Work has resumed on preparing the South Dunedin site for hardware firm Bunnings' $11 million premises, one of six Bunnings projects under construction across the country worth more than $150 million.
Bunnings is owned by ASX listed Wesfarmers and its aggressive expansion in New Zealand has not been without its issues.
Of nine planned sites around the country - five in Auckland and one each in Dunedin, Wellington, Hastings and Te Awamutu in the Waikato - two have been rejected and are to go before the Environment Court.
The Dunedin site has gained building consent, working drawings are complete and Dunedin company Calder Stewart is the successful construction tenderer.
Concrete foundations should be poured next month, steel frames up by December and a "recognisable building" emerging by the new year, general manager Rod Caust said yesterday.
"There was sufficient settlement achieved in the fill. We're on plan at present and expect to be open by about June/July."
The top layer of fill, which has been settling on the 12,566sq m building footprint since about June, is being scrapped off, crushed and trucked to an unrelated construction site in the city.
Around New Zealand and Australia, Bunnings has 175 warehouses, 56 smaller stores and 22 trade stores in operation.
The New Zealand Herald reported Bunnings' proposals to develop sites in Glenfield, Auckland, and another in Hastings were rejected, on challenges related to roading and zoning changes, respectively, but the decisions would be appealed by Bunnings in the Environment Court early next year.
The six projects under way are expected to create about 600 jobs.
About 120 full-time and part-time jobs are expected in Dunedin.
