Waipa¯ council finds new office space
Several dozen Waipa¯ District Council staffers have a new place to work now their old office needs earthquake strengthening.
About 70 staffers will move into a leased building in Te Awamutu’s Rickit Road early 2023, the council said – and ‘‘no-one will be moving back into the Roche Street building anytime soon’’.
The staff were evacuated from that building – which also houses the Te Awamutu Museum – in October after an independent seismic assessment.
It found the building was at 20% of New Building Standard and vulnerable in an earthquake.
Council confirmed in late November that it had leased the 55 Rickit Road building from Te Wa¯nanga o Aotearoa at a market rental. The council has an 18-month lease with two rights of renewal, with funding coming from the council’s cash surplus.
Chief executive Garry Dyet could not confirm how long the Rickit Road building would be needed for.
‘‘What is clear is that no-one will be moving back into the Roche Street building anytime soon,’’ he said.
‘‘In the meantime, we’re grateful to have found local space quickly. It means we can get staff back with their colleagues because at the moment, they are either working from home or are grabbing a desk where they can.’’
The council is still assessing options and looking at how the seismic issues at Roche Street might be fixed, he said. But that would take some time and means the Te Awamutu Museum would also remain closed.
‘‘We’re continuing to look at potential pop-up options for a museum in Rickit Road but there’s a lot to work through.’’