We’ve had a taste of what streets designed for people, not cars, could look like. Let’s take those lessons with us when we emerge from lockdown, writes Emma McInnes. Our cities feel profoundly different these days. The whine and roar of traffic has been replaced with the chatter of birds, the squeals of delighted kids, … Read more
Rather than get distracted by the stadium debate, we need to urgently acknowledge that unlocking this land now for future integration into the CBD is critical for Auckland’s future, argues Paul Winstanley. Don’t be fooled. This is not just another story about the waterfront stadium. Well, not really. Like the mayor has said, there are … Read more
The design of our cities can help shape our mental health. Lucy McLean puts out a call to vote for the politicians who’ll build a city where people feel more connected to community. The Spinoff local election coverage is made possible thanks to The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The … Read more
On the good days, riding a bike is the best. But in Auckland there aren’t nearly enough of those days, and unless decision makers take urgent action, that’s not going to change. This piece originally appeared on Bike Auckland My first bike crash in central Auckland happened on Symonds Street. I was biking downhill towards … Read more
No, more density doesn’t mean more traffic – and other widespread myths about the effects of increased housing, busted by Greater Auckland’s Heidi O’Callahan. Aucklanders would do well to get more involved in the discussion around how our city develops. Leaving the struggle to the techno-centric planners – with their unwitting NIMBY supporters – and … Read more
Auckland is going through a period of rapid change. Hayden Donnell talks to an urban design advisor about whether it’s possible to transform the city without riling everyone up. With local body elections less than three months away, Auckland is divided in two. On one side are people who want to continue reshaping the city … Read more
On the latest episode of The Good Citizen podcast, Jacqueline Paul talks to Jeremy Hansen about the housing crisis, inequality and the damage racist stereotyping is doing to Auckland. Landscape architect, housing advocate and aspiring local body politician, Jacqueline Paul (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Kahungunu ki Heretaunga), isn’t sitting around waiting to be heard. She’s speaking … Read more
Women walk more, drive less, cycle less and use public transport more than men, on average – so why aren’t we designing urban spaces with that in mind, asks former Wellington mayor Celia Wade-Brown. We love to skite about New Zealand women getting the vote first without looking closely at the numbers that followed. We’ve … Read more
As Auckland examines how to make its roads safer and more functional, one city has already shown us how it’s done. Teuila Fuatai looks at how slowing down changes the way a city works. On the other side of the world, one Swedish city’s dedication to driving down road deaths and serious injuries (DSI) has … Read more
Urban designer Ben van Bruggen spoke to Jeremy Hansen about why we should stop listening to the vocal minority attempting to block change, and be inspired about Auckland’s development. WH Auden once said “we would rather be ruined than changed”. It’s a quote urban designer Ben van Bruggen refers to when I ask him about … Read more
Māori architectural designer Jade Kake looks at the latest Kiwibuild news and offers some solutions. Kiwibuild was Labour’s flagship policy in the last election, promising to deliver 100,000 homes over ten years for first home buyers, of which half are to be built in Auckland. So far, Kiwibuild has failed to meet expectations, and is … Read more
Instead of more roads, what about more rail? James Dann draws up a plan on how he’d improve Christchurch with a brand new transport system centred on heavy and light rail. Christchurch is a sprawling mess. Its only major geographical feature is the Port Hills, a buffer that has slowed growth in one direction. From … Read more
In the second episode of The Good Citizen, a new podcast of interviews with exciting and innovative New Zealanders, Jeremy Hansen talks to Henry Crothers about having the bravery to transform our urban landscapes. “We need to stop chickening out.” Landscape architect and urban designer Henry Crothers is playing a guiding role in the creation … Read more
Seven-and-a-half years since the quake, food is playing a critical role in how Christchurch rebuilds, according to the people behind a festival that celebrates the city’s regeneration. When you think about the aftermath of the 2011 Christchurch earthquake, food probably isn’t what springs to mind. But it was an important thread that ran through the … Read more
