6 July 2005
Consent applications could take up to 50 days
Auckland City Council is advising customers that building consent applications are taking up to 50 working days to
process.
Jenny Oxley, group manager of Auckland City Environments, says it is important customers know what the realistic
timeframes are so they can plan their development projects accordingly.
“We know the delays in processing consent applications are a source of frustration for many of our customers. While we
don’t have a quick fix solution, we want them to know what they can realistically expect,” she says.
Ms Oxley said the delays have been caused by a combination of factors.
“It’s no secret that Auckland’s construction boom and a nationwide shortage of skilled staff have been delaying the
processing of consent applications for some time now. However, the situation has been made more complex by the
introduction of the Building Act 2004 in March this year.”
The 2004 act requires more detailed information to be submitted with a building consent application. This information
ensures that all building code requirements are met, particularly in relation to weathertightness, and to avoid
unnecessary risk to ratepayers in the future.
The impact of this on Auckland City Environments has been threefold: firstly, more time is needed to process the
additional information supplied secondly, the information that is required to be submitted with a consent application is
often not being supplied in full. This means the consent goes on hold while staff wait for and then assess the
additional information thirdly, a Project Information Memorandum (PIM) is now also required for every building consent
(a PIM is a report generated by Auckland City that identifies site-specific features relevant to the development
proposal).
Ms Oxley said a number of measures have been introduced to try to address the situation: an ongoing national and
international recruitment drive for skilled staff is continuing. So far, the recruitment process has resulted in six new
staff joining the building inspections and consents teams. consultants have been brought in as a temporary additional
resource and staff are working weekends internal processes are being examined to try to identify areas where
improvements could be made.
Ms Oxley said applicants could help speed up the process by providing all the information required.
“If staff request additional information, the application goes on hold. Information often left off applications include
specific details on drainage, stormwater, materials, cladding detailing and fire engineering requirements.
“We also encourage customers to apply for their PIM before the building consent and have a pre-lodgement meeting for
complex consents, as this will save unnecessary delays while such things as drainage, planning and redesign are being
assessed,” said Ms Oxley.
“We know the delays have been frustrating for many of our customers, but we’re asking for their patience and cooperation
while we strive to get our 20 day timeframe back on track.”
ENDS