Building owners no longer need to rush tenants out of earthquake-prone buildings.
New guidelines released by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) say most of the quake-risk buildings are not in any imminent danger and can continue to be occupied.
Hutt Hospital was one of those buildings deemed unsafe, but now it's avoiding any forced closure.
"We've carried out our own assessment under the legislation and deemed that because it is at the level that it is, it is earthquake-prone. That means they have seven-and-a-half years to bring it up to code," said Hutt City Council CEO Jo Miller.
In May, when health bosses announced the main hospital building may have to close while it was fixed, fear spread quickly among the community.
"The fear and anxiety that the original decision from the DHB caused was huge. It has undermined confidence in the services provided on that site," said Hutt City Mayor Campbell Barry.
That fear prompted Ministry officials to fast-track new seismic building guidelines.
Those guidelines make it clear that a low earthquake safety rating does not mean a building is in imminent danger and has to close - because often it's just one thing that needs fixing.
"We accept that we live in a seismically active country and with that comes some risk. But it's a relative risk and it is understanding that relative risk," said MBIE building performance manager Dave Gittings.
Last month 1000 Ministry of Education staff were forced to move out of their Wellington headquarters after the building was declared an earthquake risk.
Barry said the new guidelines could prevent those knee-jerk reactions.
"What this guidance really reinforces is for building owners not to panic, to take that time, and to be considered in the decisions that you make," he said.
The building closures are similar to the hysteria around the meth testing of houses, which also forced people from their homes due to fears of contamination.
MBIE said a more rational approach is being taken here, as it is not feasible to close all of the 4200 buildings identified as earthquake-prone.
