Auckland Council has bought the ASB tower for $104 million and will move its entire central city staff there over the next two years.

The purchase of the building, at 135 Albert St, will result in savings of about $2.7m a year over the next 10 years.

The savings come through reducing the rental and ownership costs of buildings in the central city, and also cutting transport costs between buildings, council chief executive Doug McKay said.

Council CBD staff are currently scattered throughout the Civic building, 360 Queen St, 8 Hereford St, Bledisloe House, the Town Hall, along with locations in Graham and Pitt streets.

"This is a sound investment we are making on behalf of the people of Auckland, which will produce significant savings for ratepayers now and in the future.

"This purchase will enable council to house more staff in a single building, saving employees' time and transportation between council offices, and allowing our people to work smarter for the long-term benefit of Aucklanders and the region."

McKay said for more than 20 months CBD staff had worked out of an ad hoc combination of owned and leased buildings and this expensive arrangement had to cease.

He said the council examined a range of options for its new premises including the building of offices on council land and the lease of offices on privately owned land, but the purchase of the ASB tower proved to be the most cost-effective option.

ASB is building a new premises at Wynyard Quarter.
 
McKay said the current council headquarters, located at the 46-year-old Civic building, would have required expensive and significant improvements to extend its use.
 
The council will start moving employees in to the tower in late 2013, as current lease agreements expire.

- © Fairfax NZ News