Third floor resident Debbie is hopeful she can remain at Berkeley Dallard apartments while earthquake strengthening work is carried out. Photo: RNZ / Mary Argue
Pensioners in a quake-prone council housing block - which has already undergone a multi-million dollar strengthening project - are coming to grips with their community disintegrating.
Six Wellington City Council social housing complexes containing more than 300 units have been found below 34 percent of the New Building Standard (NBS) in parts, after recent seismic and risk assessments.
Questions remained after a community meeting on Monday at Berkeley Dallard apartments, with residents still in the dark about key concerns: Whether they were moving, where they would go, and timeframes for strengthening work.
The information sessions held at the complexes this week are for residents to ask questions of council staff, engineers and landlord Te Toi Mahana, after a letter-drop informed them their building was earthquake-prone but deemed safe to live in.
However, it transpired that few questions could be answered until exploratory work was carried out and decisions on the method and extent of reinforcement made, with council staff signalling more clarity in September/October.
Despite the Berkeley Dallard apartments' $28 million refit and strengthening works in 2014, recent seismic assessments found "structural weaknesses" in its upper ninth and 10th floors which house 42 units - resulting in an NBS rating of only 30 percent.
It was likely residents beyond the affected floors would have to be relocated for the remediation.
The 14 social housing blocks are among about 600 buildings in the city that need earthquake strengthening.
Berkeley Dallard apartments are one of Wellington City Council's six social housing complexes that have been deemed earthquake-prone. Photo: RNZ / Mary Argue
'I just don't want to end up homeless'
Despite assurances in Monday's meeting that the council would pay for relocation and residents would be supported into appropriate accommodation - either council housing stock, or an alternative - with rent frozen at the same price for up to a year, people were still concerned about where they would end up.
"I just don't want to end up homeless," one ninth floor resident said. While her partner, Sabine (who wanted to be known by her first name) asked not to be put in emergency accommodation.
"We don't want to live in one of those... the stories you hear. Where would we go if they don't give us a good apartment? [But] I don't want to worry too much."
She said they wanted to remain close to the hospital, shopping centres, and public transport. "That's my concern - and quiet neighbours, no trouble."
She said most of her neighbours were pensioners like them, who had been on the same floor for years and had formed a tight-knit community.
"We are actually quite happy here where we live in our apartment. It's quiet living, peaceful living, and we're helping each other. Maybe we can be neighbours again wherever they move us."
Another ninth floor resident said while the meeting was light on detail, it was hopefully helpful to those who might have been feeling anxious.
"[It] was to try and allay some of the panic with some of the people who are a little more vulnerable - there are a lot of vulnerable people in this building.
"There are always going to be people who are going to catastrophise, and there's not a lot you can do about that except try to minimise it, and I think that's what they were doing and they succeeded."
Meanwhile, third floor resident Debbie just hoped she would not have to move at all - maintaining she would rather tolerate the construction noise than up sticks again.
The entrance to the housing block. Photo: RNZ / Mary Argue
Project director Mario Venter said the council was facing years of strengthening work, which was impossible to do all in one go.
"We know now the buildings that need to be earthquake strengthened, now we can start investigating what that actually means and also do designs."
He said all that took time and it was possible come September they still would not have all the answers, however the staged process had Berkeley Dallard apartments first in line for investigation.
In addition to Berkeley Dallard, the council is required to strengthen Newtown's Daniell Street apartments (44, 146 and 148), which have a rating of 15 percent NBS due to chimneys posing a risk to pedestrians in an earthquake and Hanson Court (blocks A, C, D and E) which have each been rated at 25 percent NBS, due to a lack of restraints on upper-level concrete walls.
Kilbirnie's Kōtuku Apartments (blocks A, B, C and D) each have a seismic rating of 25 percent NBS due to ground beam connections under the blocks.
Pukehinau in Aro Valley where a linking bridge between blocks A and B has a rating of 15 percent NBS and Thorndon's Whare Ahuru apartments which also has a seismic rating of 15 percent NBS due to the connection between the original two-storey building and an additional third level.
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