KEY POINTS:
The redevelopment of Aotea Square has become the focus of lively debate. As the team behind the draft design, Ted Smyth and Associates welcome all constructive feedback because it will help refine the design and make Aotea Square an inviting and versatile public space for generations to come.
It is vital that Aucklanders have their say on the future of the city's civic space. It's also essential that they understand the constraints - which are many - that influence its development.
Auckland City Council has to repair major structural damage to the roof of the Civic carpark underneath Aotea Square. The best way to do this is to build a new roof over the top of the existing one.
The current square, paving, steps, grassed areas and most of the trees have to be removed. Under the proposed design, the three large pin oaks at the Queen St entrance will be retained.
But repairing the Civic carpark is not the sole motive for redeveloping Aotea Square. The council decided to revamp it years ago and in 2000 Ted Smyth and Associates won the competition for its new design.
Since then we have been involved in the process of redesigning it, on and off. We feel we know Aotea Square intimately and appreciate the feelings of the people who use it, as well as the often-conflicting requirements of the many groups who have a stake in its future.
It is a complex job. The brief for the Aotea Square redevelopment is as complicated as you can get. Contemporary public open space has to fulfil many different roles.
First of all, Aotea Square is a civic space, a place of casual meeting, as well as a place of protest and celebration.
Second, the square must address the multiple requirements of a large-scale performance and event space in the heart of the city. It needs to accommodate large crowds of 20,000 or more, as well as providing more intimate areas for smaller events.
And, of course, Aotea Square should appeal to locals and visitors by being different and distinct.
Urban planner Dushko Bogunovich has argued that the proposed design does not achieve these objectives. But his arguments seem to ignore the requirement to work within a budget, the problems associated with building on a carpark roof, and the interests of the many stakeholder groups.
He proposes an alternative design that is uneconomic and physically untenable.
The Aotea Square design process has included a rigorous series of analytical critiques over several years. Stakeholder groups have had regular input, and the design has been workshopped by urban design professionals and reviewed regularly by the Urban Design Panel, which was established by the council as a quality assurance watchdog. It also has the support of Ludo Campbell-Reid, the council's urban design group manager.
The proposed design is a painstakingly calibrated and carefully organised arrangement of sunlight and shade, trees, steps, walls and furniture. The design caters for a wide range of functional requirements, as well as providing a clear sense of place. It proposes a highly ordered, serene and elegant set of grass terraces that step gently down to a level paved area large enough to accommodate big crowds.
The design also forges a clear visual link between the Queen St steps on one side and the Aotea Centre steps on the other, establishing a firm relationship between the square and its urban context.
The geometrically ordered terraces would be shaded by groves of native trees and, in the main paved area, by nikau palms forming two stately, formal lines that reflect the square's civic function. Nikau are proposed here because they do well in planter boxes and their 2-3m of clear stem will not impede sightlines for audiences.
The draft design also establishes a clear sense of place through other features, such as the underlying geometry that links to the square's urban context, a geological map of Auckland's volcanoes embedded in the main paved area, and furniture reflecting Polynesian technologies.
It has been argued that Aotea Square should include exotic trees and flowers. But Aotea Square is not a park or a garden, it is an urban space that must fulfil multiple and complex requirements.
More importantly, it is critical that New Zealand cities develop their own values and traditions. The city landscape plays a major role in forging an urban realm that suits the conditions of contemporary life in the world's largest Polynesian city. The design language developed for Aotea Square is drawn from this place, our lives, our needs, and it responds to 21st century requirements.
The draft design is also adaptive: council made it clear from the outset that the budget would be tight. Some desirable features have not yet made it into the programme. However, there is a strong council will to continue the process of developing Aotea Square into a flagship urban space, with the possibility of adding cafes and bars, water features and major artworks. This proposal is only the beginning.
* Associate Professor Rod Barnett of Ted Smyth and Associates is the director of the Unitec landscape unit and has designed many award-winning landscapes in his 26-year career.
