom floor units to remove and replace the concrete slab and foundations they sit on.
Included in a 10-page scope of work document was replacing the wall cladding on all three levels and the building’s roof. First and second floor apartments will have their ensuites and bathrooms waterproofed and refurbished.
Auckland Council confirmed it was defending legal over the issuing of a code of compliance for the building.
‘‘Due to confidentiality obligations Auckland Council is not in a position to comment any further,’’ senior media adviser Michael Smith said.