11 August 2018
Media: Rotorua Daily Post
Topic: Holiday park growth
Inquiry
I am writing a story about the 16 per cent year on year growth of Rotorua's Holiday Parks.
I was hoping to get some comment from the tourism sector about the contribution holiday parks make to the industry.
Response
Attributed to Michelle Templer, CEO Destination Rotorua
In Rotorua we have a great range of accommodation options. Holiday parks in Rotorua provide fantastic options from camping sites through to top quality cabins and show great Manaakitanga which, along with other business owners, is a big part of what makes Rotorua a preferred and repeat holiday destination.
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Media: Radio NZ
Topic: Rotorua homeless shelter
Inquiry
A reporter followed up on story from a couple of weeks ago re homeless shelter, indicated she had spoken to Tiny Deane who said he expected Council's final tick of approval on Friday.
The reporter was confirming if that was correct.
Response
The following information was provided:
On 30 July consent was granted for work to be done to bring a Pukuatua Street building up to standard to be run as a homeless shelter by Visions of a Helping Hand.
The granting of consent followed Council receiving (on Friday 27 July) final fire safety and structural reports for the building, which had been used as a day-time drop-in centre for the homeless and was a different building to that which was originally intended for a shelter.
A building consent application to undertake work needed to bring the building up to standards required for use as a shelter was filed on 27 July along with the completed reports.
Consent to do this work was granted Monday 30 July and was picked up the following day.
Inspections of the work that has been carried out were undertaken 9 August and further inspections are scheduled for this Wednesday and Friday.
Provided the work that has been done to date meets all requirements, Council aims to issue a Certificate for Public Use on Friday. That will enable the building to be used as a shelter while work continues to add more ablution facilities.
The extra ablution facilities are additional to what was included in the July building consent.
When these additional facilities are finished, Council will inspect again and if the work meets the requirements a Code of Compliance will be issued. This is the final step in the process.
A Certificate for Public Use will enable use of the building as a night shelter until a Code of Compliance can be issued.
For your reference additional information, background and context:
Why did the night-time homeless centre have to close?
Council did not close the centre or require it to be closed.
The decision to close was made by the organisation running the centre.
The building can continue to be operated as a drop-in centre - day or night - but needs to meet Building Code safety requirements for use as a shelter before it can be set up with beds and used for overnight sleeping.
Why can't Council just let a building be used for overnight sleeping?
The council is required to make sure people follow the rules of the Building Code - that is the council's legal obligation and it can't knowingly allow a building to be used illegally.
The Building Code exists to protect people and property.
Council doesn't actively monitor the use of buildings but if it knows a building is being used for something other than the use that's legally allowed, it can't just turn a blind eye, it has to take action. Otherwise Council itself would be liable if anything were to happen.
The initial step is always to speak with the owners/operators of the building to remind them of the rules and make sure they understand what could happen if they keep operating illegally. A fine is an absolute last resort but is one of the potential consequences if the rules continue to be ignored.
Why doesn't Council just find another building that can be used as a homeless shelter?
Council has investigated any and all vacant buildings that it is aware of - including council-owned and privately owned buildings. There are currently no suitable, consented vacant buildings available for this type of use.
Why does it matter that someone wants to change the use of a building?
When the use of a building is changed the Building Act requires certain upgrades to increase the performance of the building. One of these upgrades is to the building's structural performance to "as near as reasonably practicable" with new building standards. While obviously 100% seismic rating would be the ideal, that is not practical for all buildings and a level of 66% is widely accepted as meeting this test.
Earthquake ratings are not the only consideration for change of use. Some building uses require a higher standard of fire safety and accessibility requirements (ie fire alarm systems and escape routes and plans).
What's involved in getting consent for a change of use?
- Building owner or operator notifies council they want to change use.
- Owner or operator employs experts to undertake reports (eg structural and fire safety) to determine what, if any, upgrades are needed.
- Council assesses the report/s and determines if building consent is needed.
- If not, the owner/operator can go ahead with any work required, as per their reports.
- If they need consent, they then lodge a consent application.
- Consent application is processed.
- Once consent is approved they then complete the work that needs to be done.
- When the work is completed they get sign-off and a 'code of compliance certificate' from Council prior to change of use.
See fact sheet re Change of Use HERE on Council's website.
If you look through this fact sheet where it goes into categories, in the case of the night time homeless drop-in centre, the current use category is WL and using it for overnight sleeping would change the category to SA which has higher standards for fire and structural safety.
The Building Act
The Act exists to protect people and property and has the following purposes:
(a) to provide for the regulation of building work, the establishment of a licensing regime for building practitioners, and the setting of performance standards for buildings to ensure that
(i) people who use buildings can do so safely and without endangering their health; and
(ii) buildings have attributes that contribute appropriately to the health, physical independence, and well-being of the people who use them; and
(iii) people who use a building can escape from the building if it is on fire; and
(iv) buildings are designed, constructed, and able to be used in ways that promote sustainable development:
(b) to promote the accountability of owners, designers, builders, and building consent authorities who have responsibilities for ensuring that building work complies with the building code.
The section of the Building Act that applies in the case of the homeless drop-in centres in Rotorua is Section 115 which relates to requirements around change of use of a building.
If Building Code requirements for the new use are tougher than for the previous use, a building consent is almost always required to undertake any necessary upgrades.
The drop-in centres, for example, are currently consented as office space. The standards for fire and structural safety are higher for accommodation like a night shelter than for office space.
