Earthquake-remediation work will take place across several Wellington City Council social housing complexes.

Wellington City Council and Te Toi Mahana, which manage the tenancies at the properties, have informed tenants across six social housing complexes that earthquake-strengthening will be carried out.

The Council recently commissioned seismic and occupancy risk assessments for the buildings. The findings of the assessments show that parts of the properties are below the 34 percent New Building Standard (NBS) threshold for being earthquake-prone. Under the NBS system, a building’s seismic performance rating is given based on its seismically weakest part.

The Council has reviewed the latest advice in conjunction with the MBIE Seismic Risk Guidance for Buildings and concluded there is nothing within the assessments that indicate that these buildings cannot continue to be lived in prior to works being carried out. This is consistent with the approach commonly taken with privately owned earthquake-prone buildings across the city.

Fourteen blocks containing a total 301 units are affected across six social housing complexes. The properties impacted are:

• Berkeley Dallard, 46 Nairn Street, Mount Cook.
• 144, 146, 148 Daniell Street, Newtown.
• Hanson Court (Blocks A, C, D & E), at 80 Hanson Street and 3 Hutchison Road, Newtown.
• Kōtuku (Blocks A, B,C & D), at 5 Kemp Street and 609 Evans Parade, Kilbirnie.
• Pukehinau (link bridge only), 4 Brooklyn Road, Aro Valley.
• Whare Ahuru Flats, 16 Glenmore Street, Thorndon.

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Te Toi Mahana will be rehousing tenants where required, for the upgrade works to take place. The Council and Te Toi Mahana will host information sessions at impacted properties, so tenants can ask questions and talk face to face with staff. These will be followed up with detailed sessions explaining the timelines of the projects at the various buildings.

Council Chief Infrastructure Officer Jenny Chetwynd says: “While there is nothing within the assessments that indicates the buildings cannot continue to be lived in, the Council appreciates the uncertainty it can cause and is committed to completing the work with minimal disruption to tenants and in a timely manner.”

Te Toi Mahana General Manager Tenancy Daniel Tai says: “We understand this may cause concern for our tenants. Please be assured, we will support all our tenants throughout this process and work alongside them to minimise the impact that this may cause.”

The Earthquake-Prone Building Notices will be displayed at the entrances to the buildings.

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