The former Defence House is historic office building in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

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. For many decades the building housed the

New Zealand Defence Force The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF; mi, Te Ope Kātua o Aotearoa, "Line of Defence of New Zealand") are the armed forces of New Zealand. The NZDF is responsible for the protection of the national security of New Zealand and her realm, prom ...

, and after a period of vacancy and subsequent extensive refurbishment, it is now occupied by the

Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE; mi, Hīkina Whakatutuki) is the public service department of New Zealand charged with "delivering policy, services, advice and regulation" which contribute to New Zealand's economic p ...

. The building is classified as a Category 2 historic building by

Heritage New Zealand Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga (initially the National Historic Places Trust and then, from 1963 to 2014, the New Zealand Historic Places Trust) ( mi, Pouhere Taonga) is a Crown entity with a membership of around 20,000 people that advocate ...

History

In 2007, the New Zealand Defence Force moved out of the building after tenanting the building since its construction in the 1940s. The building was no longer fit-for-purpose, and according to the Defence Force: "Despite refurbishments the décor remained dull and dated and the building’s services were inefficient." The Defence Force flags were taken down on 23 February 2007 in a ceremony to close of the building. In December 2012, it was announced that the building would be bought by Argosy Property Management for $33.2 million. A 12-year tenancy agreement was signed between Argosy and the

New Zealand Government , background_color = #012169 , image = New Zealand Government wordmark.svg , image_size=250px , date_established = , country = New Zealand , leader_title = Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern , appointed = Governor-General , main_organ = , ...

in January 2013.

Occupation by MBIE

In late 2014, about 2,000 Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment employees moved from five Wellington buildings into the 15 Stout Street building. The relocation had a capital budget of over $18 million, but ultimately $16 million was spent. Operational expenditure on the move was $688,000. The costs involved with the refurbishment were controversial, including the almost $70,000 cost of the MBIE sign outside the building, and the $360,000 cost of office furniture ($1800 per staff member).

References

External links

{{commons category, Defence House, Wellington
Profile of the building
Architecture Now (2014) Heritage New Zealand Category 2 historic places in the Wellington Region Buildings and structures in Wellington City