StarMetro's report on Monday.

IT IS the responsibility of building owners to ensure the maintenance, management and care of their properties so they are in good condition, safe, comfortable to use and habitable.

We have many laws and guidelines that regulate this, and there are penalties which can be imposed if uninhabited buildings are left to ruin and potentially raising concerns over public safety.

In the case of buildings such as the former FMS Survey Office, which was gazetted as “heritage” on the National Heritage Register, there may be additional regulations imposed by the National Heritage Department, the custodian of this Register.

Section 42 of the National Heritage Act 2005 states that it is the duty of the owner of a heritage site to keep the building in a state of good repair and that the National Heritage Commissioner can take steps to ensure that this is complied with, in keeping with the heritage value of the building.

It would be timely for the responsible authorities to work with heritage NGOs and other stakeholders to initiate a management regime to prevent this from happening to other heritage buildings, especially public or government-owned buildings.

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