Arts fight back at the square

Chris Darby, the council's political voice on urban design, says the Aotea Quarter has plenty of scope for improvement.

The city's arts, culture and civic precinct around Aotea Square is fighting back against the drift of corporate offices, apartments, shops and restaurants towards the waterfront.

This week, Auckland Council is releasing plans for four sites around the square with the potential to breathe new energy into the uptown Aotea Quarter.

The Aotea Centre, which turns 25 on Wednesday, could be transformed from an ugly building lacking visual connection to a much-loved destination with a green roof and strong youth focus.

Among the plans are to create some sparkle by replacing the pebble panels with bronze-coloured stainless steel cladding to the auditorium and roof tops, coupled with a green roof over a huge 3500sq m flat roof area.

The green roof, with native plantings, could include pathways and a cafe with views of Aotea Square.

The Civic Administration Building, which polarises opinions over its architectural merits, and two development sites alongside have gone to the market for expressions of interest.

Further down the track, the council has plans for two carparks. The first is between Bledisloe House and Mayoral Drive where two buildings and an entrance to the Aotea Station on the City Rail Link are envisaged.

The second is behind the Auckland Town Hall where a new building and public courtyard could link Aotea Square to Myers Park.

Chris Darby, the council's political voice on urban design, says the Aotea Quarter has plenty of scope for improvement.

"Public transport is not what it should be. It's disconnected from surrounding areas by Mayoral Drive. The link to Myers Park is through a carpark and Aotea Square itself lacks the active edges to really define a top-quality space.

"Within a few years that could all change," he said.

Tim Watts, council city centre design manager, said there were exciting opportunities to reverse the flow of commercial office space - and people - towards the waterfront.

"You don't have the water or the view at Aotea Quarter.

"We are looking to create an urban experience around the arts, culture and civic activities," he says.

The Aotea Quarter - an area wider than the immediate Aotea Square precinct - was home to 7000 residents, but those numbers were forecast to rise, he said.

Office towers were being converted to apartments, foot traffic was increasing and there was rapid expansion of public transport with the Aotea Station, talk of light rail and a major east-west bus route on Wellesley St.

Mr Watts said Mayoral Drive was an engineering imposition on the urban fabric - all about moving cars with pedestrians down the list of priorities.

All four development sites are expected to be built up against Mayoral Drive, providing shops and other activities where waste land now slopes away.

This will allow better access for pedestrians and cyclists to Aotea Square, which the council's regional facilities arm plans to turn into an Auckland version of Federation Square in Melbourne.

Standing in the carpark behind the Town Hall, Mr Watts says Auckland is anything but a homogenous city.

"Auckland has its pockets of unique places with their own DNA."

Consultation on Towards the Aotea Quarter Framework begins on Wednesday and ends on October 22.