LIittle more than half of building consents have been completed within the 20-day statutory timeframe this year, a report tabled at yesterday's Dunedin City Council planning and regulatory committee revealed.
The report, which includes data up to March this year, showed the number of consents processed within the statutory limit of 20 working days had been steadily declining since April last year, when 99% were processed on time, and only 51% were completed within the expected timeframe this March.
The figures were similarly low in January and February, with 54% and 62% respectively, and marked a steep decline from June last year when 95% were still completed on time.
Council regulatory services group manager Adrian Blair told the committee members that processors were stretched because some staff had left and consent applications were well up on last year.
Council services and development general manager Simon Pickford said the problem had been exacerbated by a "significant number of large consents'', such as the University of Otago's $126million dental school project, being applied for this year.
The Otago Daily Times reported yesterday the council was attempting to recruit another processor and were assessing the possibility of hiring more site inspectors to cope with an increase in work flowing on from the higher number of consent applications.
The council hired two processors last month to ease the workload of the delay-plagued department.
A month earlier, it was revealed processing times had blown out and several consents were outstanding after 40 working days - twice the statutory limit of 20 days.
Companies were also juggling planning around extended deadlines, with reports of some workers having to down tools and take leave to cope with delays.
