Crunch time for Wellington's derelict Adelaide Hotel as council takes owners to court
Sunday, 4 October 2020
It’s derelict, earthquake-prone, and past its use-by date, and now its owners want it demolished.
But a lifeline beckons for the 19th-century Adelaide Hotel in Newtown, with Wellington City Council hoping to seize the property from its owners and bring the heritage-listed building up to standard itself.
The two parties are set to slug it out in court from October 14, with the city’s push to bring its remaining 569 quake-prone buildings up to code starting to take on new urgency.
It’s been about 16 years since the council started identifying roughly 1000 earthquake-prone buildings across the city – a process that itself took about 10 years – and its patience with some building owners has now worn thin.
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A notice was first issued for the Adelaide Hotel in 2004 – albeit under different owners – and next week’s court hearing will mark the first time a local authority has applied to complete strengthening work itself.
The council plans to recover the costs from the building’s owner, and has previously signalled its intentions to make the same move against the owners of the derelict 1901 Toomath’s Building in Ghuznee St.
Wellington-based environmental lawyer Andrew Cameron said the council’s action over the Adelaide Hotel was to be applauded.
The building closed its doors about a decade ago, and the deadline to complete strengthening work expired in 2013.
“In my view, this suggests that this council is prepared to appropriately use the process under the law to manage the risk that arises in Wellington due to earthquake-prone buildings, and that is to be welcomed.”
Councils were often reluctant to take on responsibility for earthquake strengthening because of the cost to ratepayers, Cameron said.
“While that cost might be offset against the value of the asset and can be recovered over time, that might not always be the case.
“But the council’s regulatory responsibility to maintain public safety and health is most important.”
The 121-year-old Adelaide Hotel, formerly the Tramway Hotel, is one of seven Wellington buildings to have passed its earthquake-strengthening deadline.
Its owners have applied for a demolition consent, which would need to be publicly notified, but have yet to make payment for the application to proceed.
It’s understood owners Dennis and Chhaya Parbhu, who purchased the red-stickered property in 2015, are also considering constructing an eight-storey building on the site, retaining the facades.
The Parbhus were not available for comment.
Although just seven buildings are overdue for strengthening work, city councillor Iona Pannett is worried the deadlines for the remaining buildings will be too stiff for many owners.
The crunch date is 2027, when 243 of the buildings will need to be strengthened.
“Obviously, the Government has stepped in to help owners of apartment buildings [by offering loans of up to $250,000 for strengthening work], but there have been some concerns raised by inner-city residents about whether that will help them.
“You need a lot more money sometimes than $250,000 to strengthen your apartment.
“There is a point where some people can't afford it.”
Pannett has asked council staff to investigate how many building owners were “really under financial stress”.
“We don’t know how many commercial building owners are just letting their buildings rot.”
Work could take several years to complete, she said.
“I am concerned we will not meet the deadlines. Our team is working really hard to support owners where they can, but the primary burden is on the owner.”
Wellington City Council chief resilience officer Mike Mendonca said private building owners had poured hundreds of millions of dollars into strengthening work over the past few decades.
“We’re quite proud of our progress as a city in this area. We’d love to do this stuff at once, but it takes time.
“I think we’ve struck a good balance between risk and cost.”
No buildings were added to Wellington’s earthquake-prone list following the 2011 Christchurch earthquake, while only the Courtenay Central building was added to the list following the 2016 Kaikōura quake.”
The yellow and red-sticker system was replaced by striped stickers in 2017. The stickers indicate the building’s earthquake rating.
Wellington’s earthquake-prone buildings
Commercial – 185
Multi-use – 101
Residential (mainly inner suburb apartments) – 94
Industrial – 82
Community services – 59
Recreational – 21
Utility services -16
Transport – 7
Primary industry – 4
Strengthening deadlines 2021 – 2035