Around 300 "high-risk" buildings in quake-prone regions will have to be upgraded within a year, the Government announced today.
Using emergency powers introduced after the Magnitude 7.8 Kaikoura Earthquake on November 14, the Government will require all unreinforced masonry facades and parapets to be fixed within the new timeframe.
The rules will be limited to regions with a heightened risk of an aftershock following the Kaikoura event - Wellington, Lower Hutt, and Blenheim.
The cost of carrying out the upgrades was estimated to be $20,000 to $30,000 per building, but local councils would subsidise half of the cost. Renovations would also be exempted from resource consent and building consent rules as long as the work was overseen by a qualified engineer.
The Government has established a $3 million fund to cover the cost of the subsidies.
Announcing the policy today, Building and Construction Minister Nick Smith said he had been advised that the Kaikoura quake had significantly increased the seismic risks in Wellington, Lower Hutt and Blenheim over the next three years.
Getting all building owners to secure unreinforced structures urgently was "the prudent response", he said. While the costs were high, the renovations significantly reduced the risk of fatalities after a quake. Dr Smith said 39 people were killed by falling parapets and facades in the Christchurch quakes in 2011.
Asked why the subsidies were required, Dr Smith said it was a "pragmatic" response for building owners who will not have had time to save the costs needed for the upgrades.
The policy stemmed from a report provided by the New Zealand Society for Earthquake Engineers in late December, which highlighted the new risks created by the Kaikoura tremor.
