Since 2021, Horizons Regional Council’s Regional House Palmerston North (RHPN) has been unable to legally accommodate all staff based in the city. As a result, some staff were first relocated to the Te Ao Nui building adjacent to RHPN and then moved into two separate leased spaces in the central business district (CBD). This arrangement not only increases costs, but also affects the efficiency of the Council’s daily operations. Having staff back in one location would save about $250,000 per year in rent.
To address the demand for office space, a search for a suitable long-term lease building was undertaken, but there was nothing suitable to meet Horizons’ needs of an earthquake strength rating above 40% of National Building Standards (NBS), adequate toilet facilities, size, secure parking for fleet vehicles, and a central location. The location is a requirement because when the Manawatū-Whanganui Regional Council (Horizons) was established in 1989, it was officially gazetted that its headquarters would be centrally located in Palmerston North. Purchasing existing commercial premises in the CBD and outer business district was also explored. Again, there was nothing suitable available. As an alternative solution, the development of a new building was considered. With that in mind, ‘greenfield’ (bare land) sites were identified in Palmerston North for potential development, but their industrial locations were not ideal for Horizons and members of the public. An opportunity followed for the purchase of land adjoining RHPN. In March 2021, Council resolved to purchase a property at 7 Victoria Avenue. In September 2021 Council resolved to purchase an adjoining property at 184 Grey Street, and, in 2023, the purchase of another adjoining property at 3 Victoria Avenue. These purchases provided an option, if Council decided to take it in the future, to build on land that met size and location needs. These purchases were made by Horizons’ holdings company and at a reasonable market value to ensure if a future decision was made to on-sell the property, the cost of the land would have the highest possibility of being recovered.
As part of the due diligence process for considering what housing Palmerston North staff at one site looked like, RHPN was evaluated to determine how it may fit into the project. A seismic assessment of RHPN in 2024 deemed parts of the building earthquake prone. An earlier assessment of RHPN, done in 2017, rated the building at 45% NBS. This is in the ‘earthquake risk’ range, but building standards have changed since then. RHPN, which opened in 1990, now meets only 15% of the current National Building Standards, so it must be strengthened or vacated by 2043. A building with an NBS rating at or below 34% is considered earthquake prone and potentially a risk to those working inside the building. Horizons' chief executive has a legal obligation and moral duty to ensure all their staff can be safely accommodated at work. If there was a significant earthquake, the building might need to be permanently evacuated, and staff moved elsewhere. With this legal obligation and moral duty in mind, and after considering MBIE’s Seismic Risk Guidance for Building guidance, the chief executive decided staff can remain in RHPN for up to five years from the time it was found to be earthquake prone. This would be reviewed if an earthquake affected the building during this time. At a full council meeting in December 2024, recognising previous work that had looked for other suitable buildings or ‘green field’ sites and did not produce any suitable results, Council agreed staff would vacate RHPN within five years and would move into a new building on the land acquired on Victoria Avenue. This building would have an IL2 rating – which means people are expected to escape uninjured even if the building was damaged in an earthquake.
There is a five-year deadline for vacating the existing earthquake-prone RHPN.
A detailed project timeline will be developed during the upcoming design phase. The phasing is expected to be:
Design which encompasses initial concept, preliminary design, developed design.
Pre-construction consenting and tender.
Construction.
Regional House Palmerston North Project FAQ