A magnitude 4.7 quake centred near Culverden rattled north Canterbury this afternoon.
It comes after a 5.4 aftershock rattled Marlborough and Wellington early this morning.
The persistent quakes highlight concerns about seismic strengthening, with one expert warning some older buildings may end up being abandoned.
The old Public Trust building has Category One heritage status, but it also has a poor earthquake rating. As the central North Island continues to shake, strengthening such weak old buildings is now a more urgent and costly issue than ever before.
"Of course all buildings can be saved," says heritage architect Roy Wilson. "It's just a matter of how much, and how much will does the owner have."
Mr Wilson specialises in upgrading heritage buildings. He led the seismic strengthening project for Parliament, when rubber and steel bearings were inserted into the foundations to absorb ground movement, and says the old Public Trust building will be a challenge.
"It's like altering an old house. Where does it stop?"
The building is majority owned by Creative New Zealand, and an engineer's report last year found earthquake proofing would cost up to nearly $10 million.
But Mr Wilson says the building may need rubber base isolators and total costs could pass $20 million.
It's one of nearly 500 earthquake-prone buildings in Wellington, and according to Mr Wilson some buildings' owners may find costs too high.
"I suspect we'll see a few empty buildings closed up and left," he says.
St Mary of the Angels church will also stand empty after the Cook Strait quakes forced the parish to fast-track plans for seismic strengthening.
"The sad thing I had to do was call 20 couples who planned to get married here over the next 18 months [and tell them] that they wouldn't be able to use the church," says Father Barry Scannell, who estimates the strengthening would cost $5 million to $8 million.
It's a big sum for the parish, and they'll need help from the wider church and community.
3 News
source: newshub archive
