Have your say on how we deal with dangerous building issues

We want your feedback on our proposed Dangerous, Affected and Insanitary Buildings Policy.

The purpose of the policy is to reduce danger to public, as per the Building Act 2004. It outlines how Council manages dangerous, affected and insanitary buildings. The policy was last reviewed in 2018, so it’s time for us to review it again. 

We have not made any major changes to the 2018 policy but we want to raise awareness of our process to address building issues, and what you can do if you have concerns about a building and want these concerns investigated.

Council has a reactive approach to the management of these buildings. This does not mean that all of Council's building inspectors will be out in the district, day-to-day, looking for buildings that may be dangerous, affected or insanitary. Identification of these types of buildings can be difficult as a building’s external appearance does not necessarily reflect its internal condition. For this reason, Council is reliant on external sources such as building occupants, neighbours, police, fire service and other agencies to alert us to possible issues. This also allows us to use Council resources and staff in the most effective way.

Once a building has been brought to Council’s attention, we will then inspect and assess the building. We use the ‘three Es’ approach which means we use engagement, education, and then enforcement (in that order) to work with our communities when situations arise.