An architect has been hired by the Otago Regional Council to find solutions to the shortage of space in its Stafford St office.
The overcrowding was one of the main reasons the regional council decided about five years ago to find new premises.
However, a proposal to build a multimillion-dollar office on Dunedin's waterfront was shelved two years ago, leaving staff to continue working under space constraints.
Chief executive Graeme Martin said Norman Oakley, of Oakley Gray Architects, had been hired to look at what could be done in the short term to alleviate the acute pressure on the premises. He was not looking for a long-term solution for the site, as that option had been ruled out by councillors.
Oakley Gray had been the architect for the building for many years, he said.
Mr Oakley's "thinking" would then be presented to councillors at a workshop and at the next committee round, he said.
As predicted, the pressure on facilities had grown since 2007 when the council first started looking at options, especially as the regulations and laws had changed, requiring more scientific, community liaison and planning work, in particular around water and hazards.
"For the past two years, we've been severely constrained. Every time we get another office requirement, the problem becomes more acute."
The lack of new offices had also meant the council had to carry out maintenance, as the building needed painting and the roof required work, which was being done now, he said.
"We've got to keep things workable and not let the value of the building erode due to neglect, whether we stay or not."
Funding for Mr Oakley and the painting and roofing work was coming out of the maintenance budget.
It was separate to the $150,000 set aside in this year's budget to investigate new building options, he said.
How that money would be spent had "not been determined in any shape or form".
