CHALLENGES WITH PARKING

 A Start on the Lift Replacement

Last week the lifts were down overnight from 10pm to 6am, while the Otis team worked to prepare the lift shaft ready for the removal of the first old lift. One afternoon I surprised them in the lobby, inspecting their work, supervised by their project manager, Jordan Churchill.  As you can see, he was very happy with what they had done. The safety screen and the lights have all been installed successfully, and ahead of schedule.

At about 7am on Monday 30 March the mechanical dismantling of the first lift will start. This will be the northern lift.  The southern lift will still be in use, but it means that we are now down to just one lift for quite a number of months.

Getting accustomed to this is not going to be easy, but as usual the benignly cooperative attitude of our residents will help a lot.

If you are loading the lift, perhaps moving furniture, please only half fill the car.  This not just means that the elevator will not be as heavily taxed, as also room will be left for people who want to travel from one level to another.  Remember that the remaining lift is intended for passengers.  Don't leave your neighbours stranded while they wait and wait for an elevator to arrive and carry them where they want to go - often in a hurry.

And of course, if you feel up to it, using the stairs is a good alternative.

Skip

The skip is a much-appreciated service to the residents, who are cleaning out apartments as they move around the building.  It always fills up very fast, and that was certainly true this past week.  A new one is arriving on Monday. Please do not put rubbish in the skip.  Filling it up with rubbish that should rightfully be put in the green bins in the lower garage area is unfair, and also a waste of skip space that could be more usefully filled with discarded items.

Car parking is going to be a challenge

Otis requires two car parks plus a garage for lift parts going out and coming in, and as well as that the scaffolders will be back next week.  Tradies and contractors will also be in and out.  As usual, we rely on the cooperation and goodwill of the residents.  Please, please do not use one of the public parks if you have a garage or carport of your own.  Discourage visitors from coming during the week by warning them that there will not be a place to leave their car.  They can always defer a visit to the weekend, when there won't be the same trouble. 

Fire alarm survey

This will happen all day Tuesday.  One Argus technician will stand by the fire alarm panel while another technician and Brigid go from apartment to apartment testing our new alarms. This is part of our building warrant of fitness, and is a legal requirement. 

ELEVATOR UPDATE

 

The work begins!

Over the next five work days, Otis engineers, with the active assistance of Aoraki, will be putting a safety screen inside the lift shaft, separating the two lift areas. This means that the work on the removal of one lift can proceed safely while the other lift is in operation. There will be some noise, but it is expected to be minimal.

The work will be during the nights.  From 10pm to 6am both lifts will be out of operation. So you have a curfew!  During the day the lifts will operate as normal.

If there should be an emergency during the night, the engineers will reactivate the lifts so that emergency services can access all levels.

At 7.30am Monday March 30, work will begin on removal of lift 1 - the northern lift. That is when we will be down to just one elevator for the next few months. As usual, patience will be needed.

For the safety of all, Aoraki will be putting hoarding in front of the door of the lift taken out of operation. Otis engineers will be working from 7.30 am to 4.30pm, and during this time the lobby will be busy.  The lift is taken apart, and the machinery etc. is taken out at the ground floor level.  Not only will there be lots of movement in the foyer and lobby, but there will be at least one truck outside.  Do take care, and use the back door if possible.

From Monday April 13 it will be busier than ever, as scaffolding is brought in through the foyer to be erected inside the lift shaft. Note the same warning about truck movement and congestion.  Use the back entrance whenever convenient. 

Notices in lifts

Rachel TBIG provided a comprehensive sheet of what is to be expected for the next few weeks.  Copies will be sent out electronically to all shareholders. Meantime, printouts have been put up in the elevators, but as the data is comprehensive and the print is small, these will be replaced with short, up to date, large print notices to inform what can be expected in the next few days. 

Tenants

Several apartments have been let out, and tenants are very welcome to participate in any HG activities.  Meantime, like the rest of the residents, they can enjoy the currently lovely weather in the bottom garden.  But do take care walking around the scaffolders' hoist in the top garden, outside the office.

