He also worked closely with architect Paul Brown.
"Previously, the podium was only about two or three levels," Campbell-Reid said of Dae Ju's initial tower proposals for the site last decade.
"But the wind hits the top of the building and disperses at ground level. Taller podiums have a wind sheltering effect. This one is not so much a podium but more of a building block so the wind shears off higher up, making the urban environment at street level more pleasant."
Some doubt the tower will rise but Campbell-Reid said he was proceeding on the basis it would and trying to get the best outcome for the city.
But the Central Rail Link (CRL) train station entranceway would not be accessed under the tower, he said. Instead, it would be in the new Victoria St linear park, where the council plans to link Albert Park with Victoria Park via landscaping lanes on what is now a busy thoroughfare.
"I can't guarantee [NDG Auckland Centre] is going to happen but if we put our main public entrance in this large commercial building, there's a chance public access is compromised so we've got a separate accessway," he said. "It's adjacent to this building but not held kidnapped to it."
Meetings with Ding and others resulted in Campbell-Reid being optimistic and enthusiastic about the scheme.
"It's hard to judge. I get the feeling they are serious about this and we're keen to facilitate this. It's important for the city and the CRL. In the last nine to 10 months, developers have begun to look at sites differently and they're thinking of many new schemes," he said, including offices, shops and apartments.
Campbell-Reid also acknowledged many people hated towers, considering them unpleasant, alienating, a sign of corporate greed and a statement of them-and-us, but he praised the NDG design, saying it was a sign of economic prosperity.
"It will be a really stunning addition to the Auckland skyline," he said, describing the tower as complimentary to the SkyTower which gives the skyline a focus point, distracting from a crescendo of ugly tall buildings.
But he said the site was difficult, sloping so steeply, potentially creating half-floors barred at street level with grills. Such ugly elements had been eliminated.
The tower would appear like a candle: the podium looking like a holder, the "sharp, elegant, sheer" slender tower a candle shape and the top glowing like a flame, he said.
The 266-room hotel had been designed carefully.
"The hotel is for predominantly Asian clientele, high-end corporate men and women from Asia who like to visit cities but do business in a certain type of environment and we have to understand that which comes down to the standards of services, interior design and feng shui and they like places they're comfortable in." Campbell-Reid said.
"They're quite fussy in particular and we're starting to understand that.
"There's a huge economic opportunity."
Who's involved with NDG Auckland Centre
* Land owner: NDG Asia Pacific
* Architect: Paul Brown & Architects.
* Lawyers: Berry Simons.
* Wind tunnel testers: Auckland Uniservices.
* Infrastructure: Norman Disney & Young.
* Planners: Mt Hobson Group
Auckland Council documents.
