Brian Rudman: Tanks for the memory, just show more vision

The port company is appealing for public comment on its just-revealed design concepts for the Western Reclamation, so here goes: I hate the proposed new name.

The experts have come up with Kahurangi, a Maori word for "blue or precious jewel" which, they say, "reflects the promise" of the "paradigm shift" planned for the site, whatever that might mean.

In a flight of copywriting purple prose, we're told "the name reflects the site's promontory aspect in the Waitemata sparkling waters" and that "like a jewel, the Western Reclamation is constructed, a product of human endeavour, to be honed into a unique interface of land and sea, which invites exploration and evokes a sense of pride and belonging". It also "reflects Auckland's heritage".

Well I'm sorry, but the only thing that comes to my mind when I read Kahurangi is a rather tasty but smelly and runny variety of blue cheese. It's also a national park near Nelson, a Maori entertainment group and a brand of wine.

Unless it's to justify the $5 million the port company has spent over the years gestating the latest plans, I see no reason for abandoning the wonderfully evocative name we already know the place as, the Tank Farm. It's the perfect link to the past the experts say they're seeking, and as a unique identifier, it has the potential to become as instantly linked to Auckland as The Rocks area is in Sydney.

As for the long-awaited concept plan itself, what can I say? I'm always a sucker for glossy plans and artists' impressions and this effort by San Francisco designer Peter Walker in conjunction with local firm Architectus is impressive. But don't take my word, see for yourself at the display centre at the Viaduct Harbour just past the entrance to the National Maritime Museum before September 25, or visit www.tankfarm.co.nz. (Interesting that they're sticking with tankfarm, here and not Kahurangi.)

One of the more encouraging aspects of the plan is that various parks, walkways and other open spaces will take up about 20 per cent of the 18ha site. This includes a public swimming pool - apparently competition-sized - sunken into the wharf deck and what they call "an iconic vantage point" at the northern end of the reclamation as a viewing point for harbour and city events.

This vantage point is a large mound, reflecting other volcanic promontories into the harbour, 70m across and 10m high, formed out of excavated spoil.

To the designers, this is the iconic structure people see as essential to a successful outcome. As an alternative for those whose idea of iconic leans to a built monument, the designers muse about a major museum or gallery built around and retaining the cement silos. They argue that re-using the silos provides an opportunity to retain elements of the site's past use. "International examples of the application of such industrial structures to cultural uses include the Tate Modern in London."

Well I'm rather fond of the silos viewed from a distance, but comparing them with the giant power station converted into the Tate Modern gallery is rather a long bow.

It's this area of producing something special, rather than just another tasteful mixed-used redevelopment, that to my mind needs more work. Deputy mayor Bruce Hucker, in welcoming the plans, declared Auckland City had a vision of the area becoming a "first-class international destination".

Certainly this effort is a million times better than the botch-up around the old central railway station that was Auckland's last attempt at large-scale, inner-city redevelopment. But I'm yet to be convinced this is the vision Dr Hucker talks of. And that's not the fault of the designers. The grand gesture - the Sydney Opera House, the Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao, even (dare I whisper it?) Te Papa in Wellington - is up to the brave visionary among our politicians - if there is such an animal. Or some equally visionary private benefactor.

This is our one-off opportunity to stamp our mark on a wondrous inner-city site. We are on track to do the very nice. Is it too much to dream of better?