“Expensive and often unrealistic remediation costs that are disproportionate to risk threaten buildings becoming derelict.
“Instead, we’re enabling that money to be invested elsewhere. To grow businesses, jobs and the economy,” he said.
Watts said for buildings that remained earthquake-prone, remediation requirements would be more targeted.
He said this would help reduce costs and complexity while ensuring life-safety risks were still addressed.
“For many communities, particularly smaller towns, meeting the current requirements has been a significant challenge.
“The reforms take a more proportionate approach to managing seismic risk while ensuring high-risk buildings continue to be identified and addressed,” he said.
High-risk unreinforced masonry buildings and vulnerable multistorey concrete buildings in high and medium seismic zones will continue to be subject to earthquake-prone building (EPB) requirements.
Watts said councils would still have the ability to identify “serious seismic risks” that may have been missed.
Updated seismic zones, based on the latest seismic scientific knowledge, will take effect the day after Royal Assent and the remainder of the reforms would come into force on July 1 next year.
Watts said this would give councils, building owners and the wider sector time to prepare.
He said buildings in Auckland, the Chatham Islands and the upper North Island low seismic zone will be removed from the earthquake-prone building system entirely.
All existing earthquake-prone building designations will be removed for these regions.
Building and Construction Minister Simon Watts said the “significant reform” would save Kiwi building owners and the New Zealand economy $8.2 billion. Photo / NZME
In what is also part of the change, Watts said areas of coastal Otago and Stewart Island that were previously in a low seismic zone would move to a medium seismic zone.
Under the new system, low-risk concrete and wooden buildings will no longer have EPB status, while remaining EPBs will have more cost-effective remediation requirements.
“Guidance materials are currently being developed to support implementation and are expected to be shared for public consultation later this year.
“This is about fixing the basics for a better-working system. By focusing effort on the buildings that present the greatest risk to life, the reforms will deliver safer communities, smarter regulation, and avoid disproportionate and unrealistic costs,” Watts said.
Wayne Brown ‘delighted’
Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown said he was “delighted” the bill had passed last night and that “common sense” had prevailed.
“I raised this directly with Chris Penk when he was Minister for Building and Construction because the rules made no sense for Auckland and were imposing huge and unnecessary costs on building owners,” Brown said.
He said Auckland was one of the least seismically active regions of New Zealand, but despite that, building owners were being hit with “ridiculous” seismic assessment and strengthening costs.
Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown said he was “delighted” the bill had passed last night. Photo / NZME
“The system became a big earner for consultants and building managers writing reports, preparing estimates and assessments, proposing strengthening work and producing the dreaded earthquake ratings, all at considerable cost to building owners.”
Brown said the “equally bad fire rules” also needed to be tackled because they hindered the conversion of second-tier office buildings into apartments in the city.
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