Hope for law change as quake-prone heritage building faces potential eviction

Saturday, 29 March 2025

Roger Walker lives in one of the earthquake prone apartments at the Tea Store in Egmont St, Wellington. The building has been strengthened but was then assessed below 34% NBS.

Residents in a central Wellington heritage building face possible eviction while stuck in earthquake-prone limbo ‒ with a far from certain law change seemingly their only hope.

Owners across the country are nearly 12 months into a four-year deadline extension to strengthen quake-prone buildings, after the National-led Government last year threw those facing crippling costs a lifeline.

Some have not been so lucky.

Residents of the Tea Store building on Egmont St were ineligible, due their 2023 deadline having passed, and need to find $10 million for strengthening work. Its heritage status makes it impossible to demolish and it cannot be insured against disasters.

The Tea Store was meant to have seismic work completed more than two years ago, but the cost has been prohibitive. Now owners like Roger Walker are concerned about the future.

Owners are now clinging to the hope the government review of earthquake strength settings is the saving grace.

The definition of quake-prone, in most cases, is below a theshold of 34% of the “New Building Standard” or NBS, which has been the subject of much debate.

The four-storey brick Tea Store was brought up to code in 2000, when changed from industrial to a residential apartment block with 19 units. But after an update to the system came into effect in 2017, the building’s rating dropped from 100% to between 0% and 20%.

Architect Roger Walker inside his expired quake-prone apartment on Egmont Street.

There are more than 500 buildings awaiting strengthening in Wellington City under the existing rules and more than 200 buildings needed strengthening by 2031.

For prominent architect Roger Walker, who already spent $400,000 fitting out his Tea Store apartment, it was a “very stressful” situation.

“It's my workplace as well as my home, so I'm even worse off.”

He has no plans to leave and will take legal action if necessary.

The Tea Store was orginally built as a industrial storage unit for tea.

“They haven't confirmed yet, but they’ve indicated that they’re obliged under their powers to throw us out the street … it’s very unfair.”

The building’s body corporate chairperson, Chris Graham, said there was “absolutely nothing” they could do about the situation.

“It’s almost impossible for most owners to get money because banks are very reluctant to lend for that sort of work.”

The Tea Store body corporate chairperson Chris Graham is holding out for a seismic law change.

The last advice he had heard was that the council was consulting with MBIE and Construction and Building Minister Chris Penk about the situation.

“It would be absolutely monumentally unfair and punitive to take action against its owners while this review is going on.

“All [eviction] is going to do is create severe financial hardship for owners and a building in the middle of Wellington that’s empty, boarded shut and subject to the sort of vandalism that's rife in the central city at the moment.”

To date, owners had paid around $1m on engineering work to figure out an affordable strengthening plan - estimated to cost up to $10m, but which could be higher.

Council grants had paid for minor works needed on the facade, but no other funding options were available after a government scheme offering loans to help earthquake-prone building owners was discontinued last year.

Over the past three years, three residents had died and their units were sold at heavily discounted prices as families were reluctant to take on the burden.

“It’s not only a financial burden, it’s a physiological and emotional burden as well,” Graham said.

Minister Chris Penk hopes the review will bring “much needed clarity” to the system.

A Wellington City Council spokesperson said while the council had powers to close the building, and responsibilities as a regulator under the Building Act, a decision had not yet been made.

“We have been working with the body corporate and owners on a ‘no surprises’ basis.”

The council can impose safety requirements on quake-prone buildings, including attaching notices warning people not to approach.

“This would have the effect of closing the building and prevent owners, occupants, and the public from approaching, entering, and using the building.”

The council spokesperson acknowledged in cases where owners could not afford the cost of strengthening “prosecution and a fine will not help to fix the building, or to resolve its earthquake-prone status”.

The council would continue to have active discussions with them and assist “as much as possible” to get their building strengthened and comply with the act.

Penk, who fast-tracked the review and gave owners extensions, declined to comment while the review was ongoing.

He previously told The Post he hoped the review would bring “much-needed clarity”.

Do you have a earthquake-prone building? Contact news@thepost.co.nz