Defects to late 1990s Auckland apartment tower The Connaught are estimated to cost $46 million to fix. Owners have already paid and the big job is under way; Seascape dispute is over money as well as time skyscraper is taking to build; and Fletcher Living’s Steve Evans has unveiled plans
Property Insider: Connaught unit owners levied $46m for re-clad, repairs; Seascape fight over delays as well as money; Fletcher Living launches new $700m scheme The Hill
Consent has been granted for a full reclad and major repairs to the leaky 14-level, 154-unit The Connaught apartment block in central Auckland. Photo / Hayden Woodward
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“The building is leaky and requires a full reclad and other remedial works,” the August 28 decision said.
Linda Keesing-Styles owns a unit and is the body corporate chairwoman, first elected in July 2021.
Work had started in April, she said, and the tower is now under protective wrapping.
More than 98% of owners had been levied and paid the money needed for repairs in advance, she said, praising the body corporate committee, which, she said, was fortunate to have the expert advice of a key project team.
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“We have listened to and acted on that advice and run a very open and transparent process with our owners. Over about four years, we undertook comprehensive investigations to identify the full scale of the remediation that would be required, during which time we sent monthly newsletters to owners, held multiple information evenings, and presented full information at extraordinary and annual general meetings,” she said.
Owners paid two early levies for investigations and were as prepared as possible for minimal surprises once work began.
When the final levies for the $46m projected cost of repairs were due last December, 98% of owners paid in full by the due date, allowing the remediation costs to be invested ready for progress payments on the construction.
“We currently have 99.6% of the levy fully paid. No owners have been engaged in any litigation relating to the remediation,” Keesing-Styles said.
“We’ve got commitment, faith and contribution from our owners.”
The court decision explained what went wrong with the block.
Richard Angell, a registered building surveyor of Maynard Marks, which is the property and building consultancy engaged to investigate the defects and damage, concluded that moisture ingress was occurring as a result of:
- Deterioration and cracking of sealant joints in the glass-fibre reinforced concrete panels/cladding system;
- Failure of the internal gutters in the perimeter of the main roof;
- Deterioration of fibre-cement infill claddings and waterproof membranes applied on the balconies and terraces.
Harry Dillon, a project consultant, told of:
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- Water ingress to the roof, which has caused damage to the structure, cladding and wall/ceiling linings;
- Water ingress in the cladding, which has caused damage to the cladding supporting structure, timber framing and wall linings;
- Water ingress around the deck and podium areas, which has caused damage to the cladding, structure and wall/ceiling linings;
- Building elements reaching the end of their economic life, such as roof cladding, needing replacement.
Weathertightness issues were first identified in 2018, the court decision said.
Bayleys’ advertising for a level-six, north-facing, two-bedroom Connaught unit with one basement car park said the owner was prepared to take only $179,000 because they were having to pay $446,000 for repairs to that one unit.
“Current tenants are paying $750 per week. Vendors are motivated and realistic. Asking price is $179,000. Remedial costs for unit due October 2023 = $446,000. Remedial project due to commence October 2023, all occupants must vacate for 30 months approximately during the project,” said advertising.
Keesing-Styles said the owner of a studio unit quit for only around $40,000 last year.
In 2021, the Herald reported how repairs were to cost a minimum of $25 million.
“The body corporate... is currently recommending a comprehensive redevelopment of the property to address maintenance issues – a rebuild that has already doubled in estimated costs in just two years, to more than $25m, with no apparent end in sight,” one owner said at that time.
Costs were likely to rise again and residents were worried about “well-known supply and demand issues in the construction industry” but the work can’t start without funds.
“Put a ring around the 12th of never. This is not going to be easy,” the apartment owner said in a letter to other owners.
The Connaught, built in the late 1990s, has been popular with many University of Auckland academics because it is so close to the campus.
Academic Susan St John was then the body corporate chairwoman. She confirmed to the Herald that extensive works were being planned for the high-rise.