If any tenant/s would like to receive this regular newsflash, send me an email at druettjo@gmail.com and I will be glad to add you to the mailing list.

Key things to remember

Next week, 23 to 27 March, both lifts will be operational from 6am to 10pm. During the night, 10pm to 6am, work will be going on in the lift shaft and neither lift will be accessible to residents.

The following week, 30 March to 2 April, the dismantling of the northern lift will commence.  The southern lift will still be operational.

ONWARD and UPWARD

 

DEVELOPMENTS

Building Manager

This newsflash is graced with a picture of Damien regaled with KFC, as his last lunch at Herbert Gardens.  A very small group of Conroy guys, Jacob and Brigid took advantage of the lovely weather, and headed down to the bottom garden to order in KFC.  As you can see from Damien's headgear, the order came with complimentary caps.

We all wish Damien the very best as he heads back to Ireland.  His input over the last eight years has been invaluable, and much appreciated by all.

Our new Building Manager is Brigid Wills.  She will be on tap every working day, from 8am to 4.30pm.  While she can be contacted in weekends and after hours, it must be for emergencies only. As a very hard worker, endlessly proactive, she deserves her time off, so please be considerate and leave non-emergency queries for the week days.

Elevators

On Tuesday at the PCG meeting, the project team was pleased to meet Jordan Churchill, who is the project manager for Otis, and is managing the replacement of our old lifts.

What he had to tell us was very interesting. 

Total scanning of the lift shaft is necessary, and a lift has to be dissassembled and the shaft scaffolded to complete this vital job.  It will take a week to take the lift apart, and this is likely to happen by the end of this month.

What it means for us is that we will be down to one lift for the following nine months. 

The first lift is taken out, the work in that part of the shaft done, and a new lift assembled in its place. Then, once it is up and running, the second lift will be taken out, and the rest of the shaft completed, ready for the assembling of the second new lift.  This is why we are limited to one elevator, all the way to Christmas.

First, it means a longer wait for the lift to arrive.  Residents may prefer to hurry down the stairs, which is made easier and safer by the fact that the fire stairs lighting is complete all the way down to level 3. 

Secondly, it means that we must not tax the old lift with very heavy loads. Either delay ordering in such stuff, or plan to carry it up the stairs. 

Thirdly, is the worry of breakdowns.  We are all familiar with the fact that the old lifts tend to break down rather easily. However, Jordan assured me that if it did happen while the construction crew are working they will drop what they are doing to fix the fault. Outside of working hours, the Otis maintenance team will be on call. 

My tip?  Always carry your phone when you use the lift. Then, with a breakdown, you will not be trapped by lack of communication.  There is an alarm button inside the elevator, and from experience I know it is answered quickly, but it is faster to phone Brigid, who will contact the maintenance team directly.

Ventilation

As you have been informed ad infinitum, patience is needed until the ventilation job is completed on all levels.  Then, calibration can commence. Behind the metal louvred plate over the vent in your bathroom is a grille.  Once all these ventilation grilles have been installed, the balancing can be done.  Specialist engineers will visit all apartments, to measure the airflow and adjust each grille so that the ventilation system performs evenly and correctly throughout the building. This will be carried out late April, and monitoring and any necessary adjustments made after that, on a regular basis.

Blinds

If any of you are thinking of replacing your old blinds, perhaps with venetians, Just Blinds is visiting regularly as part of their job of cleaning blinds, where it has been ordered by various shareholders.  If you let Brigid know, their representative is happy to measure and quote for new blinds while here.

Relocation allowances

As you all know, there was a payment of $150 per day for 90 days, as recompense for those who were not insured for alternative accommodation while their apartments were inaccessible. Everyone eligible got this basic (and generous) allowance, but quite a number of shareholders have been kept out of their apartments for more than 90 days.  The arrangement to compensate for this extra time was that those shareholders could claim if they had to pay for alternative accommodation. There is a cap of $150 per day, and invoices must be submitted.  If you have a second home, or are staying with friends and family, you are not eligible.  You must be able to prove that you had to pay rent. 

