City council calls for extra quake rules

Wellington City Council is proposing a raft of changes to the legislation that governs earthquake-prone buildings, which could see more capital buildings slapped with a yellow sticker, according to one councillor.

From July 2017, the Government’s Building (Earthquake-Prone Buildings) Amendment Act 2016 will introduce a risk-based framework to enforce national timeframes and procedures for addressing quake-prone buildings.

It will clarify the definition of, and criteria for, earthquake-prone buildings and provide for a national register. It will also give councils the discretion to halve the timeframe for either strengthening or demolishing quake-prone buildings. In Wellington, most affected sites must be remedied within 15 years.

The city council has drafted some feedback on the amendment, which it will debate at a meeting on Thursday.

The council’s submission says it wants to see the inclusion of ground assessments, buildings with facades and more information on costs for building owners.

Councillor Iona Pannett, who chairs the city strategy committee, said the magnitude 7.8 quake on November 14 showed that building damage in Wellington could be down to the ground condition, rather than construction.

‘‘The fact that a number of buildings on the waterfront did not work well shows us that prone ground needs to be looked at and, in turn, those buildings could be added.’’

Several waterfront buildings were damaged in the quake, including the Greater Wellington Regional Council’s offices at Shed 39, the BNZ Harbour Quays building – which is likely to be closed for months – and Statistics House, where a floor partially collapsed, prompting a government investigation into its quake performance.

But Pannett pointed out that Wellington was still ahead of the game. ‘‘[The legislation] won’t have a big impact on Wellington because we started assessments about 10 years ago, but it could allow us to potentially identify more buildings.’’

Wellington Mayor Justin Lester said he didn’t think the council’s current list of quake-prone buildings would change as a result of the amended legislation.

He intended to use the new powers to compel building owners to conduct checks by structural engineers following earthquakes. ‘‘Right now, the responsibility lies solely with the building owner. That’s not good enough and I’m pleased to see the Government giving councils more powers to make sure these checks are done.’’

"[The legislation] won't have a big impact on Wellington ... but it could allow us to potentially identify more buildings." Wellington City councillor Iona Pannett