The objections of a few wealthy Mt Eden residents have succeeded in killing a much-needed central Auckland housing development. How does this keep happening? Dominion Road has been marked for major transformation with over a billion dollars to be invested in high capacity light rail that will traverse the length of Auckland’s most famous street. … Read more
Councillors and council officers are forever going to public meetings to receive bad advice from angry people who mostly don’t know what they’re talking about. Hayden Donnell asks why. In Takapuna last week, Mayor Phil Goff, councillors and council officers stood in front of a packed meeting and got yelled at. They’d committed the crime … Read more
How can private enterprise help local governments innovate? Mark Thomas reports from the World Cities Summit in Singapore. Imagine you’re a mayor. Your city is growing faster than you can build the things you need to support the growth, or you’re shrinking and trying to incentivise new industry. Either way, you can’t get the funding … Read more
Your third place is the place you go that isn’t home and isn’t work. It’s where you like to hang out – and ideally, it doesn’t cost you a cent. Jessica Rose of Women in Urbanism offers a few suggestions on improving Auckland’s third places for those who need them most. At this year’s Urbanism … Read more
New Zealand Geographic editor Rebekah White examines the public spaces that connect us. Our towns and cities are lacking something important, and I was reminded of this during a recent visit to Hong Kong. There, senior citizens fill the social niche that teenagers do in Auckland. They loiter in the local square with their mates, … Read more
Planned and implemented in the right way, these projects can lead to the creation of high quality urban places at the same time as reducing the need for travel, writes urban designer Alistair Ray. Patterns and modes of transportation shapes cities. Types and intensity of land use are directly linked to the types and methods … Read more
How will the government’s Kiwibuild plans in Mt Albert look once they’re fully built? Urban designer Matthew Prasad casts a critical eye over the project. It’s only been a week since the government’s first Kiwibuild development announcement, and there has been a lot of talk and hypothesising about what form the development may take at … Read more
A diorama of Auckland dating to the 1930s was lost for decades, and shows in stunning detail the central city with light rail right through it, and before huge chunks of it were demolished. By Duncan Greive, images by Joel Thomas. Who ruined central Auckland? As we contemplate a decades-long healing process – building the … Read more
A protest against the relocation of 15 mature trees from Quay St to nearby parks is continuing to prevent work on the cycleway extension. Jolisa Gracewood and Max Robitzsch of Bike Auckland sigh deeply, and explain how we got here. Having ended 2017 with a story about the opposition to the Grey Lynn cycleway, we … Read more
Auckland Transport is busily wrecking the suburbs of the city’s inner west. Simon Wilson takes a good hard look at the plans – and at the protests about those plans. Just look at what Auckland Transport has done to the West Lynn shops. A new bus stop sits right in front of a pedestrian crossing, … Read more
Auckland’s newly refurbished Freyberg Place is a wonderful new public space, says Simon Wilson. Except for those times when it isn’t. I sat on one of the big concrete steps in the newly refurbished Freyberg Place on Tuesday evening, watching a man covered in tin cans beating sticks on a blue 44-gallon drum. A little … Read more
According to a new report, the design sector contributed over $10 billion to the New Zealand economy in 2016. Henry Oliver asks Thomas Mical, the head of AUT’s School of Art and Design, what that means for New Zealand design. Designers know that their work creates value, but a recent report from DesignCo – commissioned … Read more
There’s a big carpark on Takapuna’s Anzac Street and the council wants your imaginative ideas for what to do with it. Councillor Chris Darby has been thinking about movies… When does a carpark become something better than a carpark? Panuku Development Auckland, the development arm of Auckland Council, is asking for ideas from the public … Read more
The Albert-Eden Local Board wants to turn half of the golf course at Chamberlain Park, next to the northwest motorway, into a general park for everyone to use. Golfers are outraged. Who’s right? Some nimby issues are hard. When people have a real fear a proposed new development is going to ruin their quality of … Read more
The America’s Cup is going to sharpen up the city’s thinking about the waterfront, right? Like, why are there cars parked on Te Wero Island when there’s a perfectly good council car park building just over the road? Here’s a proposal from architect David Mitchell and pressure group Urban Auckland. There’s a car park in … Read more