Some people have still not submitted their claim, plus the documentation necessary to prove they had to pay. The deadline for this is 30 April. This allows for those on level one who will need to rent accommodation somewhere else until they get their apartment back (currently 14 April) to lodge their claim.

Missing contents

Damien and Brigid visited Conroy storage on a very successful mission.  Unlabelled goods have been photographed, and Conroy have located a container that may hold many of the missing items.

If you have items missing, please make a list, and give it to me or to Brigid.  Then we can figure out what belongs to who, and identify unlabelled items. 

QUALITY ASSURANCE, INSPECTIONS, SIGNING OFF

 

Project Quality Assurance

Throughout the project, documented behind-the-scenes inspections have been going on without us really noticing.

A project of this size involves many, many quality checks to make absolutely certain that the work is carried out correctly, and complies with the design and the building code. So far, the project has resulted in:

• The completion of over 2,500 individual inspection sheets.
• More than 26 fire engineer checks
• The same number of detailed architectural inspections
• Almost sixty Wellington City Council building inspections, to check work in progress and compliance with the building consent
• Thirteen thorough inspections of fire alarm and fire protection systems

Project by the numbers

• 223 windows
• 298 precast concrete panels
• 52000+ construction and quality assurance photos -- about 210 photos taken each day
• 21 project trackers with details, of colour choices for each apartment, shareholder change requests, the remediation of cracked glass panes, the location of plumbing isolation valves, the penetrations into the risers, and all asbestos that is either removed or encapsulated.

And that is by no means all that has been going on, because every part of the work is tracked, documented, inspected and signed off properly, as part of the quality assurance process.

With thanks to Gazelle for sharing this fascinating information, and of course all credit, too, to Aoraki, TBIG, and our energetic consultants and engineers.

And a couple of housekeeping tips for settling back into your apartment

Conroy movers put stickers on all our furniture and other bits and pieces, and while in most cases they were put in out-of-sight places, there are inevitably some that need removing.

The answer is Pledge.  A good squirt, and then rub in.  It really works.

Squeaky hinges on doors, cupboards or windows?  Try a squirt of deodorant spray.  I know it sounds crazy, but it does work.

BE PATIENT!

 

Where has summer gone?

I suspect I took the photo above because there was a blue sky for once.  But I must admit that as Herbert Gardens is revealed, it now looks rather magnificent. We are all getting a little project-weary, and it is moments like this that makes it all worthwhile.

Scaffolding

With the weather suddenly turning wet and autumnlike, the removal of the scaffolds had to be stalled for a week.  But fear not, it will continue soon. Next, we expect the banners to come off level 8, and then movement downwards.

Birthdays

Both Damien and Brigid had birthdays in the past week, and so did a Herbert Gardens Alumnus, Lloyd Geering, who turned 108!  He is the oldest man in New Zealand. (Though I must add that four women are ahead of him.)   But as I said to Brigid, a birthday really means that you are just one day older than you were the day before.  The extra number makes no real difference, and you are still just as young as ever. Even if you are well over your century!

Elevators

As you have probably noticed, the lift threshold framework is progressing really well. Almost done.  Almost ready for Otis to provide their input. 

Foyer

The foyer is looking clean and tidy, the carpet well protected with plastic sheeting. The hoarding around the entrance to the Ground Apartment has gone, as the ACM has been removed.  That marks the last successful official check of ACM removal in the various levels, quite a milestone. Soon, the foyer will be painted.  Sea fog, as an excellent interim measure.  We might love it the way it comes up, or we may use the muted white as an undercoat for a future design.  A decision for the future, not for the present.

Light fittings

There have been questions about their reinstallation.  This is a time to be extra patient.  As the light fittings were taken down, they were stored in garages.  Now it is a case of getting at them, which is not easy in certain cases.  But do relax, it will happen in due course.

Weather tightness

Despite the rain and chill and wind, the news is all good so far. The kitchen ventilation shaft for the upper level D apartments needs inspection, as there may have been a little overspill during the heavy rain, but time will reveal all. Compared to what it was in the past, it is minor.