Building owners in central Christchurch hope new deadlines imposed by the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority will speed up the rebuilding of the city.
The authority is sending letters to the owners of dangerous buildings on Monday giving them 10 days to submit a demolition plan or be billed for the authority carrying out the work.
About 900 commercial buildings in the central city need to be demolished because of earthquake damage.
One property owner, Antony Gough, says the deadline is reasonable because some businesses do need to hurry up.
But he says part of the problem is that insurance companies are taking a long time to approve demolition orders.
The Central City Business Association hopes the recovery authority will be able to pressure insurance companies to work faster.
The authority says the central city Cashel Mall shopping area is the first priority.
