Christmas shutdown for QLDC offices

With the festive season nearly upon us, Council offices will be closed from Wednesday 25 December 2024 until they open again on Friday 3 January 2025.

It’s important to note the statutory processing clock stops over the Christmas break from Friday 20 December 2024 through to Friday 10 January 2025. This period is excluded from the 20 working day period councils are given to process applications.

Please keep this in mind when submitting consents and Code Compliance Certificate (CCC) applications.

Good site inspection reports

In late August, QLDC staff delivered presentations to local structural engineers in Wānaka and Queenstown to emphasise the importance of high-quality site inspection reports accompanying PS4 documentation.

This topic was also highlighted in Engineering New Zealand’s newsletter on Thursday 3 October, which included a sample site inspection report. You can access and download the sample report here: Site visit record sample report

The sample outlines the minimum level of detail and information expected in an inspection report. These site inspection reports play a crucial role in supporting the PS4, serving as a valuable record for future reference and addressing any questions about the completed work.

We strongly recommend including photographs in all reports, as they provide additional clarity and context beyond written descriptions.

We continue to see varying levels of detail and consistency in the reports we receive. To address this, we encourage all professionals preparing site reports to use the Engineering New Zealand sample as a baseline for the information being provided.

We've updated some documents

To reflect recent Building Code and Regulatory updates, we've updated the Building Consent Application (Form 2) and our Building Consent Processing Checksheets. 

Please remember all our forms are subject to change. Ensure you're using the latest version of a form by not saving any of these to your computer. Always access our forms from the Building page on the QLDC website to make sure you’ve got the form and version you need.

All the latest forms can be found here:
QLDC - Building Services Documents

Pool fencing requirements

With summer really starting to make itself at home and temperatures consistently hitting the mid twenties, it’s a good time for a refresher on pool safety requirements.

Under the Building Act, residential pools that can hold 40cm or more water are required to have barriers that restrict access by unsupervised children under five (5) years of age to protect them from drowning. As a result of this, all pools including some small heated pools are required to be registered with QLDC and have their barriers inspected every three (3) years. Barriers may also require a building consent.

Some small heated pools can use their safety covers to restrict access and are exempt from the inspection requirement. More detailed information can be found using the Small Heated Pool Information Sheet.

Register your pool by completing our Pool Notification Form and emailing it to swimmingpools@qldc.govt.nz. It's free to register, however charges apply to inspections. See our Fees List for more details.

For more information on residential pools and spa pools, be sure to check our website here: QLDC Residential swimming and spa pools. And if you have any questions, contact us on the phone at 03 450 0369 or email swimmingpools@qldc.govt.nz.

MBIE’s safety guidance for pool owners also has more detailed information on this topic.

The Minister for Building and Construction has been proposing more changes to the Building Act, Building Code, and how BCAs process, inspect, and issue CCCs for building work.

MBIE is preparing options for consultation next year on self-certification of trades such as builders, plumbers, and drain layers. Essentially, these trades would be able to undertake consented works without BCA inspections, with tradies providing a document similar to an electric or gas certificate which the BCA must accept when processing a CCC application.

Options to make changes to the acceptable solutions and verification methods of H1 (the energy efficiency clause of the NZ Building Code) are also in the proposal pipeline, along with options to potentially consolidate BCAs in an effort to reduce inconsistencies across districts around the country. QLDC will consider each proposal and make submissions if invited to do so.

We’ve recently made a submission on options to increase the uptake of remote

inspections for building consents. As a BCA, QLDC already completes approximately 20% of inspections remotely by doing ‘desktop’ inspections using photos provided by the builder. However, these inspections are generally where only a few specific items need to be rechecked. Our opinion is that remote inspections by either photo, video, or live stream will not be as effective as an onsite inspection/

Our submission essentially stated BCAs should have the capability to do remote inspections but retain discretion as to when and where this type of inspection is appropriate, rather than remote inspections becoming the mandated default option. This opinion is largely shaped by concerns about ratepayer liability in cases where building work has reduced council oversight and is non-compliant.

In other news on proposals, MBIE received a record number of submissions for their proposed ‘Granny Flat’ changes. A summary of all submissions made is now available here: MBIE summary of submissions – granny flats.

The Better Building day at the Wao Summit held in October was a huge success!

The event saw over 100 attendees, several trade exhibits, and a whole heap of expert speakers coming together in Wānaka to collaborate on how the building industry can impact emission reductions and waste minimisation.

The day included panelists and expert presentations, hands-on workshops that covered off everything from biophilic design to on-site management, and networking sessions at Mitre 10 and Ground Up Brewing.

Key takeaways from the event included:

• The building industry can have a significant positive impact on both emission reductions and waste minimisation

• There are a lot of ideas on how to improve the building sector, ranging from building technique to development ideas, design strategy, new financial options and concepts.

Presentations included:

• Living Building Challenge
• Hector Egger
• Bellbird Developments
• Simplicity Build to Rent

Call for the local building industry to input ideas and suggestions into QLDC’s new draft Waste Management and Minimisation Plan. Got your own ideas? Share them on the board here.

You can read more about the day on Wao’s website.