Many Catholics in Canterbury celebrated a fourth Easter in makeshift facilities. Christchurch’s Catholic diocese has more than 50 properties in Canterbury and the West Coast to be either strengthened, repaired or rebuilt. About 75 per cent of the strategies have been finalised. Diocesan financial administrator Paddy Beban said although progress could have been faster, he Read more
The proposed legislation for managing earthquake prone buildings fails to provide a financial framework to support the owners of buildings that play a key role in defining the kind of communities that make New Zealand such a great place to live, says the Archbishop of Wellington, New Zealand, John Dew. The Archdiocese of Wellington has Read more
An international group of seismologists and engineers are to carry out a two year project to develop a seismic vulnerability index for unreinforced masonry churches and historic buildings. The study will include about 50 churches in Auckland, 11 in Wellington and 29 in Dunedin. Initially they will use data from 48 unreinforced masonry churches in Read more
Seismic strengthening of school buildings is underway in Wellington and Palmerston North dioceses. Catholic Schools Board executive chairperson Gary Quirke says in the next three years, CSBL plans to spend more than $20 million strengthening and replacing buildings to make schools safer in a major earthquake. As the property manager for the proprietors of 77 schools in Read more
Erskine College is one of six buildings whose council notices ordering earthquake strengthening work or demolition are about to expire with no work yet in sight. The Wellington City Council was warned yesterday that its hand may be forced if the building owners failed to act. Earthquake resilience manager Neville Brown told councillors the preferred Read more
Parishioners of a Westport church will continue to attend mass there, despite learning the building is high earthquake risk. An initial evaluation assessment found the 37-year-old St Canice’s Catholic Church was only 18 per cent compliant with the New Building Standards, said Father Raymond Soriano. This gave it a grade E rating, the lowest possible, Read more