“With the building approaching 25 years old, engineers have recommended a number of repairs and renewal tasks. None of these are considered urgent but are important for the long-term benefit of the building,” St John said.
Engineering advice was taken on potential health and safety aspects and all recommendations were being implemented, she said.
“The body corporate is still working through design and timetable options for the project, but hope to start around Q4 2022,” St John said in 2021.
The block was designed by Paul Brown Architects and developed by a business associated with investor and developer Paul Doole.
It was completed around 1998 but another owner said deferred maintenance had resulted in some of the issues which needed resolving.
Seascape – fight about delay as well as money
John Green’s decision in the Building Disputes Tribunal last month over the 56-level, $300m Seascape apartments on Customs St East was not just about money: he awarded China Construction $33 million and granted it the ability to seek charging orders over the property.
But the dispute between developer Shundi Customs and the builder is also about how long the tower is taking.
That hasn’t escaped the sector’s notice, with many comparing the quick-smart build of nearby The Pacifica apartments with the torturous lack of progress at Seascape in comparison. Seascape did go down five levels for basement car parking, while The Pacifica did not, which is one factor to take into account.
But back to that decision.
Green’s adjudication said China Construction had presented a narrative that Shundi Customs had caused delays by changing its mind partway through the work and issuing variations, being tardy with design and details, engaging consultants unaware of council requirements and seeking changes which were superfluous to requirements.
In return, Shundi denied it was responsible for the delays. It said the reason was that China Construction had failed to adequately resource the project. It had not carried out the work as a competent main contractor. The builder had failed to provide management co-ordination and planning to complete the progress of the contract works regularly and diligently so it could achieve practical completion by the due date, which was back in 2021, Shundi argued.
However, even the due date was in dispute. The builder said time should be “at large” so it has a reasonable time to finish the tower, although the developer didn’t agree with that.
Shundi has now taken matters to the High Court at Auckland, disputing the tribunal decision and seeking a judicial review of that.
Fletcher Living’s $700m project The Hill at Ellerslie
Fletcher Living last week announced further details of a new $700m Auckland housing project on a 6.2ha site on ex-racecourse land at Ellerslie.
The company plans to build 357 residences there, made up of “different types to meet the needs of carrying lifestyles”.
Ground and civil works are now under way.
Steve Evans, chief executive of residential and development, said The Belvedere apartments within The Hill had been designed by Warren and Mahoney and would have 51 units with views over the racecourse.
Buyers are offered 21 three-bedroom apartments of 111sq m to 127sq m from $2.3m, 24 two-bedroom units of 81sq m to 92sq m for $1.35m and six one-bedroom places of around 63sq m from $925,000.
Construction is due to start next year and completion aimed for by mid-2027. Fletcher says the land is in Remuera, rather than Ellerslie.
Evans said around 300 people attended last Wednesday’s event to hear about plans for The Hill.
The total value of the wider development of land would be $700m, planned to be built in a number of stages.
In 2022, the Herald reported how Fletcher Building’s residential development division had struck a deal to buy 6.2ha of Auckland Thoroughbred Racing’s Ellerslie land and sought Government fast-track consent for hundreds of homes there.
Auckland Thoroughbred Racing chief executive Paul Wilcox and Evans announced the agreement but no price was put on the possible sale – understood to be $100m-plus.
The sale was subject to Overseas Investment Office approval.
Apartments, duplexes, terraced and detached houses are planned beside the main track, where racing will continue, the statement said.
In July 2021, the Herald reported that the land would be sold and was estimated to be worth more than $100m.
Evans said the company was planning to build 370 residences alongside the horse racing track on land where steeplechase racing was previously held. One block would be for Fletcher’s new retirement business, Vivid Living, he said.
Fletcher has applied for its plans to be considered under the Covid-19 Recovery (Fast-track Consenting) Act, established to speed up consenting processes for projects considered to support recovery from the economic and social impacts of the pandemic, the Herald has previously reported.
Anne Gibson has been the Herald’s property editor for 24 years, written books and covered property extensively here and overseas.
