RSA building cordoned off

The North Otago Returned and Services Association building has been cordoned off for remedial work.

A Waitaki District Council spokesman said it was closed off last week to allow for repairs to the Oamaru stone columns at the entrance of the building and for a new ceiling lining to be installed.

"This work is required to eliminate the health and safety risk of stone and linings falling on to the footpath and entranceway."

The building has been owned by the Waitaki District Council since 2015, when the North Otago RSA went into liquidation and vested it to the council.

In 2015, the space was going to be used for the North Otago Toy Library, until asbestos was discovered.

Asbestos remediation was undertaken and the building prepared for extensive renovation but it was found the Oamaru Town Hall and Gasworks Sites and Recreation Reserves Act 1875 prohibits the lease of the land the building sits on, and it has sat vacant since.

The spokesman said there were no future plans for the building and it was being used for storage.