Earthquake-prone buildings to wait
It could be several years before four stuctures added to the Timaru District Council’s earthquake-prone building register are strengthened.
They are the Geraldine and Pleasant Point town halls, Caroline Bay Tea Rooms and the old Geraldine Borough Council building.
Timaru District Council spokesman Stephen Doran said this was a project that it was doing over time.
‘‘As per the earthquake-prone buildings provisions of the Building Act, we have 12.5 years to bring buildings on priority routes up to code or 25 years for other buildings, and we expect to have them all resolved well within this time frame, depending on the availability of specialists and contractors,’’ Doran said.
The council has set aside about $1.4 million towards the repair and strengthening of its earthquake-prone buildings. It has completed two projects – the demolition of the Sophia St car park ($130,000) and the upgrade of the Temuka Library and Service Centre. It is estimated that the repair and upgrade of the Temuka Library and Service Centre cost at least $140,000, but there was also some routine maintenance work the council took the opportunity to do since the scaffolding was up.
Meanwhile, work on the Aigantighe Art Gallery is at final design phase and scheduled to happen this year. This work is budgeted at $600,000.
‘‘These buildings are safe to use on a day-to-day basis, just that they may not perform as well as a modern building in the case of a major earthquake.’’
Doran said buildings would be strengthened and upgraded dependent on the risk, and the resources available. ‘‘The buildings on the register aren’t likely to be addressed within the next financial year as we’ve got a number of big projects such as the Aigantighe Art Gallery to complete. It could be several years.’’