The Dunedin City Council said the building owner was actively working on options for the buildings and was expected to filed a resource consent application, detailing the owner’s plans, in the next few months.
Property developer Jon Leng raised concerns about the safety risk to the public when the roof of 386 Princes St collapsed in July, following heavy rain and more than a decade of inaction.
The lot at 372-392 Princes St, owned by Totara-Dunedin Properties, was served with a six-month dangerous building notice in late June, ordering the company to address the danger to the public and surrounding buildings, but he had yet to see any work taking place at the property next door, Mr Leng said.
The council told him the developers had asked for a five-month extension to comply with the order, Mr Leng said.
"To me, that's pretty much b******t. They’ve had five years," he said.
While Mr Leng had been told the building was safe, he had not been able to access the engineer’s report completed after the roof collapse.
"It should be public knowledge by now — public safety and all that," he said.
Since July, more of a back wall at the lot had fallen.
The dilapidated buildings were "not a good look for Dunedin", Mr Leng said.
The area was starting to improve, with a new cafe, two butchers, a bridal shop and redevelopment of the old Chipmunks site.
A council spokesman confirmed an extension for the dangerous building notices had been approved.
"We are satisfied the building owner is actively working on options for the buildings and has been keeping us updated on progress over the past few months," the spokesman said.
A resource consent application detailing the owner’s plans was expected to be received within the next few months.
In the meantime, existing traffic management measures in the vicinity of the buildings would remain in place to ensure public safety, the spokesman said.
The directors of Totara-Dunedin Properties have been approached for comment through an intermediary.
