Auckland's heart "transplant".

An interesting NZ Herald article this morning talked about the slow transformation of Auckland city. In the past, Auckland city has not been a desirable place to reside in. The article tackled the idea of Auckland city ignoring its people and lacking 'heart' that global cities have. Below are some good points as quoted from the article:

• Auckland's central city has always turned its back on the people.
• The prevailing notion over the past 50 years has been that Auckland's city centre is for cars, not people.
• The CBD is known better for its ugly architecture and a befuddled roading network than glorious sea promenades.
• "If you compare Auckland with Melbourne, Sydney, Vancouver, Paris, London, New York - what defines those cities is a great heart." - Ludo Campbell-Reid (Auckland Council's urban design manager).
• Auckland's heart, "is a little bit sick". - Ludo Campbell-Reid

I completely agree with the points above. Personally, I don't find the Auckland CBD a good place to live in and I only go there because of the University. I have explored the city countless times and it lacks that 'spark' that global cities have that not only attracts people but makes a lasting impression all over the world. Auckland's urban environment is not exactly something to be proud. However, it is getting better. I have explored in this blog the changes that have been happening over the past months. Slowly, Auckland City is developing a healthier "heart".

Mayor Len Brown's plan is to make Auckland the most liveable city. It might not happen as quickly as we want but I think we've started well. The mayor's multiple plans and vision seems too ambitious to most people but he has done well so far in campaigning his ideas.

Also written in the article are the transformations around the city over the past years. Queen St. was transformed by having wider footpaths, Aotea Square was revamped, the waterfront has various promising projects, Shared Spaces and Britomart. Britomart was deemed one of the biggest success stories for Auckland city with its line up of retail shops, award winning bars and restaurants. It has become a great place to hang out. This is what Auckland needs. We need better public spaces. Gone are the days when we plan for just cars. We should plan for the people. 

And what do people want? Better public open spaces that let people escape from their confined office/Uni spaces. We only have a few in the CBD and here are some examples:

Freyberg Place in High Street.
Photos taken by myself.

The Aotea Square in the afternoon.
Photos are taken by myself.

You can read the full article of Auckland, have heart in the NZ Herald website.

Exciting projects.

Did you know the various projects that are happening in Auckland's waterfront?

I have blogged about Silo Park before but there are also other exciting projects that will make the waterfront a much better place.

The Waterfront Auckland website has good descriptions and updates of what is currently being done and the future plans for the waterfront.

The most popular project is The Cloud or Party Central on Queen's Wharf. It is visible on the Viaduct now and it is slowly coming to life. The Cloud will be used for the upcoming RWC 2011 as an international media lounge and as a Tourism NZ i-site. At the moment, The Could is looking like an out-of-place slug-shaped structure on the Viaduct but I am still excited to see the finished development on this once industrial wasteland.

What Queen's wharf would look like with the revamp of Shed 10 and construction of The Cloud.
Photo Source: Waterfront Auckland.

The Viaduct Events Centre is at Halsey St. in the Viaduct Harbour. The Events Centre will host banquets, concerts, conferences, exhibitions, trade shows, weddings and other major events. It will be open by August 2011. Though it is not finished yet, bookings are already being accepted. There are more information available on their website.

The plan for the Viaduct Events Centre.
Photo source: Waterfront Auckland.

Close to the Viaduct Events Centre would be the new development of the North Wharf. Doesn't it look inviting?!

The North Wharf will be full of shops, restaurants, cafes that will cater to everyone's interests.
Photo source: EyeonAuckland.

Opposite the North Wharf will be Silo Park and Gateway Plaza. Gateway Plaza will be the redeveloped Tank Farm. It will be an amazing public open space that incorporates modern design. It will be unique to Auckland because the Plaza allows people to access the water via steps. See for yourself below:

The Plaza incorporates old shipping containers into the new open space.
Photos from Waterfront Auckland.

Last but not the least are Trams! Yes, there will be trams along the new waterfront developments (It will loop around Jellicoe St, Halsey St, Gaunt St and Daldy St.). The Heritage Trams will be operative during the RWC.

Construction is going on now in terms of installing the tramway lines. More photos on the EyeonAuckland website.
Photo source: Waterfront Auckland.

Whether you support the RWC and the implications that comes with it, you can't deny that the upcoming event has facilitated these ground breaking developments in Auckland's waterfront. Looking at these projects makes me think that Auckland's urban environment is definitely changing for the better.

There is a cool timeline of the Wynyard Quarter on the Waterfront Auckland website. Make sure you check it out!

Silo Park.

I was researching about Auckland's urban features and I stumbled upon the 360 Urban website. I looked through it and saw current and planned projects around New Zealand. What caught my attention is Silo Park in Jellicoe St, Auckland.

The project is to transform the once industrial area into an adrenaline fueled adventure park with NZ's funkiest playground, retail, dining and views of the Auckland Harbour Bridge. Currently, the project is still under construction. Rain gardens for drainage has been made and are being filled with soil to be planted with native plants.

What Jellicoe St. looks like now.
Photo credit: Waterfront Auckland

Once finished, Jellicoe St. Wynyard Quarter will hopefully look like this:

Public open space, retail and dining services and views of the harbour. Not bad at all.
Photo credit: Waterfront Auckland

The nearby Silo Park will be an open space that will offer views of the Westhaven Marina and Auckland Harbour Bridge.

Photo credit: Waterfront Auckland

Silo Park will retain the cement silo and 'six pack' to recognise the industrial heritage of the area. It will offer great public open space with views of the Marina and the Harbour bridge and a cinema during summertime. The key uses of the park will be for recreation, water treatment, events and as a play area as shown in the photo below.

Photo credit: Urbika

I think this is a great project. Auckland's waterfront is not really something to be proud of due to the tanks and ugly ships docked in the viaduct. Projects like Silo Park will make the waterfront visually appealing and also accessible to people.

To see more photos and plans of Silo Park, go to Urbika and Waterfront Auckland. An animation of what the waterfront would look like has been made and you can view it here.